Re: [Paddlewise] Cranked Shaft Paddles

From: Michael Daly <michaeldaly_at_home.com>
Date: Wed, 14 Nov 2001 11:34:49 -0500
From: "Joshua Teitelbaum" <teitelba_at_post.tau.ac.il>

> Can anyone recommend other paddles with cranked shafts?

I too have a Lendal Archipelago crank shaft and love it.  Since a variable 
feather adjustment was a priority for me, this model was one of the few that
met my standards and was reasonably priced.  I don't mind the weight - it's
lighter than my other paddles and plenty solid.  I went with the nylon blades 
since I have to deal with the rocky shores of Georgian Bay.

The lightest paddles I found locally are made by Current Designs.  A 
paddling friend has a CD Feather, all carbon fibre, that is lighter than 
my red cedar Greenland storm paddle.  My concern was that they might
be too light!  You don't get the impression that they are really tough, but
I'll be the first to admit that this could be an illusion.

The AT Exception paddles aren't very light, but are solid.  They are _very_ 
expensive in Canada and they claim they can't make the size I wanted
(220cm ?!?! - even though it's listed on their web site - I was blasted by a 
couple of folks when I listed the problems I had with AT and their local retailer on 
Paddlewise last year)  Some folks have complained about the joint.  I think
Lendal's joint is a better design.

Waterstick makes a few bent shaft paddles.  I haven't tried any of them, but they
give me the impression they are big on gimmicks.  Rather pricey.  

There are a couple of companies making quasi-bent shaft designs.  The shaft
is straight but the hand grip is shaped to give the same angle as a bent shaft.
They tend to have smaller diameter shafts to compensate, which I don't like.

If weight is a priority, I'd recommend looking at the Current Designs.  I'm sure others
will pitch in with their recommendations.

Mike




***************************************************************************
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/
***************************************************************************
Received on Wed Nov 14 2001 - 08:28:00 PST

This archive was generated by hypermail 2.4.0 : Thu Aug 21 2025 - 16:30:45 PDT