Hi there,

The most common mould is a two piece mould say a back side and front side that clamp together to form the complete mould. I would only go to this type of tool and the expense to make wing or other similar complex shapes. For the rest I would use wood, plywood and then reinforce with carbon etc.

I do not believe a wing paddle has a place on a Sea Kayak!! (that should raise some comment)

Rob

> Check out the website and catalog of Fibre Glast: www.fibreglast.com

> They sell various carbon fiber cloths and tapes ( in the small quantities
> you'll use) and have books and video tapes for sale that show how to use
> their products. They just mailed out a newsletter on working with
> composities. It is the Winter 1998 edition (and mailed in August? Go
> figure!) If you call or e-mail them you might ask for a copy. The copy I
> got was not solicitied, so I assume it is free for the asking. Ask.

> A paddle blade could probably be made around a foam core, or a wood core,
> or you could make a mold for it. If you go the mold route, consider using
> a router to carve the shape in a plank of wood. Just draw the paddle shape
> on a plank and cut it out. You vary the thickness of the paddle blade by
> adjusting the depth of the router cut. This could also be an interesting
> project for someone with a 3D axis router (or mill) attached to a computer
> driven CAD/CAM system. You could design any amount of spoon shaping and
> compound curves on the computer, and then have the computer driven cutting
> tool shape the mold. Lay in the cloth and resin and you can knock out a
> bunch of paddle blades to suit your fancy.

> Hopefully this should help.

> Paul Jacobson