Using an Oar for a rudder...???

Discussion in 'Boatbuilding' started by pwillie, Sep 13, 2015.

  1. pwillie
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    pwillie Junior Member

    ...the boat (Dory) I'm building will have a small square rig sail, and how would an oar work as a rudder....thinking about a key hold slot in the stern for holding the oar in place?...anyone ever done it? :?:
     
  2. gonzo
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    gonzo Senior Member

    That is a very common setup. Rudders evolved from steering oars.
     
  3. SukiSolo
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    SukiSolo Senior Member

  4. pwillie
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    pwillie Junior Member

    What about the "Key Hole?"in the stern?
     
  5. SukiSolo
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    SukiSolo Senior Member

    The 'keyhole' idea has been done before. If I remember right we used wooden oars with leather wraps on some scout gigs to do this, it is a long lever aft but it works. Equally these gigs (19') were perfectly scullable with the oar in the transom recess - shaped like a rowlock. By scullable I mean sculling with one blade through transom making figure of eights, not the rowing meaning of sculling. If you really throw your weight into it those things used to shift solo.

    If you needed to 'lock' the oar in, you push the leather wrap part into the horseshoe/rowlock and it cannot lift vertically. Not a sculling position but a steering one only. Obviously you could put another wrap on the blade shaft to give a shorter lever out aft ie 2 position option.
     
  6. pwillie
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    pwillie Junior Member

    This is a rough drawing of the stern keyhole
     
  7. pwillie
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    pwillie Junior Member

    Key hole for rudder...What do you think?
     

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  8. SukiSolo
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    SukiSolo Senior Member

    What is the advantage over a horseshoe shape at the top of the transom?

    Your design requires a longer length of oar to be moved along its length to mount and dismount, ie remove from hole.
     
  9. DCockey
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    DCockey Senior Member

    Disadvantage is the oar can not be quickly removed, which may be needed in close quarters.
     
  10. pwillie
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    pwillie Junior Member

    I was thinking about the oar being more secure if you had to drop the tiller in the event of a blow...????
     

  11. Squidly-Diddly
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    Squidly-Diddly Senior Member

    I'd like to see a combo oar/rudder/leeboard/sculling-oar/paddle.

    I guess it would be a standard flat wooden canoe paddle shape, but a double ended kayak style aluminum shaft and plastic blade, with a couple extra dis-connectors at the right places, and a hand-friendly "T" attachments for single paddle use. The "T"s could probably fit inside the shafts somewhere.
     
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