Paddle shaft

[Adapt]

Has anyone replaced a broken paddle shaft before? I'm trying to figure out how to remove or bore out the shaft on the inside of the blade.

[supuk]

Can't promise it will work but I have been lucky a few times by using a hack saw blade and cuting just the shaft wall on the inside in one ore two places and then carefully using a small screwdriver trying to crack the broken bits out you need to be carefully not to damage the neck of the blade when your doing it.

[LaPerouseBay]

I had a wood shaft in a quickblade oc-1 blade.  The wood cracked, so I removed the wood and glued in a carbon shaft.  It lasted a long time, but eventually cracked.  Like supuk says, you have to be very careful not to damage the neck of the blade on the inside where the shaft goes.  I had a small scratch deep inside that eventually worked it's way out.  Carbon doesn't fail slowly, it explodes.  I was lucky to be at the end of a downwinder when the blade fell off.   

If you try it, use a very good epoxy to fasten the new shaft.  Bottom line, I don't recommend removing the shaft from a blade.  It's probably going to fail.  Not as big a deal on a standup, but I could have lost my oc-1 if the blade had snapped earlier in the run.  Now I always carry a spare.     

[PonoBill]

Sure. Most blades are assembled to the shaft with a long-cure epoxy. It's tough stuff. You can heat the frog (the tube the shaft pushes into) VERY carefully and evenly with a heat gun and sometimes get the shaft out. The biggest challenge is that carbon fiber is not a great heat conductor, and the frog will probably be hotter than the shaft and the glue joint. The epoxy glue should start to liquify at around 260-270 degrees but the epoxy in the carbon fiber matrix will be getting soft too. Anything you can do to get the shaft hotter than the frog, or at the very least slow the heating process so you get even heat, will increase your chance of success.

Understand that if you get the shaft out, either by boring it out, scraping it out, or melting the glue, that you will have weakened the blade some. You will inevitably either scratch it on the inside or weaken the epoxy with a big heat cycle. When I've done that in the past I wrapped the frog and the top of the blade in a layer of s-cloth. I still have one paddle I did that to--in fact it became our much-abused Mule paddle for developing our blade shapes.

[gorgebob]

I have done this the hard way with a Werner handle. Drilling, chipping, grinding. A drill with sandpaper attached worked well for the final part. Tape one edge piece of 80 grit to a bit and wrap it around the bit. Run the drill so the sand paper follows in the direction to wrap the sandpaper around the bit. The sandpaper will cut into the left over chunks of epoxy . Redo with 200 grit for the last small pieces.

[Tecpartner]

Has anyone removed and replaced the handle on a Werner paddle?   Any tips?

[Dwight (DW)]

Has anyone removed and replaced the handle on a Werner paddle?   Any tips?

YES. it's pretty easy. Cut the handle off 2 1/4" below seam. This will miss the internal handle neck.

Next saw cut with hacksaw blade, a spiral cut on the shaft portion over the handle neck. Once the saw breaks through the carbon and hits the internal plastic neck on the handle, stop. Then pry with a screwdriver in the saw cut gap. You can peal the carbon shaft right off the handle.

I hope you wanted the paddle at least 2 1/4" shorter

[Tecpartner]

DW:
I was going for 1 1/2" but I can probably go 2 1/4" and be OK.  Thanks for the advice.

[upwinder]

Here's a link to a shaft repair vid one of the Qld Breezers put together a few months ago:

http://breeze.weatherwise.com.au/forums/Stand-Up-Paddle/SUP/Shaft-Repair-Video/?SearchTerms=shaft,repair

[PonoBill]

Has anyone removed and replaced the handle on a Werner paddle?   Any tips?

Assuming you used 5 minute epoxy you should be able to get it off with a heat gun without cutting. Just take your time and keep the overall temperature below 200 (if water boils on the shaft it's too hot. Let the heat soak for a few minutes and pull out the handle. You can drill a hole in the PVC and put a big screw into it to give you something to pull on. Most 5 minute epoxies get soft at about 190F.

[stoneaxe]

Has anyone removed and replaced the handle on a Werner paddle?   Any tips?

If its a broken handle you're fixing and don't really want to go shorter you can simply shape a wooden plug to fit inside the handle and epoxy (generously) in place. I did this to my old werner many moons ago (after cutting it down the 1st time it broke and replacing) and its stronger than the original.

[Tecpartner]

This would be the original Werner handle, and original bonding agent.