There's lots of materials out there on making these. I used this excellant source.

   Making a West Greenland Paddle

by Chuck Holst
 
http://www.qajaqusa.org/QK/makegreen2.pdf
 
 

 11 February 2017

 Started today on a Greenland paddle for the kayak. It will be a laminate of walnut, ash and cherry.

Lots of clamps needed for this sort of thing. Actually, when I first met my wife I thought she said she had clamps. I thought, this is the woman for me! Turns out she said cramps, but I loves her anyway.

 

 

 

 

14 February 2017

 Finished the paddle tonight after a nap brought on from working 27 hours, a couple fire calls, and cause, well, I am 60.

Contours cut with a spokeshave, then sanded 40, 60, 100, 220 with Tung oil finish. Nice feel and weight despite being all hardwoods; ash, walnut and cherry blade edges for rock whackin.

You know, I once knew a man who couldn't operate a spokeshave. His wife left him for a traveling badger salesman, and he himself was later killed and eaten by a rhino. There's an object lesson in there somewhere.

 

 

15 February 2017

Making a second paddle to carry as a spare. Not as snazzy as the first one, this is made from cedar. It will be fitted with a ferrule so it can be carried in two pieces.

 

 

18 February 2017

My new apprentice, my grandson, and I are busy. Making two paddles, a doll bed for his sister, picked up lumber for his cousin's toy box, and planning kayak builds for him, his sister and other cousin, the 5 year olds.

 

19 February 2017

I did all the detailed layout on both our paddles for the spokeshave work. Lots of finicky measurement and close tolerance lines. If one of these is off by as little as 1/32" your kayak could skip off the atmosphere or descend too steeply. Or maybe I got that confused with Apollo 13.

 

 

23 February 2017

Did the first shaping on my spare paddle with the spoke-shave. Waiting on the part to make it a two piece paddle to serve as a spare, mounted behind the cockpit. There's nothing like the feel of a sharp tool and the smell of cedar to put everything in perspective.

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 24 March 2017

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

http://www.duckworksbbs.com/hardware/misc/saw-frh/grnlnd.htm

 5APR17

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 14APR17

Finished the spare paddle. Glassed, epoxyied, and two finish coats of marine varnish.

Main and spare greenland paddles.

Now, if the lakes would just melt...