John, Most doctors will tell you that arthritus usually begins in the lower thumb joints. you just learn to live with it ...., it comes and goes. As for the paddle handle wrap, I might suggest a tennis racquet grip. They are fairly water resistant and come in all types of grip from "sticky" to "dry". You could use some other sort of "Tape" to build up the diameter and finish it off with the racquet grip. Ron in MN *************************************************************************** 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/ ***************************************************************************
I'd experiment a little with minicell. - - - - - - - Any thoughts out there on alternatives to duct tape? Thanks John Blackburn ------------------------------------------ The information contained in this e-mail message may be privileged, confidential, and protected from disclosure. If you are not the intended recipient, any further disclosure or use, dissemination, distribution, or copying of this message or any attachment is strictly prohibited. If you think that you have received this e-mail message in error, please delete it and notify the sender. *************************************************************************** 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/ ***************************************************************************
>> His recommendation was to build up the diameter of the loom of my Euro paddle with duct tape. Granted that this approach might work, it is, however, a rather inelegant solution and I am thinking of something less "red neck" like modifying foam bike hand grips, or using foam pipe insulation, as a more permanent and lighter solution. Any thoughts out there on alternatives to duct tape? Thanks John Blackburn >> If it is a two-piece paddle, slip large-diameter heat shrink tubing over the loom and *gently* heat it till it snugs up. If a hairdryer doesn't do it, try a heat gun or use the heat from a stove-top burner, always using the minimum amount of heat that shrinks the tubing. For a larger-diameter grip, wrap foam core tape around the loom first. I used this method, applying the foam core tape longitudinally instead of around the loom and carving it with a sharp X-Acto blade, to create oval sections on my old Wind Swift paddle. Heat shrink tubing can be found at electronic and electrical supply houses. It typically shrinks to a maximum of about half the original diameter (or is that "minimum" in this case?). A wraparound heat shrink tape is also available, but I have no experience with it. I have also used heat shrink tubing to protect from scratches the steel tubing frames of my wife's and my take-apart Travel Chair 189 beach chairs (which, by the way, are being discontinued by the manufacturer -- order yours now from REI). We like these chairs because we sit off the ground in them, unlike the Therm-a-Rest chairs, and they pack small enough to fit alongside the skeg box in our Romanys. Chuck Holst *************************************************************************** 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/ ***************************************************************************
--- Ron Dunnington <rbdunningtons1_at_charter.net> wrote: > You > could use some other sort of "Tape" to build up the diameter and finish it > off with the racquet grip. You could also use bicycle handlebar tape. I don't know how well it sticks to fiberglass or if it works in salt water, but may be thicker than racquet grip tape. It also comes in many "fun" colors. ===== Elias Ross / 470 2nd Ave S #313 / Kirkland WA 98033 http://www.maison-otaku.net/~genman __________________________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! Web Hosting - Let the expert host your site http://webhosting.yahoo.com *************************************************************************** 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/ ***************************************************************************
[demime could not interpret encoding binary - treating as plain text] I was already in my 50's when I starated paddling with doubleblades. I had my first paddle, an Eddyline Swift double indexed, just to give me a larger loom and let me keep my hands in a more open relaxed position because I am getting arthritis in my hands and the back of my right gets very painful if I have to grip something tightly. I haven't checked lately but there used to be kits to index your paddle. They have some foam and a little piece of plastic that allows you to feel the correct placement of the paddle. I never needed the sticks but the foam enlarges the loom. However some of them are too short to be useful in all conditions. (I had a kayak that severely weathercocked and I would compensate by paddling with a shorter paddle on one side so sometimes I would have to hold the padedle in a place that was not enlarged. You might also want to check out the padded tape the bicycle shops sell. The adhesive should be waterproof as they sell it for off road bikes and the whole bike is often out in the rain. This might be an issue we want to take up with paddlemakers. It seems to me that most sea kayakers are middleaged and getting older all the time so there should be a large group of people wanting the larger looms. Marilyn Kircus Date: Thu, 14 Nov 2002 12:42:22 -0800 From: John Blackburn <digipixs_at_erols.com> Subject: [Paddlewise] Thumb pain This past year I have been experiencing pain in my thumb joints, the ones that are at the base of the thumb that you can't see, located inside the hand. I've also found that in switching back and forth between my greenland and euro paddles, the discomfort occurs with the euro paddle 100% of the time and very much less so with the greenland. My Euro paddle is an AT crank that I just love and would hate to give it up. I had a chance to talk to my Brother in Law this past week who just happens to be a damn good hand surgeon and he confirmed my initial self diagnosis that the greater loom diameter of the GP helps. What doesn't help is that I've screwed up these same joints sking and it's not going to get better, but he said the thicker loom will help with the pressure on the joint and postpone the more radical solution of replacing the joint. His recommendation was to build up the diameter of the loom of my Euro paddle with duct tape. Granted that this approach might work, it is, however, a rather inelegant solution and I am thinking of something less "red neck" like modifying foam bike hand grips, or using foam pipe insulation, as a more permanent and lighter solution. Any thoughts out there on alternatives to duct tape? Thanks John Blackburn *************************************************************************** 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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