Don,

You might want to fashion a sleeve of some sort for the bucket to land in so it stays upright after the shaft breaks. My kids spilled a bag of lead shot in my workshop a year or so ago and I am still stepping on it every now and then. It doesn't sweep up worth a hoot cause it's so heavy. Maybe use steel shot, you'd have to use more because of the lower density but at least you could clean it up with a magnet.

Seems a shame to break a perfectly good paddle shaft, but being in the science biz, I understand the need.

Have fun with your destruction!

Ken

: I looked at this in CADD yesterday. By adding the thickness into the core
: strips, 3/8" thick, there is still a 1/4" glue joint using
: 1/8" cap strips and a 3/4 diameter roundover bit. I dont want to
: experiment yet with smaller than a 1/4" glue joint, so none of the
: layups will be smaller than that.

: Given and given. Actually, Jeff has decided to use this as a school science
: project as well, so it will be pretty well documented. I was a little
: miffed because I need to write this test for my function, not his. The
: result is that i'll do my test, and he will build on it by testing actual
: paddles in different woods, based on the success of the initial core
: testing. His question is 'does the weight affect the strength', with no
: limitation on materials or structure. My question is 'what is the best
: strength/weight ratio for these given structure dimensions'.

: This will be interesting....

: I think your model is a different animal - the breakage would have to occur
: twice - on either end of the load. By using an overhanging beam, the break
: will only be once - at the point of support in the middle. And by adding
: the first of the blade strips, I can be assured that the middle will be
: the weakest point in the structure - as is the case in an actual paddle
: anyway.

: Buckshot, with luck Sand would be cheap and convenient. Thanks!