Need advice on buying hand paddles

I like Speedo's new curved paddle. It seems to put your hand in a natural position instead of pancake flat. If you want to use it for all 4 strokes you size it down. For freestyle you would probably get medium or large.

I like Strokemaker paddles and they come in tons of sizes. They are quite easy on the shoulders.

Why do you use paddles? (if you are one of those tri-people, never mind.)

... If you want to use it for all 4 strokes you size it down. For freestyle you would probably get medium or large. I agree with this. For butterfly you probably need a small paddle. For freestyle and backstroke you can use a larger paddle.

Why do you use paddles? Part of it is to just do something different. Swimming gets boring unless you mix it up.

I've used these since I got them in college (same pair!). They are definitely for stronger swimmers and only free & back strokers, although I do some limited Fly & ***. Nowadays I could probably go down a size but size I have them..... www.swimoutlet.com/.../1234.htm

FYI, we are reviewing paddles for the May/Jun issue of SWIMMER, including some of the ones mentioned in this thread. They are being field tested now.

Anyone know why they are so adamant about the use of the wrist strap? Great question. My opinion is that without the wrist strap you are using the paddle more for a drill type of set - hand placement, catch, etc. With the wrist strap you are using the paddle for more full-on swimming. Both ways have advantages. I have a pair of those TYR Catalyst paddles. I ditched them as I felt they were over-engineered. I'm much happier with my Strokemasters. No one on our team uses TYR, but that really doesn't mean much since our store doesn't sell them.

Strokemasters for me with no wrist strap. Pull sets are my favorite, drill sets or speed set, doesn't matter to me. I always thought the rule of thumb was to get a size that was approx. 1" to 1 1/2" bigger than your hand. Maybe I am wrong.

Anyone know why they are so adamant about the use of the wrist strap? I think it's because they know many coaches tell swimmers not to use the strap. I've always used it, but I know lots of people don't. I've tried it both ways and really don't think there's a huge difference. By the way, the only annoying thing about Strokemaster paddles is if you need to put them on in a hurry and don't quite get the finger strap over your knuckle. For some reason that always drove me nuts!