Kayak Fishing Adventures on Big Water’s Edge - View Single Post - Here I go again, Anyone use a Gullwing paddle?

YakMedic · 09-21-2012, 04:44 PM

Yes I did, I went through the same thing you did. Here is my old question
http://www.bigwatersedge.com/bwevb/s...light=gullwing

I ended up buying one. It worked great for for most paddling. However I still have half a paddle in my garage after one of the blades broke completely off during a surf launch. The paddle is designed to snap on and off at the shaft and this is by far the weakest point of the paddle. When paddling as hard as possible trying to push through the surf one of the blades literally broke off. This was a launch during the dark at La Jolla and I never found the other blade and had to canoe paddle my ass through the surf.

Luckily I always keep a spare paddle in my yak just for these situations and my night wasn't ruined. I contacted the company explaining the issue and no questions asked refunded my money. I think it is a great idea and when paddling in the bays or on a lake it was wonderful. I would not trust it ever again to a surf launch though.

My recommendation is to go to OEX and test out a couple paddles and see what fits you the best. After two shoulder reconstructions I found that it was more of a paddle weight issue that was causing my pain and not so much the shaft bend. I ended up getting a Werner Camano full carbon paddle and have loved it ever since.

09-21-2012, 04:44 PM	#2
YakMedic Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2011 Location: Wrightwood Posts: 623	Yes I did, I went through the same thing you did. Here is my old question http://www.bigwatersedge.com/bwevb/s...light=gullwing I ended up buying one. It worked great for for most paddling. However I still have half a paddle in my garage after one of the blades broke completely off during a surf launch. The paddle is designed to snap on and off at the shaft and this is by far the weakest point of the paddle. When paddling as hard as possible trying to push through the surf one of the blades literally broke off. This was a launch during the dark at La Jolla and I never found the other blade and had to canoe paddle my ass through the surf. Luckily I always keep a spare paddle in my yak just for these situations and my night wasn't ruined. I contacted the company explaining the issue and no questions asked refunded my money. I think it is a great idea and when paddling in the bays or on a lake it was wonderful. I would not trust it ever again to a surf launch though. My recommendation is to go to OEX and test out a couple paddles and see what fits you the best. After two shoulder reconstructions I found that it was more of a paddle weight issue that was causing my pain and not so much the shaft bend. I ended up getting a Werner Camano full carbon paddle and have loved it ever since.