Canoe Paddle - Unfinished

Amazing quality !!

Reallly nice. Sand w 220. Stain and finish and you have 100$ paddle

Great and durable however we used ours for decor. I don't think this would last very long rowing in a lake.Good product though!

This is a nice paddle to finish the way you want it to look. I had a process and it kept me busy for a couple weeks. 1) sand it to a fine finish: 1000 at least.2) 50/50 Linseed oil and Mineral spirits. At least 4 separate coats.I know how I like my paddle to act in the water and I am a one-side only (even solo) paddler. I also do not remove the blade when moving forward just knife it forward then move the boat forward by trying to push my hips forward and using the blade as if the water has the consistency of Greek yogurt.This paddle has the appropriate amount of flex to handle my paddling style. I actually tried to get it to snap but it bent like a French curve with the hydraulic pressures against all my might for probably 20 strokes. I just slid back to the dock for a 1/8 mile.I sanded it a very certain way which makes it seem to shoot forward after you J-flatten and lift slightly while pushing the blade forward.1) Put the blade in your lap with handle right and sand the far side drastically towards the underside, 20-30 degrees.2) Sand near side as flat as you can.3) Flip paddle blade but keep the handle where it is on your right.I sanded mine so drastically it flattened out the low part of the shaft too. I wanted to make it more hydrodynamic anyway since it hardly ever gets removed from the water. I believe the flattened part of the shaft provides just a little bit more of overall flexibility as well.Yes I have busted several wooden canoe paddles, a whitewater kayak paddle and a couple whitewater paddles. Both times I had to yank one away from my rear passenger so we didn’t die. That was good days. Now I just poke around in my canoe trying to break stuff I made so I know that it’s going to hold up when I need it. Have fun!

I wasn't sure what to expect, but this was better than I imagined. I thought I might be spending many evenings sanding, but a modest amount of effort in one evening with 1000 grit sandpaper (suggested by another reviewer) has me very close to what I want. I'll be ready to start oiling after this weekend sanding with 1500 and 2000 grit sandpaper.