"BetaB4" wrote in message
...
I had previously posted a question about buying oars and oarlocks
(05/11/2009 -- "How/Where to buy Oars and Oarlocks"). I just bought a set
of wooden oars, and now I have to decide on what type of oarlocks to get.
The oars that I bought are new Caviness basswood 6 1/2 foot wooden oars,
for $63 for the pair. (Unfortunately, I bought the wrong size oars
according to what people here recommended -- see below about why I did
that).

My question now is what type of oarlocks to get. My boat is a 13-foot
aluminum fishing boat with a gas engine and an electric motor. It already
has oarlock holders mounted in place. And, since I now have the oars and
the oarlock holders, I just need to get the oarlocks. The purpose for
getting the oars is really just for safety reasons in case the battery
dies or the electric motor breaks down while out in waters where only an
electric motor is allowed. So, if I get stuck, I want to be able to row
the boat to shore or to a docking area.

The kinds of oarlocks that I see a 1) oarlocks that appear to clamp
right onto the oars; 2) round oarlocks that the oars go through; and, 3)
U-shaped open oarlocks with or without a bar that goes across the top. I
also see "oar protector" sleeves (or whatever they are called) that I can
buy to go over the oars, and I guess protect the oars from wear and damage
from rubbing against the oarlocks. Seems like the oar protector sleeves
might be a good idea for two of the oarlock types, and would not be
necessary for the type of oarlocks that clamp directly to the oars.

Any suggestions on which type of oarlocks I should get, and whether or not
to get the oar protector sleeves?

(NOTE: About why I bought the wrong size oars --- I was in a boat supply
store and I didn't have or remember the formula for calculating the
correct size oars to get. I figured I could ask the "experts" at the
store, but they said they never heard of any formula and "just get
whatever feels right to you" -- duh. I have a 13-foot aluminum fishing
boat and the span across between the oarlock holders is 60-inches. The
only oars that the store had were the pair of 6 1/2 foot Caviness basswood
oars that I bought for $63, and a pair of 7-foot Caviness basswood oars
for $119. So, I bought the pair for $63. Since then, I went to another
boat supply store (West Marine) and the biggest they had were two
unmatched 8-foot Caviness basswood wooden oars with different size paddle
ends for about $77 each. I think that ideally I should have bought about
8 1/2 foot wooden oars, but the bottom line is that I now have the two 6
1/2 foot wooden oars that I bought for $63 for the pair.)

If just for a back up to your main propulsion, as you state above, I
wouldn't have spent the extra 50+ bucks on the longer oars either.
I'd do the sleeves, not just for prtecting the oars but also to quiet them
in the locks if you use the oars when fishing. I like the round locks,
pinned in, to avoid having the oar pop out of the lock and the lock lift out
of the socket.