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rebeccmeisterA couple weeks ago, several teammates expressed some mild dissatisfaction about the state of the club's oars. In particular, because of the decision to create sets of oars with specific lengths/inboards, in some cases we are running low on oars with specific length and handle combinations.
This is a very understandable source of frustration. Back in 2018, when I was in Arizona for 6 months, and well before I even imagined owning my own oars, I arranged to row on my own in a 1x through a City program, using the City's equipment. I don't know anything about the length or inboard of those City oars, but I *do* vividly recall that they had the wrong grip type for me, and that led to a lot of punishing rowing experiences.
Anyway, in response to the dissatisfaction I mentioned that one of the reasons we are low on oars is because some of them have been out of commission for painting or related issues. Lo and behold, we have some problem-solvers among us, who simply asked, when is the next day and time available where we can work together on painting oars?
We eventually came up with this past Saturday morning, at my house, because I have all the supplies together in one place already.
For one topic, we went over over the use of epoxy to repair chips and cracks in the blades. I had applied epoxy to two sets of oars ahead of time, thereby learning that it can work well to use packing tape to shape the epoxy to approximately the right shape.
Here is the next set where I demonstrated adding the epoxy on Saturday:
After the epoxy, the blades need to be sanded smooth again. Here is L, sanding down the epoxied areas with 80-grit paper on the prior 2 sets of oars so they are smooth:
Here's how things looked on one of the blades with the most extensive damage, after epoxy and sanding:
On this set of oars I declared that I wasn't going to aim for perfection, we'd consider "better" to be good enough. I think it's okay to expect a learning curve when it comes to repainting oars. Start on the ones that are in the worst shape, practice on them so when we get to the ones in better shape, we'll be experienced and they'll come out well. And basically, at this point, whatever we do for these older oars will be a big improvement over the condition they were in.
Here is J, using an orbital sander with a foam pad and 120-grit paper, prepping the rest of the blade surface for repainting. The last time the club's oars were repainted, my teammate LF says that the paint layers had gotten so thick she had to sand all the way back down to the primer. This time, thankfully, I don't think we'll need to go quite so far.
Once the oars were sanded and vacuumed off with a shop vac, we wiped them down with an alcohol-soaked rag. From this photo you can see why it is advisable to do so:
From there, a primer coat to even things out:
Already these oars are looking far better than before. I feel so much better inside. Do you?
Then, the very first layer of fresh paint. In her previous efforts, LF had consulted with a neighbor of hers who was a fine cabinetmaker, and he had suggested a couple of additives to ensure even, durable coats. Painting step 1 is to just apply this special paint formulation to the "cones," as L is doing here:
This was also a good chance for each of us to get some experience with how this paint mix behaves. When working on the previous test oar (art oar), I'd concluded that a foam brush would work best. But that was using paint without the additives. *With* the additives, we had better success with a bristle brush. I'm storing the bristle brush in the freezer between coats, to cut down on cleaning.
All of the oars were then left with the cone side facing downwards, to cure for 3 days. When I checked back on the first cone, I could see that even a half hour after painting, the paint was flowing and leveling out across the surface, moreso than on the prior art oar.
On Tuesday I'll sand the cones and will then apply the second coat, now over the entire surface of each oar. LF says she generally had success with 3 coats of paint, which translates to a ~2-week work period for each batch of oars.
With multiple people now potentially helping with the project (both J and L are willing to help!), we should be able to get all of the oars repainted over this winter.
--
However, not all of the club's oars are going to make it. Here is one oar that cracked, mid-shaft, some time ago (note the area of the shaft to the left of the bench vise):
This is what happens to carbon fiber when it is abused (hit something, dropped, etc). Coach Y attempted to repair this damage, but the repair was unsuccessful. Instead, I euthanized the oar and added the blade to my "art oar" pile. It's a shame whenever this sort of thing happens, because well-cared-for oars can last a long time. It's at least slightly less of a shame now as compared to the era when oars were made of wood. Wooden oars take far more skill and time to produce, not to mention the sacrifice of the life of a tree, and they're more susceptible to breaking than the carbon fiber ones are.
To end on a brighter note, here I am midway through a different project to repair a different set of oars:
This is an older set of sculling oars, also made by Concept2. Over the years, I have worked with several different generations of Concept2 oars. What I can say about the company Concept2, is that they have paid careful attention to their product design, doing everything they can to ensure that their equipment can be repaired. Whenever possible, they have also redesigned products to make them easier and better to work with.
One of the biggest improvements to their oars has been a modification to the method used to adjust the overall length of the oar, highlighted by how the above oar is NOT easy to adjust. For the set above, the length is adjusted by changing the position of the plastic "sleeve insert" along the handle piece, which has a pair of tiny metal tabs that then hold the sleeve insert in place. The whole handle unit is then inserted into the shaft, and tightened and held in place with a pair of screws that clamp that small, square plastic piece (the one just below the screwdriver) around the handle.
Now imagine rowers pulling on that handle, thousands and thousands of times. I think you can probably imagine what will happen to those two screws: they will loosen. And then, when no one has been double-checking them to make sure they're retightened, they will fall off. (and yes, Loctite, et cetera et cetera). Then the handle will come out, and a rower will be sad because their rowing practice has ended early on account of holding an oar handle that is disconnected from the oar shaft. And *sometimes* the rower will rescue that small, square plastic piece; other times, it will travel to the depths of a river or lake.
It had occurred to me to pick up some replacement screws, but it had NOT occurred to me that the black plastic figure-8 knob would also go missing. Thankfully, the square plastic piece was saved. So when I got to the boathouse with the screws, ARGH, another stuck project! But this time, I was saved: I was able to locate a Strategic Stockpile of miscellaneous oar parts, including a spare plastic figure-8 knob!!!! Then the only remaining challenge was getting the square plastic piece in place inside of the oar shaft so I could tighten the bolts to it.
I eventually figured out a system where I taped the square plastic piece onto something that was long enough to reach inside the oar shaft. Still! What a hassle.
And so, after all that, one set of oars, redeployed.
So many more sets left to go.
This is a very understandable source of frustration. Back in 2018, when I was in Arizona for 6 months, and well before I even imagined owning my own oars, I arranged to row on my own in a 1x through a City program, using the City's equipment. I don't know anything about the length or inboard of those City oars, but I *do* vividly recall that they had the wrong grip type for me, and that led to a lot of punishing rowing experiences.
Anyway, in response to the dissatisfaction I mentioned that one of the reasons we are low on oars is because some of them have been out of commission for painting or related issues. Lo and behold, we have some problem-solvers among us, who simply asked, when is the next day and time available where we can work together on painting oars?
We eventually came up with this past Saturday morning, at my house, because I have all the supplies together in one place already.
For one topic, we went over over the use of epoxy to repair chips and cracks in the blades. I had applied epoxy to two sets of oars ahead of time, thereby learning that it can work well to use packing tape to shape the epoxy to approximately the right shape.
Here is the next set where I demonstrated adding the epoxy on Saturday:
After the epoxy, the blades need to be sanded smooth again. Here is L, sanding down the epoxied areas with 80-grit paper on the prior 2 sets of oars so they are smooth:
Here's how things looked on one of the blades with the most extensive damage, after epoxy and sanding:
On this set of oars I declared that I wasn't going to aim for perfection, we'd consider "better" to be good enough. I think it's okay to expect a learning curve when it comes to repainting oars. Start on the ones that are in the worst shape, practice on them so when we get to the ones in better shape, we'll be experienced and they'll come out well. And basically, at this point, whatever we do for these older oars will be a big improvement over the condition they were in.
Here is J, using an orbital sander with a foam pad and 120-grit paper, prepping the rest of the blade surface for repainting. The last time the club's oars were repainted, my teammate LF says that the paint layers had gotten so thick she had to sand all the way back down to the primer. This time, thankfully, I don't think we'll need to go quite so far.
Once the oars were sanded and vacuumed off with a shop vac, we wiped them down with an alcohol-soaked rag. From this photo you can see why it is advisable to do so:
From there, a primer coat to even things out:
Already these oars are looking far better than before. I feel so much better inside. Do you?
Then, the very first layer of fresh paint. In her previous efforts, LF had consulted with a neighbor of hers who was a fine cabinetmaker, and he had suggested a couple of additives to ensure even, durable coats. Painting step 1 is to just apply this special paint formulation to the "cones," as L is doing here:
This was also a good chance for each of us to get some experience with how this paint mix behaves. When working on the previous test oar (art oar), I'd concluded that a foam brush would work best. But that was using paint without the additives. *With* the additives, we had better success with a bristle brush. I'm storing the bristle brush in the freezer between coats, to cut down on cleaning.
All of the oars were then left with the cone side facing downwards, to cure for 3 days. When I checked back on the first cone, I could see that even a half hour after painting, the paint was flowing and leveling out across the surface, moreso than on the prior art oar.
On Tuesday I'll sand the cones and will then apply the second coat, now over the entire surface of each oar. LF says she generally had success with 3 coats of paint, which translates to a ~2-week work period for each batch of oars.
With multiple people now potentially helping with the project (both J and L are willing to help!), we should be able to get all of the oars repainted over this winter.
--
However, not all of the club's oars are going to make it. Here is one oar that cracked, mid-shaft, some time ago (note the area of the shaft to the left of the bench vise):
This is what happens to carbon fiber when it is abused (hit something, dropped, etc). Coach Y attempted to repair this damage, but the repair was unsuccessful. Instead, I euthanized the oar and added the blade to my "art oar" pile. It's a shame whenever this sort of thing happens, because well-cared-for oars can last a long time. It's at least slightly less of a shame now as compared to the era when oars were made of wood. Wooden oars take far more skill and time to produce, not to mention the sacrifice of the life of a tree, and they're more susceptible to breaking than the carbon fiber ones are.
To end on a brighter note, here I am midway through a different project to repair a different set of oars:
This is an older set of sculling oars, also made by Concept2. Over the years, I have worked with several different generations of Concept2 oars. What I can say about the company Concept2, is that they have paid careful attention to their product design, doing everything they can to ensure that their equipment can be repaired. Whenever possible, they have also redesigned products to make them easier and better to work with.
One of the biggest improvements to their oars has been a modification to the method used to adjust the overall length of the oar, highlighted by how the above oar is NOT easy to adjust. For the set above, the length is adjusted by changing the position of the plastic "sleeve insert" along the handle piece, which has a pair of tiny metal tabs that then hold the sleeve insert in place. The whole handle unit is then inserted into the shaft, and tightened and held in place with a pair of screws that clamp that small, square plastic piece (the one just below the screwdriver) around the handle.
Now imagine rowers pulling on that handle, thousands and thousands of times. I think you can probably imagine what will happen to those two screws: they will loosen. And then, when no one has been double-checking them to make sure they're retightened, they will fall off. (and yes, Loctite, et cetera et cetera). Then the handle will come out, and a rower will be sad because their rowing practice has ended early on account of holding an oar handle that is disconnected from the oar shaft. And *sometimes* the rower will rescue that small, square plastic piece; other times, it will travel to the depths of a river or lake.
It had occurred to me to pick up some replacement screws, but it had NOT occurred to me that the black plastic figure-8 knob would also go missing. Thankfully, the square plastic piece was saved. So when I got to the boathouse with the screws, ARGH, another stuck project! But this time, I was saved: I was able to locate a Strategic Stockpile of miscellaneous oar parts, including a spare plastic figure-8 knob!!!! Then the only remaining challenge was getting the square plastic piece in place inside of the oar shaft so I could tighten the bolts to it.
I eventually figured out a system where I taped the square plastic piece onto something that was long enough to reach inside the oar shaft. Still! What a hassle.
And so, after all that, one set of oars, redeployed.
So many more sets left to go.
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Date: 2025-10-13 07:50 pm (UTC)Rowing equipment tends to experience the most wear-and-tear from travel. Of course, out on the Hudson we also have way more logs than I have ever experienced rowing on more lake-like bodies of water, so there's that, too. Ya'll are at least somewhat close to Pocock and other folks who can do how-to's. There are also some good resources online for boat patch work.