Santa Barbara Sprint champs Paddle Me sports had a booth and they had the New Mana Blades...
Balsa core fiber covered with Carbon power face. They are good looking blades a nice alternative to
Makana Ali'i.
They are still handcrafted custom made, now in Southern California.
Paddle Me Sports sells them.
I saw 2 styles a 10 in Ultra X and a 9.5 X2 round.
| Attachment | Size |
|---|---|
| Mana Blade 10" | 90.41 KB |
| New mana Blades | 95.35 KB |
Submitted by ChadRex on Sat, 07/23/2011 - 6:09pm
Looks the same as they always have. I hope the price has dropoed, now that its a mass ptoduced product, with a Hawaiian name.
#1 Sat, 07/23/2011 - 7:01pm
@justthetip It is not mass produced same guy is now making them in CA. I can't recall the guys name, but I do know he closed shop in Hawaii, moved mainland and now makes them in Ca.
They are custom hand made. If you have any questions on pricing or about the way the blades are made talk to
Brad Gaines brad@paddleme.com 310-944-3909
There are some changes, around the edge he is now using a more durable poly carb edge, the fisnish looks cleaner than my old Mana double bend.
I was stoked to see that he is still making them. nice looking blade, with good weight and feel through entire stroke /recovery. I bought one because when I got my old MB it was the last one available (mainland side anyway) at the time I got mine Mana blades were no longer being made because the guy closed shop in HI,
well he is making them again.
Check them out the PaddleMe booth next time you are at a SCORA race.
#2 Sun, 07/24/2011 - 5:43pm
It's more of a teardrop looking shape now as compared to the old style which seemed to be a bit "squarer" at the bottom of the blade. It's a great looking blade and super light as well.
@justthetip: what was the reason for the post that obviously came directly from your ass?
#3 Mon, 07/25/2011 - 5:43am
there are a few angry trolls who lurk under the ocpaddler bridge
#4 Mon, 07/25/2011 - 6:44am
Chad,
Thank you very much for the posting.
PaddleMe Sportswear is working with Danny Sanchez to manufacture & distribute the Mana Blades. They are all still handcrafted in the same high quality way that Danny has been making paddles for many years.
The Quality will not change. These are the same paddles as the old Mana Blades.
They are now being made in California instead of Hawaii since Danny has relocated to the mainland. He is still very involved with the day-to-day production.
They are not being "Mass Produced":
Danny will have some help making the paddles so that we will be able to offer them in a much more timely manner. The only change: we are now using a different material on the edges that does not chip like old epoxy edge.
While prices on paddles seem to increase every year, we will not be increasing the retail price for the time being.
We will be offering:
X1, X2, XRound, Steering & "The Beast"
In the near future will will also be offering a kids paddle as well as a light-weight, less expensive all wood paddle without the hard edge.
We will have new pictures and information on the website very soon:
http://paddleme.com/paddleme/paddles/mana/mana_main.html
If you have any questions please contact us at: 310-944-3909 or email us at: sales@paddleme.com
Mahalo,
Brad Gaines
Owner - PaddleMe Sportswear
#5 Mon, 07/25/2011 - 7:59am
That was not a troll post, or trying to stir the shit. Just a honest opinion. @Keleki, Have no beef with former,or current builders of Mana blades.
#6 Mon, 07/25/2011 - 3:50pm
I've always liked the Mana blades for their clean entry, light weight, and solid pull, but I always thought the shafts were a tad bit too skinny. A little more girth in the shaft and they'd be perfect. I'm glad he's back in business.
-Kaneohe
#7 Tue, 07/26/2011 - 7:55pm
808.2.619 paddler ... Please give us a call .. we can custom make a paddle for you with a thicker shaft ... no problem..
#8 Thu, 09/29/2011 - 6:36am
Has anyone ordered a custom blade from Mana yet? If you have, how long did it take to get it?
I ordered/paid for one back at the Queen Liliuokalani race back in September. At that time, I was told about a 2-3 week production time, then shipping to Hawaii (which Brad kindly said that he'd take care of). Unfortunately, it's been well past the 2-3 week time (I paid for it on 9/4), and I've only received a voicemail from Brad stating that a straight shaft blade was made by mistake, and that my double-bend would be done "by the end of the week". Well, that was over 3 weeks ago and now for 2 weeks in a row, my phone calls have not been returned.
I understand that owning and running a business is difficult, and I don't wish to seem like I'm bashing Mana/PaddleMe. However, I could have had a number of paddles made in the time it has taken thus far. I've been using my 6-man blade for far too long (a 52" Teva Hoe) and its killing me. I don't want to go out and buy another blade if the Mana Blade I paid for will be done soon.
#9 Sat, 10/29/2011 - 1:34pm
The OC1 season is starting up soon in SoCal, so that could be causing a big backlog of orders ( not as huge a spike as the start of OC6 season but I would imagine it's still significant).
My guess, best bet would be to call them and get a status update.
#10 Sat, 10/29/2011 - 3:31pm
lilrabbit129 .. that is precisely the problem... We have been backlogged on orders not just from California, but from all over the world. We weren't ready for such a huge number of orders this early on in us manufacturing the paddles. We have increase our production so there is currently about a 3 week waiting period. This production time will vary throughout the year depending on the current number of orders. Sometimes it could be less.
We should have an inventory of paddles building up over the next 4-6 weeks. That way we will have paddles ready to ship.
All of the orders that were placed 3 weeks or longer... I can guarantee that those orders have either been shipped or will be shipped in the next 1-2 days.
We appreciate all of our customers patience and understanding during this growth spurt.
We can also be emailed directly at sales@paddleme.com or call us.
#11 Mon, 10/31/2011 - 10:59am