How to Make Kayak Paddles
Kayaking is a fun and inexpensive way to enjoy the outdoors. Making a kayak paddle requires some supplies and tools but not a lot of do-it-yourself skills.
Things You'll Need
- Square spruce, 2-by-2 inches
- Spokeshave
- Sandpaper
- 1 or 2 3-mm marine ply boards
- Jigsaw
- Waterproof epoxy
- Anti-rust metal enamel
- Linseed oil
- Turpentine
Instructions
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1
Make the shaft. The shaft can be made from a square pole of spruce, around 2-by-2-inches thick. The pole should be as long as you desire your paddles to be. When selecting the wood for the shaft, look for a piece that has no knots and a straight grain. Using a spokeshave, trim down the corners, but do not trim where the shaft and the blade will be joining. Trim down the corners once, then trim down the resulting corners, then trim down those corners until the poles are relatively round and smooth, then sand.
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2
Taper the ends of the shaft where the blades will connect, bringing the shaft to slightly less than half an inch thick at the end.
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3
To make the blade, draw the shape of the blade that you want on a sheet of 3-mm marine ply. You will need two sheets of marine ply if your paddle will have blades at either end, and you'll need to cut both sheets at the same time by screwing them together. Using a jigsaw, cut the blade from the marine ply and then trim and sand. A typical blade will be approximately 2-feet long. The shape depends on your preference. It is important to sand the blades as well as possible.
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4
Lay the blades against their seat on the shaft, and mark the outline of the shaft on the back of the blade. Coat the area on both shaft and blade where they will touch each other with waterproof epoxy. Stick the two pieces to each other so that the seat of the shaft rests on the blade where you marked the outline, and allow time to dry. Clamp together if needed.
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5
Finish the shaft by varnishing with linseed oil and turpentine, and paint the blades with anti-rust oil based metal paints.
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Tips & Warnings
Keep in mind, the harder the wood, the heavier your paddle will be.
