feathered paddles

[drifter]

I have been fixing an old paddle and noticed that it was feathered at 90 degrees. The paddle which I normally use seems to be feathered a 60 degrees and I notice that most modern paddles are set at this angle.
It seems to me that 90 deg is more logical. Can anyone tell me why there seems to be a preference for 60?

[diemonde]

It's more ergonomic to have a low feathering. If you look at consumer paddles they often have 30 or 45 degrees. I have Epic paddle which can be set both left/righthanded and feathering. If I am paddling with someone who is slower in no-wind conditions I just set it to 30 and go easy with a low stroke.
In windy conditions I just go to 60 or higher depending on how strong the wind is. Feathering is created to slice through the wind nothing else.

[drifter]

The problem I have with variable feathering, and this is only a theory, is that if you had to brace in an emergency then you might not get the angle of the blade correct muff the brace. It has been some time since I posted this thread and since then many other paddlers have told me that one of the reasons for tendonitis in the wrists is twisting the paddle when feathered. This may have been the reason that 90 deg (which was the norm in the old days) was changed to 60. Some people have even told me that if they have tendonitis in one hand that if they reverse the feathering then they get the problem in the other hand!
I think that if you paddle in windless conditions then probably no feather is best. I am not sure if eskimo paddles are feathered.