New paddles, seats, & stuff

[frogpirate]

Greetings,

I've used this site quite a bit to get ideas for paddles and canoe stuff so I thought I'd show what I ended up making. Where I live people are more into kayaking and SUP than canoeing, so it's difficult to get local gear and help. I bought a custom made 14' canoe from a local manufacturer who has since retired. Back then I was only interested in solo tripping so I got it built with a comfortable solo seat. Now that my nephew is old enough to go fishing I'm refitting it with traditional seats which will also be more conducive to using traditional paddles solo tripping, or so I hope at least.



I made an ottertail style paddle out of a single piece of New Guinea Rosewood and took inspiration from a blog that collected traditional paddles and paddles from auctions etc for the handle design and embellishments. As an afterthought I taped off the end and put some epoxy on the tip to help limit damage. I wasn't happy with how that turned out so I found a post somewhere along the line that showed how to do a better epoxy tip with some fibreglass to strengthen it. I haven't been able to re-find that so I hope this might help people looking to do the same. I made one complete beavertail style laminating some New Guniea Walnut and Cherry together. I also have some half finished beavertail paddles - one is Cherry, Paulsonia, Australian Red Cedar, and Huon Pine, and another is Maple and Mahogany. I'm not really sure why I need more than 2 paddles custom fit to my size but after getting more and more ideas from the likes of this site and other talented people out there it gets a little addictive. I'm sure the "perfect paddle" is just around the corner...

The pictures should tell the story.










I laminated the handle in both directions on that one so as material gets removed while shaping it's going to get interesting and hopefully aesthetically pleasing in the shoulder / throat area.

I've started on the new seats as well, made from Rosewood. I used 3/4 stock and have been second guessing that choice as to whether it will be strong enough so I haven't added webbing to it just yet. I'll bite the bullet soon and if it breaks I'll just make another one. I think the smaller rear seat should be fine at 3/4, but the front seat which doubles as the main solo seat is what I'm worried about. It still needs some cleanup but here is where I'm at...




First mortice & tenons in a while so I'm happy with how tight they came out.

 

[kahel]

I'm not really sure why I need more than 2 paddles

is like engine capacity - you can never have enough of it

by the way ... your craftsmanship is something to be proud of.
I like it when people build their own objects! I really like your realization of the bumper edge!

regards
Michael

 

[Cruiser]

Nice work, just a suggestion for your seat joints. Where they join, a shallow dato will greatly enhance the strength of that joint.

Without it, once you sit in it, the lateral sheer force is on the weak part of the joint.

Brian

 

[Bob B.]

Frogpirate,

Nice job! Enjoyed the pictures. Love the handle detail on your paddles.

 

[Gamma1214]

Welcome to the site! Glad you found it helpful and nice to see you sharing what you've learned. (also a great opportunity for us if you do trip reports... we can live vicariously in the winter.)

I'm not really sure why I need more than 2 paddles custom fit to my size but after getting more and more ideas from the likes of this site and other talented people out there it gets a little addictive.

Most things covered on this site are mildly addictive. Happily, they're also relatively cheap if you DIY.

As Michael pointed out; really nice craftsmanship. You should consider building the nephew his own solo canoe.

Oh, yeah, the Rosewood seats... If you haven't already made the bow seat frame, consider laminating thin strips instead of using a solid piece of Rosewood. The lamination will be much stronger.

Carry on & thanks for checking in.

 

[frogpirate]

is like engine capacity - you can never have enough of it

by the way ... your craftsmanship is something to be proud of.
I like it when people build their own objects! I really like your realization of the bumper edge!

regards
Michael

Thanks Michael. I'm a hobbyist woodworker who enjoys hand tool woodworking but am also thankful for my machines. I'm just sad I didn't work out the improved edge for the one that I just painted epoxy on the end of. I just got the paddle making book everyone here recommends in my mailbox today and it's filled with awesome ideas so... i'm going to have to rev a little harder still.

Nice work, just a suggestion for your seat joints. Where they join, a shallow dato will greatly enhance the strength of that joint.

Without it, once you sit in it, the lateral sheer force is on the weak part of the joint.

Brian

Thanks Brian. The whole time I was cutting the joints all I could think was how I wasn't going to be loading them right, but all the "bought" seats I could find pictures of showed them done this way. On my next seat i'll definitely give your way a crack.

Frogpirate,

Nice job! Enjoyed the pictures. Love the handle detail on your paddles.

Thanks Bob.

Welcome to the site! Glad you found it helpful and nice to see you sharing what you've learned. (also a great opportunity for us if you do trip reports... we can live vicariously in the winter.)

Most things covered on this site are mildly addictive. Happily, they're also relatively cheap if you DIY.

As Michael pointed out; really nice craftsmanship. You should consider building the nephew his own solo canoe.

Oh, yeah, the Rosewood seats... If you haven't already made the bow seat frame, consider laminating thin strips instead of using a solid piece of Rosewood. The lamination will be much stronger.

Cheers. Regarding the thin laminations... Are all those added glue lines what's helping me out or is it more like fiberglass - If I make the thin strips out of different pieces of wood from my scrap pile, with different grain orientations, that is what is going to give me more strength? S cutting thin strips out of one piece of wood would not be recommended?

I'm keen to try this and also turn it into one of those fancy seats with a back rest that also helps when carrying the canoe like i've seen on here somewhere.

Trip reports... I actually go on most of my trips in the winter time here because i'm a seasonal worker - very busy in summer. Too many mosquitoes and ticks not to mention snakes and big hairy spiders. I am however doing a lot of research on multi day trips to do when I eventually make it to somewhere like Canada or the BWCA for a month or two. The problem, as they say, is choice. Every time I settle on some route, i'll see another video of somewhere even nicer.

Thanks.

 

[Gamma1214]

Are all those added glue lines what's helping me out or is it more like fiberglass - If I make the thin strips out of different pieces of wood from my scrap pile, with different grain orientations, that is what is going to give me more strength? S cutting thin strips out of one piece of wood would not be recommended?

First off, I would use epoxy for the seat lamination as it's probably stronger and almost certainly more waterproof than most glues (I glued my first laminated paddle &, although it seems ok, I don't completely trust it).

The way that I've done it is to cut strips of whatever wood I'm using for trim (Sassafras on the current build), alternate them with White Oak (although heavier, it's strong). I just cut 3/16 inch (approx. 5mm) strips all from the same board and I don't worry about orientation of the strips.

I soak the strips in water for a few days, put them in a homemade bending jig to dry for a week or so and then paint the epoxy onto all contact surfaces and clamp them back in the jig overnight. Afterward they'll need run across a joiner just to square everything up & make the rest of the seat frame.

I made new bending jigs for the current build and the curved seating area on this one will be almost 24 inches (61 cm) wide. You can see how I did the jigs and bent the strips here. If you follow the thread, I'll be epoxying them in a couple of days. (not that I do any of it "right" but, so far, it's worked out.)

Looking forward to seeing your posts.