> I'm building an Aleut paddle from the plans from Laughing Loon CC&K, which
> call for spruce as the main wood in laminating up the paddle blank. The
> two lumber yards I talked to had either clear fir or redwood, but not
> spruce. Anyone have any experience with this? Would fir or redwood be an
> OK substitute, is one better than the other, etc.

For what it is worth,mast makers will use Doug fir as a substitute for clear spruce.The only deficit seems to be weight,but fir is stronger,so can be made thinner.