Paddles

[blisterfree]

Richard,

Photo attached.

The Manta Ray carbon/nylon blade at photo-left cracked as I was attempting a launch from an ocean beach; a rogue wave pushed me back ashore amongst some rocks, and the paddle took the brunt of it. Air temps were warm, but that's probably irrelevant in this case. However it wasn't a particularly hard hit, and the damage surprised me. Note that I subsequently filed the raw edges. It still works in a pinch.

The blade at right (the other of the original pair) cracked just the other day during mild WW play in shallow rocky water. Air temps in the 70'sF and 50'sF water.

In both cases, the blades showed no prior signs of damage, no hairline cracking, only cosmetic scratches that are inconsistent with how the blades ultimately failed. Both blades had received prior rock hits and other standard forms of wear and tear, certainly nothing out of the ordinary. The paddle was purchased in late '06 and the blades had relatively low mileage prior to damage.

Again, these were the old Manta Ray carbon/nylon blades which AB appears to now be offering only in AL and fiberglass. Rather than going with another MR carbon (still available as a warranty replacement, I believe), I'm considering a pair of MR fiberglass blades for my existing MR carbon twill paddle shaft, assuming they're considered to be more durable. I also wonder whether the new Splat whitewater cf/nylon blades would be more robust than those of my Manta Ray, as a result of increased thickness or superior construction. The Splat is a larger blade, obviously, and might suit me better for WW purposes, but has it proven to be more durable?

IMG_0402.JPG (85.11 KiB) Viewed 1554 times

[blisterfree]

The Splat is a larger blade, obviously, and might suit me better for WW purposes, but has it proven to be more durable?

Update: According to Alpacka C.S., yes, the Splat is indeed a stronger blade than was the Manta Ray carbon/nylon, which was eliminated from Alpacka's (and Aqua Bound's) lineup in no small part because of its demonstrated weaknesses. The Splat blade is apparently quite difficult to crack or break under routine WW use including shallow, rocky rivers. A good solution for existing Manta Ray carbon owners with broken blades may be to replace with the stronger MR fiberglass blades currently being offered, if that might be amenable under a warranty-replacement arrangement. I've also decided that now is the right time to purchase a second paddle, the Splat, specifically for WW use and to have a spare paddle on hand in the event of loss or failure of one on longer trips.

[Alpacka Raft LLC]

We spoke to Aquabound about this, and to paraphrase what came back from them:

Aquabound's evidence suggests the Splat is slightly stronger than the Manta Ray Fiberglass. That squares with what we've ourselves generally seen, but their engineering dept. also highlighted that - since the carbon fiber is stiffer - there will be a "give" or bending in the fiberglass previous to breaking, whereas the CF will break suddenly when it reaches the critical stress. There emphasis here was that - while the Splat will be stronger - it will hit it's breaking point more unexpectedly, since there's very little telegraph.

That said, looking over the thread, it seems like there's a little unclarity at times over Manta Ray Carbon Fiber paddles vs. Manta Ray Fiberglass paddles. These are very different paddles, the Manta Ray CF that we used to carry being a light, relatively fragile sea-kayaking paddle, and the Manta Ray Fiberglass being a very strong, beefy whitewater blade. EX: Hig, on your "Manta Ray" comments, you were talking about the Manta Ray CF right? We stopped carrying the Manta Ray CF last year, because we just saw too many breaks. The Sawyer is the (considerably) stronger replacement for it, particularly given that the laminate blades will generally crack instead of break catastrophically.

[blisterfree]

We spoke to Aquabound about this, and to paraphrase what came back from them:

Aquabound's evidence suggests the Splat is slightly stronger than the Manta Ray Fiberglass.

Put another way, if I may, and as I now understand it, the Splat *carbon fiber* blades are *slightly stronger than* the Manta Ray *fiberglass* blades, which is to say *considerably stronger than* the Manta Ray *carbon fiber* blades. Good to hear, and I thought this warranted repeating as such, as I missed the distinction on the first read.

[blisterfree]

I have the new Aqua Bound Splat carbon fiber paddle here. Carbon fiber twill shaft. Carbon fiber/nylon blades. 210cm. Purchased from Alpacka Raft.

All-up weight on my scale is 35.8 ounces, which is about 3 ounces heavier than Alpacka's stated weight. It's 4 ounces heavier than Aqua Bound's claimed weight, but theirs is based on a 192cm paddle. Since the 210cm Splat is made specifically for use with Alpacka rafts, I'm not sure where Alpacka's stated weight comes from. Perhaps there are production variances - that's understandable - although 3 ounces does seem like a lot (~9% variance).

At 28.7 ounces, my 2 year old AB Manta Ray (likewise 210cm, carbon twill shaft / carbon/nylon blades) is about 7 ounces lighter than the new Splat, and the length, blade dimensions, et. al. really are just about identical between the two paddles. The Splat adds weight both at the blades (an extra 2 oz each) and at the shaft (3 oz). The Splat blades are considerably more stout, and are not nearly as easy to flex by hand. The Splat's carbon twill shaft has a denser grid pattern and certainly seems quite robust in hand, but at this early stage I'm willing to entertain the possibility that a 3 oz heavier shaft is overkill for my intended usage (sub-PR 3). The problem, of course, was the weakness of the Manta Ray carbon blades, not its shaft, and although it's possible to attach the Splat blades to the lighter Manta Ray shaft, creating such a hybrid paddle would require drilling new holes at the outermost shaft attachment points, as the male/female tolerances don't quite match. These new holes would have to be located elsewhere along the shaft's circumference, so that the old and new holes don't overlap. And this of course would change the blade angles, requiring more drilling at the center of the shaft, adjusting the feather to compensate. Basically... no thanks! First, let's see how 7 extra ounces feels in hand, out on the water.

[Hig]

If I understand what you're suggesting about drilling new holes correctly, you don't need to drill new holes in the center of the shaft. You should just need a new hole for the pins on each paddle. The trick is that you need to make sure the two new holes are rotated around the shaft by the same amount.

[Alpacka Raft LLC]

You're right, Blisterfree. I just put my old Splat & a new MR Fiberglass on the scale, and pulled these weights:

Splat: 35.3 oz.
MR Fibeglass: 33.9 oz.

I've changed the stated weights on the website to 36 oz. and 34 oz. I don't think we've verified those weights in awhile. I don't have a current Sawyer paddle here in Seattle. Personally, I'm a little skeptical of the shop mail-scales at the moment: they've been through a lot in the last few years. Thanks for keeping us honest. The current Ultralight Paddle Weight is a weight I took from the only one currently in existence.

[bradmeiklejohn]

Roman has a beautiful 4-piece carbon fiber Werner Shuna touring paddle that I simply cannot find anywhere.

I recently purchased an 4-piece fiberglass Aquabound Shred, which is slightly beefier than the Splat or Manta Ray. I don't know the exact weight, but compared to my Sawyer it feels like a battle axe. It's good for slaying Ship Creek dragons...

[PackraftingTribal]

When i first received my Aqua Bound Splat in November 2010, it had a little knock/play between the middle segments. Nothing too obvious, but it was there. Now after a few months of "wet-work", the little jiggle is definitely less. I'd say that the carbon absorbed water slightly and fixed itself! Don't know if my theory is right as i'm no expert but i just wanted to post this here if anyone else had the same issue.