Dragonboat Blog | The Dragonboating Resource

dragonboat talk for dragonboaters.

The Merlin TD2 is in a league of it’s own, as it stands out to be a paddle at the top of the range of the composite paddle category. This paddle stands out because it is as good as a carbon fibre paddle offering similar properties of strength, durability and light weight. It is also a fraction of the price of a carbon fibre paddle. So why consider spending more?

The Merlin TD2 is the 2nd model that has been released since Merlin was established in 2006. The TD2 is made out of a material called Texalium (used in the Ski industry) and carbon fibre. A bit of background: Texalium is an aluminum coated fibre glass that is lighter and stronger than normal fibre glass and is used in the blade, where as the shaft is made out of carbon fibre. By combining these two materials is has given this paddle the strength and also light weight properties that most paddlers want.

Looks wise, it is a paddle that you either love the look of or hate. I’ll let the readers decide.

Merlin TD2 Paddle

You can see other reviews in our paddles review section

Composite paddles are becoming quite popular in dragonboating over the last couple of years. It has changed the way dragonboating looks and feels. Apex Composites manufacturers dragonboat paddles in Canada and has been very successful with the Apex Durablade paddle.

The Apex Durablade is an excellent solid paddle for clubs and individuals. As the name says “Durablade” – which is the most durable paddle around that I have seen and even the manufacturer says, “virtually indestructible”. I have seen many clubs purchase these paddles because they are very solid and are relatively light compared to wooden paddles. These paddles are categorised in the composite section, which means it is manufactured with a combination of either carbon fibre (one of the lights materials around), plastic and / or wood. By manufacturing a paddle this way it gives it strength, durability and also feels lighter.

The Apex Durablade is constructed with a plastic/fibreglass blade and T-grip with a carbon fibre shaft all in black colour. This paddle looks almost like a carbon-fibre paddle except it doesn’t weigh as light as a carbon fibre paddle. Overall I would recommend this paddle to teams who are looking to get a set as they normally will outlast wooden paddles due to it’s durable materials.

Apex Durablade

You can see other reviews in our paddles review section

The next wooden paddle that is predominately used throughout the Dragonboating community is called the Grey Owl Paddle. Now Grey Owl manufactures two different types of wooden paddles. One they say is for training and club use, and the other for competition use. The main difference is you will find is mainly in the weight of the paddle due to the different wooden construction it uses.

The first they call is the “Grey Owl – Club Paddle”. Ideally Grew Owl recommends clubs buy this paddle because it is a beginner’s paddle and is a little cheaper than the second paddle they offer. The shaft and blade is made out of solid ash and the T-grip is made of maple. Additionally they have a reinforced tip just like the Typhoon8 wooden paddle, made out of a material called urethane. The materials used does make this paddle a bit on the heavier side weighing up to 650g or 23oz.

The second paddle is the “Grey Owl – High Performance”. This paddle is recommended for the more competitive crews, and is better for mid to high level competition (crews on a budget). Once again they use similar materials as their “club paddle” but have a bass core instead of a solid ash core. This makes the difference in weight bringing it down to 570g or 20oz. I have found that this is a lighter paddle than the Typhoon8 and is the next best thing to use if you are on a budget to purchase your own paddle. This does cost a little more than the club paddle, but it is worth the extra money spent.

Grey Owl Wooden Paddle

Grey Owl is a solid strong paddle with a good company reputation backing behind them. The company is known Worldwide and has many distributors across the globe.

You can see other reviews in our paddles review section

Today I am going to talk about the Typhoon8 wooden paddle. It’s a good solid paddle to start off for a beginner and has a nice wood grain finish. Furthermore it is priced fairly at $47.50 USD directly from Typhoon8.

This was the first paddle I used when I started Dragonboating. One thing that I liked about this paddle is, it helps a beginner by providing them with some ‘flex’ in the water (‘Flex’ is another way of saying not so stiff). This can be an advantage when starting out because it doesn’t put as much strain on the shoulders as a carbon fibre paddle would. This means that a paddler can recover much quicker and gets to paddle more often. The paddle also has reinforced plastic at the bottom of the blade so it stops potential wood splitting (very common in timber paddles when water gets in). If you accidentally drop the paddle on a hard surface, the reinforced plastic will also protect the edge of the blade from splitting or cracking – a positive for wooden paddles.

The downside of a wooden paddle is it weighs much heavier than say a composite paddle at 600g leading to extra weight carried and fatigue for a paddler.

Typhoon8 Wooden Paddle

The specifications of the paddle are below and these are crucial to take note:

Overall I would recommend this paddle to a beginner starting out in dragonboating who is on a budget. Sometimes if a paddler is not sure about whether they will stay in the sport, then this paddle is ideal for them. Otherwise I would highly recommend looking at the composite paddles that are available and spending a little extra.

You can see other reviews in our paddles review section

There have been so many paddles since Dragonboating became a widely accepted social sport and today we have over 15 manufacturers of dragonboat paddles. The question I always get asked is which paddle do I choose from? And it doesn’t necessarily mean that the price says it all. In the next few days I will review paddles from the different manufacturers and give an insight on each paddle’s pros and cons.