New surf ski paddle feels weird

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4 years 11 months ago #34029 by Currie
Hey Guys  Strange one – justbought  new paddle (Bennett / Braca4 / 705 sq cm extra lite blade 40/: composite carbon adjustable )Current paddle is a Meek A series Medium. this is a much stiffer paddle with more surface at 740 sq cm ) I’ve had about 10paddles with the new Bennett paddle on the flat and ocean. I’m setting it to the
same length and angle to my Meek paddle and it just feels weird with the following observations;  
  • slappy on entry
  • On exit it feels like I’m often going fall in ( tried to make an effort
    to exit earlier )
  • The feeling is like I have accidentally set the wrong angle on the paddle
  • Set to 60 Degree’s, 212cm ( exactly the same as my meek )
The bennett paddleis a really revered paddle with lots of great paddlers using it so I’m thinking
its just me but don’t know why the feeling is so different to the Meek. Does it take thatlong to adjust to a new paddle ? Perhaps the change in paddle is just  highlighting some serious technique issues ?  I would have thought a smaller blade would be more forgiving than my larger meek ? On a positive notethe Bennett guys and the service has been just phenomenal and its  beautifully made. The Braca 4 is
used by so many great paddlers so I'm clearly thinking i have issues here.

might be an idea to ask someone else to use it to see what they think. 

any comments would be appreciated 

Cheers 

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4 years 11 months ago #34032 by PSwitzer
I'm thinking the smaller surface area may be exposing some issues with your stroke.  I had similar problems dropping from a standard mid-sized Braca knockoff blade down to an Epic small mid.  Felt like it wasn't providing anything to pull against and kind of unstable until I really worked on cleaning up my technique, now it's totally solid.  I also wonder if there is different twist to the blade making it feel like the catch is off / feather angle is off.  

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4 years 11 months ago #34035 by M.v.E.
I changed to a Braca XI Surfski paddle with 705 cm² a year ago. Before I had a Epic Small/Mid-Wing. I tried to improve my catch and it seems to work. Even with the small surface there is a lot of resistance/pressure at least for my strength but I am able to get the cadence up if I have to. Which is nice for catching waves or going against a strong headwind.
I tried the Braca IV briefly but I did´nt like it. It was very difficult for me to get a clean catch without plopping noises with this paddle. Just to put it in perspective: I am certainly not an advanced surfski paddler and I seldom paddle on the ocean but the small blade worked for me on the ocean as well.      

Current Ski: Nelo 550 L
Previous Skis: Stellar SR 1. Gen. / Stellar SEI 1. Gen. / Stellar SR 2. Gen.

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