Oar Length

[John Stevens]

I'm making some oars for my 8' sailing pram. Is there a "right" length the oars should be?

Is there a benefit for them being longer or shorter?

TIA,

John

[Barry Pyeatt]

To calculate how long to make the oars, I rely on the forumla from Shaw & Tenney who make nicer oars than I ever could.

In short; take the span of your boat between oar locks, divide by 2 and then add 2 inches to that total.

Then, divide by 7.

Then, multiply by 25.

This gives you the length of oar in inches.

Optionally, dividing your oar length inches by 12 will give you an answer in feet.

The leverage ratio is 7:18.

Total length of the oar equals one-seventh of the inboard length multiplied by 25.

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

If you are looking for some affordable oarlocks and fittings try Duckworks Magazine Store. http://www.duckworksbbs.com/hardware/oarlocks/index.htm

[John Stevens]

Thanks Barry. I have ordered from that site, that's where I bought my pintles and oarlocks last year when I built this pram. They seem to have the best prices around for those items.

Thanks,

John Stevens

[John Stevens]

If I'm using the right term. When I was building my pram last year I got a lot of great advice. Someone posted how to wrap rope around the oar. Anyone know that site? I can't find it. There were some great pictures and easy to follow steps.

Thanks,

John