Re: [Paddlewise] Paddle questions for folders (boats that is)

On Sat, Sep 14, 2002 at 08:57:02AM -0400, Gypsykayak_at_aol.com wrote:

> I have a Mitchell 4-piece and it is soo uncomfortably heavy since
> I'm used to paddling with a mid-Swift graphite/carbon paddle.  Swift
> quoted me $300+ for a 4-piece..but their regular translucents are in
> the $220+ range.  Anyone know why?

Here are the current (2002) Swift retail prices:

- Swift Breakdown           ++  $239   
- Swift 1 Piece             ++  $215
- Swift Breakdown Fabric    ++  $269
- Swift 1 Piece Fabric      ++  $245
- Swift Graphite Breakdown  ++  $375
- Swift Graphite 1 Piece    ++  $336
- Swift 4 Piece             ++  $305
- Swift 4 Piece Fabric      ++  $330

The prices are for any of the three blade style.  The non-graphite
models are translucent fiberglass, amber, red, or blue.  The "fabric"
option refers to embedding one of a fair selection of interestingly
patterned fabrics into the fiberglass (patters very from year to
year, and the good ones always sell out early).  The Graphite blades
are, as one might expect, black.  The shafts on all the paddles are
graphite.

So, to answer your questions, they're charging you $66 to add two
extra joints to the shaft.  How easy or difficult that is in the area
of the blade of a Swift paddle, I don't know.  It's raining cats and
dogs here at the moment, so I'll skip the trip to the garage to
inspect my 2-piece Swifts.

> I wish there was somewhere I could try different 4-piece paddles at
> the same time.  I also need a small shaft and the Mitchell is
> regular size.

When you find a place, let me know.  If you find a dealer that has one
brand of 4-piece, you're lucky.  The best bet I've heard of is The
Kayak Center in Rhode Island.  They carry Lendal, but with the way the
Lendal system is set up, you can mix shafts and blades nearly to your
hearts content, so you can try out a lot of different paddle
combinations within a single brand line.  I wouldn't be surprised if
they carried Werner too, since it's such a big brand.

> sandy kramer

> miami where my boss (Miami-Dade Police spokesperson Pete Andreu)
> stood in the hot sun at Alligator Alley while our Bomb Squad
> searched a suspicious/suspected terrorist vehicle.

Unless the "suspicious/suspected terrorist vehicle" was, say, a Klepper
Aerius I Expedition that just happened into Alligator Alley, what
exactly does this have to do with kayaking ;-)

-.- jwd

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