oar lenth?

[johnw]

I'm putting oarlocks on my sharpie, Black Swan, and I'm wondering what size oars I should use. The beam over the oarlocks will be about 4'5". Would 8' oars do it?

[Yeadon]

Yes, I bet 8' would be just about perfect.

I have a pair of 7'6 that I tend to use for daysails. They're just long enough to get me out a ways so I can go sailing, and barely take up any room in the boat. I have a pair of 8'6 that I use for longer adventures where I figure I'll be rowing all day. The length certainly gives me more power.

You're welcome to try out either for size.

[johnw]

Yes, I bet 8' would be just about perfect.

I have a pair of 7'6 that I tend to use for daysails. They're just long enough to get me out a ways so I can go sailing, and barely take up any room in the boat. I have a pair of 8'6 that I use for longer adventures where I figure I'll be rowing all day. The length certainly gives me more power.

You're welcome to try out either for size.

I'd like to try both sizes. I'll need a dry day or two to finish installing the oarlocks. I've ended up doing too much paddling the last two trips from Leschi to CWB, and I figure I can cover distance better once I get the oarlocks on it.

[Yeadon]

There is also the infamous "motor," which for us comes in gas and electric. All models however signal defeat.

[johnw]

We will never surrender!

Anyway, motors are designed to solve the problem of having too much money and getting too much exercise. I am not troubled by either problem.

[Songololo]

Lots of good info in this recent thread by Thorne http://www.woodenboat.com/forum/showthread.php?t=101628

[johnw]

Lots of good info in this recent thread by Thorne http://www.woodenboat.com/forum/showthread.php?t=101628


Thanks, that's helpful. My oarlocks are going to be fairly low in relation to the thwart, and I've been thinking that means shorter oars. It did come up on that thread.

[Cuyahoga Chuck]

Thanks, that's helpful. My oarlocks are going to be fairly low in relation to the thwart, and I've been thinking that means shorter oars. It did come up on that thread.

Ideally an oar is divided into 25 increments. 7 inboard and 18 outboard. Determine the increment length by taking half the beam and dividing by 7. Multiply by 25 to get total length. Round off down to the next half foot for pleasure rowing and up to the next half foot for speed.

53"/2=26.5"/7=3.77" x 25= 94.6"/12" = 7.88 ft.

Courtesy of Shaw & Tenney

[johnw]

This gets me back to 8', which is where I started.

[Woxbox]

My oarlocks are going to be fairly low in relation to the thwart,

This could make it difficult with any length oar. If you can find a pair of oarlocks with extended shanks, that problem will be solved. But I do agree that if you're not going far under oars, a shorter pair that stow easily are better than optimal-length oars that get in the way when you're sailing.

[johnw]

Any notion who sells such oarlocks? I had thought of putting on one of those bell-curve shaped wood supports, but I'd rather not be sitting on those when I'm hiking out.

[CapnJ2ds]

Twice the beam across the locks, plus about 15cm, comes to around 2.9m, or 9'6" in 20th century measurements.
But I agree, if the oars are mainly auxiliary power, you'd get away with the 2.4s [8 footers]

[Thorne]

To paraphrase our previous Prez, "read my thread" (linked above)...

I recommend longer oars if you can store them in the boat. You can always shorten them later if so desired, so consider building 8.5' oars as a trial.

You can buy raised oarlocks for whitewater rafting, but the interior dimensions are larger (in most cases) than a standard oar -- so you may want to get the oarlocks before building the oars.
http://images.nrsweb.nrsweb.com.edgesuite.net/image/media/1415_oarlocksonly_250x250.jpg
http://www.nrsweb.com/shop/product.asp?pfid=1415

What are the dimensions between thwart and gunwale? An important part of rowing is not hurting 'what you sit on' -- so a low-profile gel cushion as sold by kayaking outfits should be considered an essential part of this measurement. I got one from Amazon sorta like this -
http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/21gSXskIDgL._SL500_AA147_.jpg
http://www.amazon.com/Yakpads-Gel-Filled-Paddle-Saddle/dp/B001UZ0YAU/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&s=sporting-goods&qid=1252500503&sr=8-6 (http://www.smithandcompany.org/images/CPESlogo.jpeg)