So I carved a paddle

So I finally got down to carving a paddle, it's been a project on my want list for sometime now. So I started out with a 2x8 board from the lumber yard and went to town. So the goal was to see of course could I do it with just hand tools, and no power, and with a basic shape in mind I went to town.

So there are some challenges to carving something big, first you need a big space. You need to hit the wood from all angles, so there was a spilt coffee and I knocked things off the bench a few times. Next is finding out that the wood you've selected has knots in it that are really in bad spots, the oak leaf shape to the bottom wasn't done because I wanted to be all artistic, it was done because there was a knot in just the wrong spot. Also in the blade there were a few gems but I was able to remove them.

Once I had the basic shape then the fine carving happened, and that was fun, bringing a big paddle down to a usable size, and thinning out the blade. and once that was done the carving of the holes, now I must admit I did have to use power tools here but for the main paddle I was able to carve it in about 4 hours. I burned some patterns into it and sealed the wood and that was that.

So I hope you like it and if you're thinking of trying it, go for it! I plan on doing another this time for me, for canoeing.