You have kids right Don?

Cut it in half

I was just remembering back in the day.....
There was this shop teacher who had a similar tool with holes cut in the paddle side and a nice smoothly rounded handle....

It wasn't used for moving water but for motivating and moving the will of disobedient youngsters.

Of course that was a different time and place but somehow there was honor in suffering the consequences of improper behavior. At least thats what you told the other guys.

: I have a new storm paddle, that I made a little shorter so it'd fit on the
: fordeck, and be better for a sliding stroke.

: Unfortunately, I chose the wrong blank - a nice piece of tight-grained old
: growth fir, that weighs a ton. I cant believe how much this thing weighs,
: but I dont have a scale and even if I did I'd be too embarrased to post
: the number.

: I'm thinking I could block it onto a flat 2x6 and run it through the planer,
: take it down on both sides to about 3/8" thick, leaving the shape and
: the edges. Than laminate cedar, or redwood, or *gasp* buy some spruce and
: laminate that, and then reshape it.

: Has anybody tried this? I dont see why it wouldnt work, and while the result
: might still be heavier, it would be a lot lighter than it is now. And,
: it'd have nice tough edges. In the worst case, I'd ruin it, which would
: make it only a little harder to duplicate.

: And, since Ive taken to numbering my blades to keep track of them, I think
: this one is #11. Would it then become #13 in its new incarnation, or would
: it retain #11 since the shape is the same? The markings would be planed
: off...