> I just spent the last 2 hours making an Inuit Paddle. I followed the
> instructions by Gerry David, and made the paddle out of cedar. I used my
> circular saw to cut it out so that saved a lot of time. My question is,
> how is this thing suppose to paddle my boat without breaking, it seams so
> flimsy. It only weights about a pound, I think, and it dents so easily.
> What can I do to strengthen this thing or is this how it should be? I have
> some picks below of the finished product. I thought it was kind of funny
> how one web page said it would take 20 hours, did they make a typo with
> the 0?

> Gerry David's page is http://seacanoe.org/grnpadle.htm #THE GREENLAND
> PADD The paddle wood of choice,as far as I'm concerned ,is spruce.It is very strong ,quite flexible,and ,unlike cedar or redwood ,is not brittle,ie.,will signal its failura long before actually failing.It is light,and a 88' paddle,made from Gerrys article,weighs 26 oz,finished with Tung oil and the ends glassed .I've used it for a season,and boy,it is flexible,but hasn't broken or given any sign of failure.I am about to make another from Sitka.Where the first was from a Home depot stud,costing $1.79,the sitka,straight grain,will cost about $12.Big deal ,any store bought paddle is $100 or more,so cost of materials is not a consideration.Test it yourself :take a piece of spruce and one of cedar or redwood,same size-weigh them ;put one end in a vise,put pressure on the other,and watch how they break.There is a reason why,for centuries ,paddles and oars were made of spruce,and not cedar-same for masts and spars.