Canoe Paddles: A Complete Guide to Making Your Own

This book combines practical woodworking technique with practical canoe use experience... [It] covers every single aspect of canoe paddle building. -- Sawdust and Shavings Despite the growing interest in making paddles and canoes, it can be difficult to find reliable information on that craft -- except for this book. First published more than a decade ago and having sold 35,000 copies, Canoe Paddles: A Complete Guide to Making Your Own is the ultimate modern guide to the traditional craft for both the how-to beginner and the skilled woodworker. In Canoe Paddles: A Complete Guide to Making Your Own, longtime canoeist and woodworker Graham Warren provides detailed information and guidance to make a canoe paddle that will be used with confidence and cherished for generations. The book is thoroughly illustrated with photographs, line drawings and plans with measurements for: How to make a paddle having a single blade, a bent shaft, or double blades How to protect a paddle with oil or varnish What to look for when test-driving a paddle How to decorate a paddle How to care for and repair a paddle. The authors include an appreciation of the evolution of the paddle plus a special chapter by renowned canoe-buuilding teacher David Gidmark which celebrates paddle-making in the native tradition.