# Oar blades square vs shoal cut



## kfalls (Sep 10, 2015)

The folks over at Sawyer station were telling me that the shoal cut are for rowing in shoals, i.e really shallow water. For fishing and stuff. Not their best whitewater blade. Give them a call they can help you best.


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## GOTY2011 (Mar 18, 2018)

Get ahold of Aaron with Sawyer in Grand Junction, he's in Moab this weekend but can arrange a demo row. Personally, I've used the Shoal Cut blades for guiding anglers and running WW (MF Salmon, Selway, GR) and appreciate the additional volume per stroke in lower water. That being said, if you're only pushing downstream the classic shape of a WW blade is very good.


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## FlyingDutchman (Mar 25, 2014)

Love my cataract shoal cuts.


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## cupido76 (May 22, 2009)

I haven't tried them yet, but nrs has a cheaper option for that design concept of oar blade...

https://www.nrs.com/product/77290.01/nrs-helix-oar-blade

I bought a pair because I'm often running boney rivers. I will try to remember to report back after I try them.

Also of interest is that these blades are quite a bit lighter than cataract magnum blades, and even a little lighter than Carlisle outfitter 6.5" blades... Even though the helix is 7.25" wide, and 2" longer at 29". 

The spine of the helix blade seems to be some sort of carbon plastic instead of metal like the Carlisle. That explains the weight difference, and also means that bending a blade is unlikely, but breaking one is more possible. Time will tell on durability.


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## elkhaven (Sep 11, 2013)

I have both, the shoal cut blades make the oar feel longer. I have 9, 9.5 and 10' shafts and found I like them best on the 9 or 9.5 shafts on the 10'ers they feel too long and have a lot of grab. They row nice in shallow water and are fine in deep water. With that said, I don't know that I'd buy them again... no specific reason why, I just don't see that much of a benefit. It's certainly not a night and day difference but maybe if you feel your oars are a little short, they might give you a bit more reach as the meat of blade is a few inches farther out the oar.


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## FlyingDutchman (Mar 25, 2014)

You might occasionally notice some slight rotational torque on the shafts due to the shoal cut blades. But the torque is really not enough to make me want to go back to regular or magnum blades. Shoal cuts for me and the technical rivers I like to run.


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## FlyingDutchman (Mar 25, 2014)

FYI. I have not tried the helix. Only the cataracts.


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## elkhaven (Sep 11, 2013)

So after all that BS I spewed yesterday I stumbled onto 2 nearly new shoal cut blades last night and bought 'em. $100 a piece plus a canyon prospector for another 250.... all in all a great evening of craigslist shopping!

I'm now super excited to try the shoal cuts on my 9 foot sticks again.


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## SERE Nate (Feb 1, 2019)

elkhaven said:


> So after all that BS I spewed yesterday I stumbled onto 2 nearly new shoal cut blades last night and bought 'em. $100 a piece plus a canyon prospector for another 250.... all in all a great evening of craigslist shopping!
> 
> I'm now super excited to try the shoal cuts on my 9 foot sticks again.


I'm loving my shoal cuts so far. Have had them on the Smith and NF of the Flathead. They are perfect for MT rivers.


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## cupido76 (May 22, 2009)

I did a back to back comparison between cataract magnum blades and my new nrs helix.

I didn't notice a big difference in how they feathered but I'm very new to feathering so take that with a grain of salt.

I did notice that the magnum seem to float more than the helix, but helix still seemed to float... The blade didn't sink to infinity when I let go of the handle.

One positive I did notice to the "shoal cut" concept is that when my downstream oar clipped the bottom, it wasn't jarring and the oar didn't want to propel itself towards my face... The curve on the bottom of the blade meant it just bumped up vertically. I like this.


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## stelz (Aug 10, 2018)

OP-
What did you end up buying? 

I have shoal cut blades and smokers and prefer the shoal cut in almost every instance. Probably because it's what I'm use to. I float rocky rivers and fish a lot....but almost always take them on my whitewater trips too. Now that I'm use to using them...I can't see the disadvantage even in deep water. I'm sure someone at Sawyer can explain why.


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## noahfecks (Jun 14, 2008)

stelz said:


> OP-
> What did you end up buying?
> 
> I have shoal cut blades and smokers and prefer the shoal cut in almost every instance. Probably because it's what I'm use to. I float rocky rivers and fish a lot....but almost always take them on my whitewater trips too. Now that I'm use to using them...I can't see the disadvantage even in deep water. I'm sure someone at Sawyer can explain why.



Nothing yet, I have been waffling back and forth about my decision. 



When on the water it's for whitewater, fishing is just a bonus if it happens.


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## stelz (Aug 10, 2018)

Noahfecks-
Which ones are you going back and forth on?


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## noahfecks (Jun 14, 2008)

Cataract, cutthroats or magnums


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## MT4Runner (Apr 6, 2012)

FlyingDutchman said:


> You might occasionally notice some slight rotational torque on the shafts due to the shoal cut blades. But the torque is really not enough to make me want to go back to regular or magnum blades. Shoal cuts for me and the technical rivers I like to run.


Rowing feathered or oarlocks?


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## Burl Haggard (May 8, 2014)

I have been using the NRS helix for 2 seasons now for WW. They are very light and float well. They also seem to be very durable (which I was concerned about at first). They work great for the shallow rivers we like to run like the Piedra and Upper A. I also used them on the Middle Fork and they were perfect. I highly recommend!


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## BGillespie (Jul 15, 2018)

+1 for NRS Helix. We've switched our fleet to them and everyone is happy, especially last year when everything was extremely low.


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## stelz (Aug 10, 2018)

BGillespie said:


> +1 for NRS Helix. We've switched our fleet to them and everyone is happy, especially last year when everything was extremely low.


What did you Switch From?


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## BGillespie (Jul 15, 2018)

stelz said:


> What did you Switch From?


Cataract and Carlisle square cut.


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## cupido76 (May 22, 2009)

Burl Haggard said:


> I have been using the NRS helix for 2 seasons now for WW. They are very light and float well. They also seem to be very durable (which I was concerned about at first). They work great for the shallow rivers we like to run like the Piedra and Upper A. I also used them on the Middle Fork and they were perfect. I highly recommend!


I agree with this. Just had mine out on a 4 day trip on a shallow and technical river and I hit less rocks, but the rocks I did hit left no marks, so the durability seems good.


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## noahfecks (Jun 14, 2008)

Pulled the trigger on some shoal cuts last night


Thanks to all that gave feedback!


Now, anybody know how to get the handles out of Cataract oars?


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## BGillespie (Jul 15, 2018)

I can vouch for Helix durability--smashed one of mine into a wall in Westwater at a fairly decent velocity while trying to rescue a swimmer from another boat. That impact would have exploded the previous blades I've used, but it just bent the tip of the Helix. Straightened the tip and its still on my boat as a spare. We were concerned about durability as well, but after the lack of water last season and numerous rock strikes, they're all fine.


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## noahfecks (Jun 14, 2008)

A little feed back after using them this season


I don't feel like I lost anything switching from a square cut blade in any water conditions.


I feel like I get more blade in the water during shallow conditions, I have more confidence that when I take a stroke I am going to get a good bite


As has been mentioned they dont catch on the bottom and try to know out more of my teeth


In summary I like them, will likely never go back to a square cut blade


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## Kayakguy (Feb 19, 2015)

noahfecks said:


> Pulled the trigger on some shoal cuts last night
> 
> 
> Thanks to all that gave feedback!
> ...


You can find out how to get cataract handles out on Gilmangrips.com


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## Rivergirl37 (Aug 25, 2009)

BGillespie said:


> +1 for NRS Helix. We've switched our fleet to them and everyone is happy, especially last year when everything was extremely low.


I've been using the Helix blades since early last year and originally bought 3, the extra is on my spare. I've got a Grand trip coming up next spring so I wanted to pick up a 4th blade for my 2nd spare, and NRS isn't selling them anymore! Have you heard anything about that?


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## BGillespie (Jul 15, 2018)

The backorder lead time was so long, that they pulled them off the web page (temporarily I hope).

If you need a 4th spare, I have one with a messed up tip that's still functional, $20.


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## MT4Runner (Apr 6, 2012)

cupido76 said:


> I did a back to back comparison between cataract magnum blades and my new nrs helix.
> 
> I didn't notice a big difference in how they feathered but I'm very new to feathering so take that with a grain of salt.
> 
> ...


Another data point to add to the conversation:

Oars need the most area out at the tip where the lever is longest. 
A square cut tip will have less "vortex shedding" as water moves from the high pressure area at the face of the blade to "fill in" the low pressure area behind the blade. The parallel edges and square tip force the vortices to the end, and it's a short area...so less vortex shedding. On a curved/asymmetrical blade, the outboard half of the blade has vortices spiraling around.
To get the same "bite", an asymmetrical blade will need more surface area.
So you may have more drag when rowing into the wind (if you don't feather your oars)

If you don't ever row into the wind, you will probably never notice it.


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## mkashzg (Aug 9, 2006)

GOTY2011 said:


> Get ahold of Aaron with Sawyer in Grand Junction, he's in Moab this weekend but can arrange a demo row. Personally, I've used the Shoal Cut blades for guiding anglers and running WW (MF Salmon, Selway, GR) and appreciate the additional volume per stroke in lower water. That being said, if you're only pushing downstream the classic shape of a WW blade is very good.


I would also suggest this route if possible he is super knowledgeable and helpful!


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## Rivergirl37 (Aug 25, 2009)

BGillespie said:


> The backorder lead time was so long, that they pulled them off the web page (temporarily I hope).
> 
> If you need a 4th spare, I have one with a messed up tip that's still functional, $20.


Thanks for the offer BG, that was super nice of you! I got hold of NRS and they said "We have made some upgrades in the construction of the Helix Blade. The outside hasn't changed but made the construction stronger. We are expecting our new model in a week from now." So...looks like I'll be able to find them on the website again soon with a new part number 77290.02.100! I'm hoping the changes don't affect the weight much, their light weight in spite of their size was a big part of why I bought them over other asymmetrical blades.


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## cupido76 (May 22, 2009)

Has anyone else who uses these run into problems with the locking button getting stuck down so it won't engage in the hole in the oar?

Seems like the same design idea as every other oar blade but none of my other blades have ever had this problem and both of my helix blades are experiencing this issue.


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## MT4Runner (Apr 6, 2012)

Friction issue? Use some silicon grease (works when wet) or graphite powder (dry)?


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## cupido76 (May 22, 2009)

MT4Runner said:


> Friction issue? Use some silicon grease (works when wet) or graphite powder (dry)?


I'm guessing grit caught in the mechanism but I haven't tried to figure it out yet and I just thought it was odd that it doesn't happen on my other blades. Could just be a coincidence too... who knows.


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## BGillespie (Jul 15, 2018)

Yes, the tolerance is a little too tight, so any grit makes them sticky. All of mine are this way, but usually wiggling the blade, inserted into the shaft, under water, gets them to lock.


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## Chris Queen (Jul 19, 2021)

BGillespie said:


> The backorder lead time was so long, that they pulled them off the web page (temporarily I hope).
> 
> If you need a 4th spare, I have one with a messed up tip that's still functional, $20.


Did you ever sell this spare blade?


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## BGillespie (Jul 15, 2018)

Chris Queen said:


> Did you ever sell this spare blade?


I _think_ I still have it, I'd have to dig. Are you in Salt Lake?


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## Chris Queen (Jul 19, 2021)

BGillespie said:


> I _think_ I still have it, I'd have to dig. Are you in Salt Lake?


Cool. No, I'm in Tulsa. Let me know if you find it. I'll pay to ship it. I'd just like to have a spare without spending much.


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