Who has made their own Mash Paddle?

SteveHeff · Aug 2, 2013

I started with mine 3 or 4 days ago and I have something that is beginning to resemble a mash paddle. I wanted to go with maple but the lumber yard had poplar and oak. I chose oak. Let me tell you, without the proper tools, it's extremely labor intensive. I wish I had a template to work with but I went with what I knew. The neck is a bit lumpy in a couple spots due to cutting with a skilsaw and the head is a bit lop-sided because of an imperfect jigsaw cutting angle.

Has anybody else made one before? What kind of luck did you have? I'll post pics when this SOB is finished. "Ol' Masher" should be done by the end of next week. Cheers.

kh54s10 · Aug 2, 2013

I cut one out of an oak branch that fell in my back yard. It is really just a 1 1/2" x 3" section narrowed at the top for a handle. I have another branch drying in my garage so it doesn't split for the next one.

boscobeans · Aug 3, 2013

Chainsaw a nice straight 2 foot hunk from a beech tree. You can split it very easily into a fairly neat dimensional piece of lumber 1" X 4".
A little shaping, sanding and your ready to use your kid's old woodburning kit to decorate it.

Beech is so easy to work with and is perfect for making kitchen utensils.

bosco

ShepFL · Aug 3, 2013

I cheaped out as I don't have much free time. Went to BIG BOX home stores and found paddles some in the outdoor cooking aisle. Pd. $5.00 brought it home and cut holes in the paddle. Sanded it down.

Works good for my BIAB efforts. Still have my stainless spoon tho.

WTWjr · Aug 3, 2013

I made these out of some maple I had lying around. Its quite easy if you have all the right tools. I'm fortunate to have a planer, jointer, band saw, and table saw. I imagine it could be quite an undertaking without them. The smaller one works well in my cooler mashtun. The big one is for a friend who brews on a larger scale than me. I sanded them down and wiped on food grade mineral oil.

SteveHeff · Aug 3, 2013

WTWjr said:
I made these out of some maple I had lying around. Its quite easy if you have all the right tools. I'm fortunate to have a planer, jointer, band saw, and table saw. I imagine it could be quite an undertaking without them. The smaller one works well in my cooler mashtun. The big one is for a friend who brews on a larger scale than me. I sanded them down and wiped on food grade mineral oil.
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1. Those look great. Home-made and awesome.
2. That is exactly what I am going for, the smaller one at least.

I could really use a cylinder sander, router and a band saw. I think between all three, I could finish a mash paddle in a 3-5 hours instead of 12.