Oar length Q?

Jeff Reardon

Jeff Reardon

Well-known member
Since I haven't learned to scull yet, I want to pick up a pair of inexpensive rowing oars for my sculling boat. The oars I can afford come in standard 6 1/2, 7 and 7 1/2 foot lengths. (I have two different sculling oars, so I'm not asking about those until after I try them out.)

I've found a couple of formulas to compute the proper oar length for your boat, and all of them come out about mid way between 7' and 7 1/2'. The actual range was from 7.19 to 7.35. One of the formulas suggested rounding up

So, should I err on the short side or the long side? What I want is emergency propulsion if my kicker fails, and the ability to use the boat in a few areas that don't allow motors. (I'm assuming that the learning curve on actually sculling is slow enough that for this season I don't want to rely on my sculling skills in an emergency.) I'm not interested in joining the local crew team or winning the Head of the Charles Regatta, so, while I'd like an oar that can row efficiently, I don't need to squeeze every bit of rowing performance out of the boat.

So, given the statistics below, what length oars do the experts here recommend? I do not want to have to overlap the oars while rowing.

Boat length--15'5"
Max beam--52"
Oar lock to oar lock distance--48"
Height of oarlock above water--unknown, as I have not had the boat in the water yet. I'm guessing ~12 inches.
 
Jeff;The oar length you need is 6'6''s . The formula as specified in WEST MARINE cat'g is 1/2 the beam distance [distance between oar LOCKS] x 3 + 6''= oar length.
 
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And if you are just trying to get home in a pinch they can be short a bit.
They store away better then too.
If you have a lumber yard nearby with a decent pile of spruce framing lumber you can often find a pair of clear pieces in the pile or a section of a 2x10 that can be cut out for an oar.
The old timers made their own and you dont have to round it all off. If you have a band saw it helps but is not essential if you have some woodworking tools and time vs. money.
 
I understand the equations but I'd recommend borrowing a pair of 6.5s and giving them a try. They are working well for my sneakbox and worked well in my old 14 ft V-hull. Not as efficient as the longer oars but lighter, cheaper and stow easier. I also think that sitting lower to the water shortens the oar requirement. Like most things, try before you buy if at all possible.

For the sneakbox I used the neoprene sleeves and the ring oarlocks so I wouldn't miss place the oarlocks when I needed them. I've always hated pinned oarlocks since they prevent you from shipping or feathering your oars. Not to mention adding a high stress point contact at the pin hole rather than over a larger arc of the oars surface.

Best!
Scott
 
Hamilton Marine has their oars on sale this week--~$60 for a pair of spruce 7 footers, a bit less than that for "Southern hardwood" (????) painted oars. I know I can use the 7 footers in my tin boat if they turn out to be a bit long for the sculler, so I think I'll go down to Portland, buy a pair, and take my mom to supper to earn some favorite son points.

Thanks for the input.
 
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