After a nearly 4 month break I started some work on the rowing skiff again. The winter here was unusually wet and cold, so any paint or varnish work was difficult to do outdoors. This past Friday I decided to work on the oars which arrived around Thanksgiving. I began by weight the oar handles. Four 1/2" holes were drilled in a scrap 2x6 and molten lead was poured inside. After the lead cooled, the wood was split apart with a saw and chisel and the lead weights were sanded down and test fit into another holed drilled in the remaining scrap wood. Thickened epoxy was applied to the end of each oar, and the weights were inserted. I allowed the glue to dry 
overnight, and filled a few voids with fairing compound (top photo). After the fairing compound cured a few hours the oars were sanded, wiped down and the ends of the blades were painted blue to match the sheer stripe on the hull. On Sunday the first coat of varnish was applied to the oars and a second coat was added this afternoon. The ends resting on the saw horses will be varnished later.
