Making a Bent Shaft Laminated Canoe Paddle is all about making your own canoe paddle. Probably no great surprise there. Canoe paddles are great DIY projects. This book covers some of the general background like ripping the thin strips for the shaft pieces. More importantly, this book goes into all the details you need to laminate the shaft strips, make the form for adding the bend to the shaft, add blade pieces and a handle. Tools are covered as well as the fiberglass and epoxy that the author uses to cover the blade. Plentiful pictures illustrate the project. The paddle maker needs a table saw to rip the shaft and blade pieces, although quietwater paddles also sells the ready to go wood pieces, thus making it possible for those with no table saw to make their own paddles as well. Aside from ripping the wood strips, making a paddle is a quiet hand tool operation. Spokeshaves, block planes and sand paper are the main characters in the process of creating a paddle out of the wood pieces. There's nothing quite like doing your own thing. Canoeing is no different. It's wonderful getting out on the water doing your own thing, it's even better when you are moving the canoe with your own hand made paddle!

Making a paddle is a great parent child project, it's a great Scout troop project, it's a way to get outside in the garage away from all the screens and while away a few evening hours reconnecting with the pleasures of simple manual effort, crafting wood pieces with hand tools and creating your own wood paddle!