Making one's own foam float can be as simple as acquiring a piece of minicell foam 1.25 to 1.5 inches thick, cutting out two pieces about 1.5 times the width of your paddle blade and about 3 inches longer than your paddle blade, and taping the two pieces together with duct tape. No bag or other item is necessary. You'll have to experiment a little so that the paddle blade fits between the two pieces of minicell quite snugly, or else work out some way of tethering the paddle float to the shaft of your paddle, inside the paddle blade - and there are a few very simple ways of arranging that tether if you want to go that route. Takes about 10 minutes to make the whole thing - cost can vary depending on what sort of minicel you use, but in any event it will be quite inexpensive. Most large hardware stores or home building centers will have the foam you need. For the thicker blades such as those on Inuit-style paddles you'll have to carve out a little hollow on each "inside" surface of the float before taping the two sides together. I used a closed-cell foam float like that described above for several years, and finally gave it to a friend, who still uses it as far as I know. The disadvantage of a relatively bulky item to store under stern bungies is the major difficulty I've experienced. Even with the dimensions I've mentioned, a paddle float re-entry and roll is easy, and with minimal attention to balance an outrigger self-rescue "paddle-float self-rescue") can be done. Bill Hansen Ithaca NY *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - Any opinions or suggestions expressed here are solely those of the writer(s). You must assume the entire responsibility for reliance upon them. All postings copyright the author. Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
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