canoe paddle

I'm making a wooden bent shaft canoe paddle as a gift for a friend. I have a furniture business and so the wood working is going fine. What I am posting about is the finishing. I am going to coat the paddle in a low viscosity two part epoxy (mas, west, or system 3) with a fiberglass layer on the blade surface for abrasion resistance. I lean toward MAS cause it is cheaper, any opinions, is MAS junk? Where I run into a real problem is with the topcoat for the epoxy. It seems that all epoxies I've researched are UV sensitive and need a UV resistant topcoat. My research has led me to two part polyurethanes as the way to go but they are pricey and I'm trying to keep cost down. I need something durable, as this person does multi-week backcountry trips for a living. Any recommendations / advice?

Thanks in advance.

It's 'boat'-ing ('B'reak 'O'ut 'A'nother 'T' housand). I have never heard "boating" and "keep the cost down" in the same sentence......LOL:D

I've done some bent shaft paddles. Make sure you coat both sides of the blade with fiberglass and epoxy - if you do just one, it is likely to warp.

Over a thin epoxy layer, I use Minwax Helmsman Spar varnish. It holds up well. The idea of a paddle is to make it well, but not expect it to last forever. It will wear and be damaged in use. It will need recoating in some years. With the above product, that just needs some sanding and another application.

I also put a visible bead of filled [with fine wood powder] epoxy on the tip to provide some protection. It can be recoated as needed also.

The paddle probably won't be as exposed to uv as much as a hull so I wouldn't worry too much about that. Definitely use some type of spar varnish as it is more flexible than other finishes. However, IMO marine spar varnish (Epiphanes or Captains) would be preferable to polyurethane. I have canoes and paddles that were finished with Captains and have withstood the elements for nearly 10 years with no deterioration. My mailbox on the other hand, requires revarnishing every year. I used Minwax Polyurethane spar varnish on it to save money. It just starts to peel off after about 6 months in the Florida sun. This year it also gets a coat of regular spar varnish.

What they said. Any UV protecting Varnish will work. A good grade marine varnish will probably last longer. Nothing last more than a year with constant exposure to the sun. Paddles and boats just have to be refinished periodically.

I ended up not cheaping out and taking the advice to purchase marine grade varnish. I bought a quart of Interlux 95 Goldspar clear varnish from Jamestown Distributors. I also purchased the s-glass and dynel cord from Sweets Composites. The dynel cord will be used as an edging for the blade.

Thanks Again