Mash Paddle Prototype

After seeing the ad at the top of the HBT page several times for http://www.mashpaddle.com I decided that I wanted to give it a try on my own. My dad had a ton of woodworking equipment, so I 'borrowed' some of is this morning to run this little experiment.

I used the specs that were provided by the mashpaddle.com website. My prototype is 36" long and the lower paddle portion is 16" long and its made from 3/4" thick maple.

This one isn't finished yet but I think it's too large and a little too heavy also. I guess it would really boil down to the size of the MLT in use. I think I'll probably scale this down just a little. I'm thinking 28-30" for the overall length and 1/2" thick. My 10g MLT is only about 16" deep (round water cooler) and my 5g version is even smaller. I probably need to size this where it would work well in either situation.

When I come up with the actual dimensions I want, I plan to use a router to round off the edges and then I'll drill a hole in the top of the handle for hanging or a leather strap. I'll also probably drill a double row of holes in the paddle portion as well...

Any thoughts or feedback?

I've seen one that looks like a tuning fork with the center cutout, that would cut down on the weight. May also really help breakup dough balls.

BulldogBrewer said:

I've seen one that looks like a tuning fork with the center cutout, that would cut down on the weight. May also really help breakup dough balls.

Click to expand...

Absolutely. I plan to do some cutouts on the paddle once I determine the final size I think works best.

Forgot to add "nice job"!! Looks really nice!

Ha...That is cool. I just did the same thing last weekend. I had a piece of hardwood laying around just about the right size. I cut my "logo" into the blade twice to make big holes. I will post a pic when I get home. I still need to sand it down a bit more.

Cutting out the logo was easy with my rotary cutting head attachment for my dremel.

I think I'm gonna go with a 28" length and 1/2" thick on the second try...