Shogun or Powerhouse

Good review here and discussion of the differences.

http://blistergearreview.com/gear-reviews/werner-powerhouse-kayak-paddle

Shogun for days. There is less flex in the blade so your losing less of the energy that you put into your strokes to that.

Also the blade floats! Helps to have a faster cadence.

I think Werner did a good job with their compare option on their site. I switched to a shogun this year and absolutely love it. The most noticeable differences for me were in the blade and the weight. A lighter/better feel than my previous paddle that I am pretty sure was a powerhouse but now will have to look when I get home. Upgrade I am very happy with.

I paddle the shogun, and have for years. What I like about the shogun: light and strong paddle, very little flex means powerful strokes that don't loose energy to flex. Some folks would counter that less flex is harder on your shoulders, but I have not had any problems there. I also like that the blades don't wear down. I hated having fiberglass paddles that had worn down blades and less power and purchase. Yes you can put stuff on the blade edges to minimize wear, but when you paddle the mank, all the solutions I tried slowed by did not stop the paddle wear. I would rather buy a paddle that works for me instead of always having to work on the paddle to keep the protection up.

The con of the shogun is that it when it fails, it will crack. It will take a ton of abuse before it cracks though.