Nick, A one piece paddle is a relic! Right up there with my grandpappy's muzzleloader over the mantle. ; ) Actually, I agree with you that a one piece is a very strong paddle and once a blade design is found that suits ones primary uses, it will arguably last longer than a take apart. I thought the Lendal crank was interesting so I bought it. I bought the Lendal 4 piece with nylon carbon blades and a full 5 cm shorter than my other EP's. I wanted a good rock garden and sea boat surfing paddle and chose the Nordkapp blades. A 4 piece paddle such as Lendal's are well made. I need a 4 piece because I fly with paddles at least twice a year. The joint you use an allen wrench on is replaceable. I had an Aquabound 4 piece WW paddle that sat under my WW boats float bags as a spare. Before I destroyed it, it's joints were loosening up and I was not all that high on it after a while. A 2 piece paddle is subject to greater potential damage than a 4 piece in the airline's hands. I do not want to start a trip with a hastily purchased aluminum Carlysle on my deck and my spare as a primary. I also do not want to deal with all the packaging at my destination that protects my equipment. Aside from Lendal's nice blade designs, their interchangability is key. Werner's blades are just as good, but AFAIK not interchangeable. My second crank purchase was a 210cm (I know, I know, a slave to fashion) with the kinetic blades. I do switch them around a bit. I like the Nordkapp blades for their bite and I like the 210cm length. I switched things around and it was my primary for a trip I took a couple months ago where we launched and landed in surf every day. I normally use the kinetic blade with the 210 length, otherwise. Last year I actually broke a tube doing something oafish and when I got home it was a $57 replacement section and not another broken paddle going up on the wall. I prefer a 210 now to a 215 so length and feather variability don't matter so much to me. However, my buddy bought that feature, for an extra $25 bucks, and the 5 cm variability was better for him when the kayak he was in was 3.5 inches wider and had more freeboard than his home boat. There are 2 issues with the Lendal. You have to shoot freshwater on the joint to keep it clean. That's not as maintenance free as a 1 piece. The second issue is, *where'd I put that damn key*. I have it lashed permanently in a pfd pocket, now. I'm actually surprised you are not making a woodstrip version of your own wing blade design. When you turn one of your boats into a sectional and paddle someplace you've always wanted to paddle you may find it easier to leave the one piece behind and bring along a 4 piece. Cheers, Rob G In a message dated 5/19/2005 5:58:45 AM Pacific Standard Time, nick_at_guillemot-kayaks.com writes: The people I paddle with are all talking about getting the latest 4- piece paddle: take-apart shaft with replaceable blades. I can understand the use of a take-apart for an on-deck spare or if you have a tiny little car and can't carry a 1-piece, but 4-piece??? The other big thing in paddles these days is an adjustable ferrule that lets you change the length or feather. What is the appeal of these things? Do people really swap out blades all the time? Are they really changing the length and feather? I can understand if you are a new paddler and don't know what you like, but are these features really useful for an experienced paddler? I personally make my own paddles, but have always felt that a 1-piece will be lighter and stronger as well as being immune to jamming and loosening. But it is almost impossible to find a 1-piece paddle intended for sea kayaks these days. Stores don't stock them and catalogs don't list them. They are typically a special order item. I did special order a wing paddle recently. I got a 1-piece with heavier glass blades. It was much cheaper than the full carbon take- apart and only barely heavier. One-piece paddles are still easily available for whitewater. My first impression is that manufacturers and dealers are just trying to save oversized shipping charges, or maybe it is a way to giving the appearance of higher value to support higher retail prices. The replaceable blade system is probably a good way to sell more blades as people lose or break one and have to buy two to replace it. Why are people buying these things and why can't you find a good 1- piece any more? *************************************************************************** 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 Thu May 19 2005 - 07:53:59 PDT
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