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The oars

The oars are made from a dowel attached to a thin piece of wood. To make the blades all exactly the same shape, I took a large block of wood and made it into a very thick version of the shape I wanted for the blades, and then had my dad cut off slices with a compound miter saw to make the individual blades, like when you buy a tube of dough and cut it into cookies.

I cut a slit in each oar the width of the dowel, slipped the dowel in, glued it into place, and then sanded off the rounded part and filled in the gap with wood putty. I painted the shaft black, leaving a certain amount unpainted (using tape) for the handle, and leaving the blade unpainted.

To make the blades the appropriate colors, I covered up the shafts and handles with newspaper and then spray-painted the blades purple. Williams oars are actually more of a maroon, but I like purple better for a Williams boat. Then I took white and yellow electrical tape to make the attractive stripes that make the blades distinctive. Finally, I put a strip of white electrical tape 1/3 of the way down the oar where the oarlock goes.