Help choosing Ke Nalu paddle for surfing!

[supcymru]

Hi,
I'm looking to upgrade my paddle to a Ke Nalu and was hoping that some of you could offer advice regarding which Ke Nalu blade and shaft is suited for surfing? How do the Wiki 84 and Ho'oloa 84 compare? Is there a noticeable difference between the elite and xtuf blades? Finally, what shafts are you preferring?
Here in the UK there is about a £60 difference in price between the xtuf and elite paddles. If there's anything that you feel I should also consider then please feel free to mention it!
I'm 5'8" and 85kg and surf shorebreak up to 3ft.
Cheers in advance and a Happy New Year to you all!

[PonoBill]

xTuf blades are heavier. You might not notice the difference for surfing, but if you race or downwind, you will.  My current favorite blade for surfing is the Mana. But any of those three blades is a great blade. the big difference with the Mana is a somewhat better catch and kind of "stroke autopilot" that turns the blade straight is you get a little sloppy. Consistent power, excellent catch, very fast paddle.

the big benefit to Ke Nalu besides the excellent quality is the ability to change your blade, shaft, handle or length with a heat gun if and when you want.

Sorry, I can't telly you much about the Ho'oleau. Haven't tried them.

If your shoulders are a little dodgy, get the xTuf shaft. If they're good, go with the 100Flex or 90Flex. I prefer the 100 when my shoulders are behaving.

[capobeachboy]

I'm about your size and use the Mana 82 since it came out but prior to that I used the Wiki 74 in xTuf and it's an awesome blade for the surf.

[dns]

If you're at all in danger of hitting your blade on rock or reef I'd go xTuf. Glass is more resistant to impact damage than carbon.

[APPST_Paddle]

I'm thinking of doing the same, I started with the Ho'oloa 84, but felt like it didn't have enough power and went with the 95. My paddling I like to think has progressed, and I've gone down in length quite a bit to where I'd like a smaller paddle for quick strokes. I'm all surf, the only flatwater I do is if I'm just itching to get in the water.

Thoughts?

[mrbig]

For surfing I use a tiny wiki with the 90 flex carbon shaft. I have two Ho'Oloas a 95 and an 86 that are gathering dust. Use the Mana 82 for FW exclusively.

I also have two Kialoas when I wanna go high aspect

SUPjorge has my giant Molokai.

I am old, small, and alligator armed so my sperience is probably useless. But it IS experiential rather than theoretical..

[NorthJerzSurfer]

I'm 100 shaft with Wiki 84 blade. Surf only.  I've broken a carbon blade surfing and just had a handle split. Lane at ke Nalu has been good about any issues. ( Havent addressed handle yet)

I have two kenalu setups with some extra blades and handles. I really love them.

I'm debating going down to a wiki 74 blade for my smallest paddle for my smallest board since it's almost underwater in standing position  and I need a really really quick stroke to stay balanced.

For reference I run a 90 blade 100 shaft for my longboard sup to really get momentum catching waves way out back.

Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

[supcymru]

Thank you all for responding to my many questions!

How does the xtuf(S) shaft compare with the 100 flex? I've been sup'ing for about 6 years and consider myself a low intermediate surfer (at best probably!!) and was wondering if I would notice the difference? Im leaning towards the xtuf wiki 84 with the xtuf(S) shaft. My boards range from an 8'11 Allwave to a 10'8 Hanalei so the 84 could be a good fit.

Blwyddyn Newydd Dda (Happy New Year)!

[PonoBill]

xTuf(S) shafts are unidirectional carbon plus fiberglass, so they flex a bit and then lock. If you think you'd like some initial flex, especially to spare your shoulders, then they're great.

I keep one in reserve for when my shoulders are acting up, but as soon as they stop waking me up at 3:00AM, I go back to 100Flex. I like the instant response. 100 Flex is 100 percent carbon. 90 Flex is 90 percent carbon and 10 percent glass to give a little flex. I can hardly tell the difference, it's not enough to spare my dodgy shoulders, but a lot of people swear by them.

[SunovaBouy]

Hi supcymru, I'm UK South Coast based and debated long and hard on which new paddle to buy. I was using a Starboard Enduro but the laminate separated and thier warranty team just shrugged thier shoulders and ignored my moans.
So, I went for a Ke Nalu 8" WIKI 84 BLADE AND XTUF 's' SHAFT from the SupHut and whilst I've only used it 5 times so far, it's been a revelation to my stroke. I like the flex in the shaft, the blade digs hard into the mush we get here and my drive/stroke ratio has gone up enabling me to drive harder and longer for waves.

I did consider Black Project paddles, it was a close call.

Hope that helps.

[supcymru]

PonoBill-thanks for the clarification regarding the different the shafts. It's really helpful reading your thoughts and knowledge.

SunovaBouy-thanks for your helpful input. I was chatting to Matt recently at the SupHut. I'm very lucky to have the shop so close! He's a great guy and always willing to spend that extra bit of his time to go through the various options available. From what you describe the same paddle set up that you have sounds ideal for South Wales conditions too. He also suggested the smaller wiki as a possibility too but the blade looks tiny!

[Area 10]

Blade size is a very personal choice. There are no rights or wrongs. The same can be said of shaft flex. I doubt you'd notice a huge difference between the xtuf S and the 100 for surfing. I have both and the difference isn't huge for general paddling. 84 is pretty small but many people use smaller blades than that. It depends on how you want to get yourself into waves - fewer harder strikes or machine-gun it with a small blade. Slightly bigger blades can be nicer for bracing but then again the smaller blades are definitely kinder to the body so it's all swings and roundabouts. I dint think the 84 with an xtuf shaft would be a mistake. In time you might want something else (or maybe not) but you could say that of any paddle. With good technique even a small blade won't slip significantly in the water, so there really isn't much to fear. The more important thing to get right is the paddle length. And that's a whole different can of worms...

[SunovaBouy]

Well. Glad I could help, but it's only my view.

My stroke was laboured, I tended to dig and drag for waves, clearly at some point I was going to get some sort of strain injury and I did, right side peck.. sore.
Waves here are mushy and random, we do get sets here but these are few and far between, in the main it's ground swell mush of varying heights and randomly spaced. So I'd gotten into the habit of trying for every wave, dragging myself all over the place and I got tired quickly. Different conditions down at my mates in St Ives, just turn up, stroke twice and bingo!

Over this way we have SupMag editor out most days testing stuff, it was he who commented on my stroke (and my mates) and as I was looking for another paddle he recommended some very good brands, said my stroke needed upping and a smaller blade would help.. damn right it has. I also have a short stick, it's my choice on length and many folks will comment, but at just head high for me means I now up pace and less stress.. I like it.

I tried to demo some paddles before buying, but no one over here was willing to let one out for a day, so I chose a well respected brand, service and availability, and look.

I'm happy, be good if you get the opportunity to try a few brands out before spending £250-£350.

Best of luck.

[supcymru]

So, I opted for the 84 wiki with the xtuf(s) shaft. Went to my local sup shop and had a good look at the other ke nalu paddles and some other brands and had some great advice and plenty of sup talk. It was interesting to compare the different shapes and sizes. The wiki looks like a great paddle and I can't wait to use it!

[Area 10]

Good choice.