Banks dory oars

[ken connors]

Anybody know the standard oar size for a 16 ft Grand Banks dory?Beam is about 4.5'

[erster]

Seven feet at least, and maybe eight depending on the positioning of the sockets to the seats. Get you a spruce 2 x4 x 8 ', split it in half, and cut a slot at the end seven inches using the 1 3/4" way for the faces or cheeks and use a 1x6 for a blade 18 inches and throughbolt it. You can try it, cutting the shank of it down until it fits your body frame and setup. Then you can either buy the right size or custom make one to your liking.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v356/Bateau1/DSC01426.jpg

[Daniel Noyes]

Hi Ken
At the Rings Island Rowing Club in Salisbury Ma. we row Chapells 16ft' (12' on the bottom) Banks Dory with two rowing stations. The front station uses 9 footers and the stern station pulls on 8 1/2's.
for over 200 dory photos (including some Banks Dory sailing and rowing) please see
http://dansdories.googlepages.com

Dan

[erster]

Hi Ken
At the Rings Island Rowing Club in Salisbury Ma. we row Chapells 16ft' (12' on the bottom) Banks Dory with two rowing stations. The front station uses 9 footers and the stern station pulls on 8 1/2's.
for over 200 dory photos (including some Banks Dory sailing and rowing) please see
http://dansdories.googlepages.com

Dan
That boat rowed with seven foot oars from the middle seat, one man rowing. But the sockets were a bit closehauled to the back of the seat.

[Tom Hunter]

I have a pair of 9'ers that I use on my racing dory, they were built for banks dories, I like the workout they give me.

[Thorne]

As you can see, there is no 'average size' for oars -- much depends on the rower, the waters, performance vs storage space, etc.

[Daniel Noyes]

we've rowed the Chapell bankers on the Merrimack River for 15 yrs+. and the club doesn't own an oar shorter than 8 1/2 ft. I wouldn't be able to keep up with the boat if I was pulling 7's, might not even reach the water (: If it is especially windy and I'm rowing alone I will sometimes use a pair of 8 1/2's in the front seat.
happy rowing!
Dan

[nedL]

I used to have a 16' banks dory & if I remember correctly I was pretty happy with anything over 8', anything under that wasn't to good. I think 8' is what I had most of the time. (Pretty much confirming what others have already said).

[erster]

we've rowed the Chapell bankers on the Merrimack River for 15 yrs+. and the club doesn't own an oar shorter than 8 1/2 ft. I wouldn't be able to keep up with the boat if I was pulling 7's, might not even reach the water (: If it is especially windy and I'm rowing alone I will sometimes use a pair of 8 1/2's in the front seat.
happy rowing!
Dan

Some of us folks are old. Just going ahead with any size is a workout unless we have taken that extra strength Geritol.;)

[ken connors]

So we're all in agreement then, somewhere between 7' and 9 1/2'. Thanks for all the input. I think I'll start by borrowing some 8'ers and see how that feels.

[Bob Smalser]

So we're all in agreement then, somewhere between 7' and 9 1/2'.

Remember a lot of old-time "favorite" oar lengths are based more on what lengths were available to buy or what fit best into the storage space available than what was best for actual rowing. I much prefer the Shaw and Tenney formula, but I grew up rowing crosshanded, and some don't like it:

http://www.shawandtenney.com/wooden-rowing-oars.htm


Shaw & Tenney Oar Length Formula for Correctly Fitted Oars

1) Inboard length of the loom equals ½ the span between the oarlocks + 2"

2) Total length of oar equals 1/7 of inboard length multiplied by 25

Leverage Ratio is 7:18

3) Distance from the center of leather to end of grip equals 7/25 of the total length of the oar

For 54" of beam oarlock to oarlock, that's:

1) 29"

2) 103.5"

3) 30"

That's an 8' 7 1/2" oar, which would be my baseline. Given the additional depth of a Banks Dory, I'd probably make 9-footers or even slightly longer to begin with and be prepared to shorten them after testing.

These are S&T formula oars at the beginning of recovery and you can see that in the middle of the stroke the hands must be offset slightly for clearance:

http://pic20.picturetrail.com/VOL12/1104763/7711190/101445607.jpg

[paladin]

Like Bob sez....depends on what, whom and how ya grew up doing it....I can't row worth a darn facing aft....I grew up facing my grandfather and learned to row facing forward......any other way just seems awkward.

[Gold Rock]

I followed a 'rule of thumb' that says twice the beam plus 6". Used that formula for my dink and the results are dandy.

Chuck

[Daniel Noyes]

Great point about strength and speed erster.
if you are rowing at a leisurly pace, with a load, against head wind or paceing yourself for longer distances you will want a shorter oar...also...I should admit that the club dorys are to the Chapelle design but built of plywood...so...they are probably a little faster than a plank boat of the same design...hence the 9's
but you will surely want something around 8 1/2 ft.
Dan