One of my paddles has developed a fracture on one of the ends. I would really like to see if I can' fix it my self VS buying a new paddle and tossing the other one. This particular paddle is like 4 years old and I don't think I can send it back to the manufacturer for repairs. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
[img:center]http://www.flickr.com/photos/bjs__portfolio/5615506840/in/photostream[/img]

If you're not too picky about appearance, just get out the epoxy and the fiberglass tape. A single thickness/layer of tape should do the job, then a little sanding to smooth things out, some black paint..... My current spare paddle is one that broke clean in half; I repaired it by rejoining the break with a glued wooden dowel (inside) and glue and tape outside. It's now probably stronger than brand new.

Duct tape. But seriously, you really should take a look at a couple of the new ferrule systems that are out there. They are so good it's scary. The ones that Werner is using are superb.

Is there a way to cut off the broken part and attach a new piece? I saw on kayakproshop.com they had these parts called
paddle ferrules I was wondering if there was a way to cut off the cracked part and attach this ferrule in its place? The problem is If I were to cut the paddle, how could I re-attach it and still keep the structural integrity of the paddle?

Voyager, your simplest, easiest fix is to just to epoxy some fiberglass tape around the paddle shaft where the crack is. If you choose to cover the whole length of the crack and cover the little hole, that's fine--just re-drill the hole after everything is dry. Replacing the broken area with a new piece just moves the repair to a new area.

good call.
Where would be a good place to get fiberglass tape?

Any decent marine supply should have it. 1", 2" & 6" is common. Epoxy resin is $$$ but you can buy a small amount some times. They make small patch kits. West Marine or the likes.


http://www.westmarine.com/webapp/wcs/sto...;classNum=10297

http://www.westmarine.com/webapp/wcs/sto...;classNum=11071


Place by me has 1" too.

They seem to be two separate products. Which one would I need to get?

Voyager, just buy a couple yards (so you'll have plenty for the next project) @$2.99/yard of 2" fiberglass tape from West Systems. Then go to any hardware store and buy a small quantity of 2-part clear epoxy. They often sell this in a little system of two side-by-side hypodermic-type syringes so that when you press on the plunger, two equal quantities of hardener and resin come out together. You stir them together really well, apply it to the Very Clean and Dry repair area, saturate the fiberglass tape with it also, then wrap the tape around the paddle shaft like you were wrapping a Band-Aid around a finger. No-brainer. Follow instructions; keep things neat. Sand everything when it dries so it looks to your satisfaction.

One is the tape and one is the resin. It might be easier to take it where someone works on fiberglass and they could do it in a jiff when they are doing something else at the same time.