Rigging a 1x with different sternward pitches?
Rigging a 1x with different sternward pitches?
Anyone have any experience changing the rigging of a sculling boat seat with different pitches? After numerous technique modifications, I can't seem to correct a tendency to drive deeper with my starboard oar and opposed to port. I have worked with video feedback, live and delayed, and experimented with different rigging heights. I have 0 degree lateral pitch bilaterally, and have been rowing with 4 degree sternward pitch bilaterally. I am considering experimenting with 6 degrees on STBD and 4 degrees on PORT. Is this crazy talk? Anybody else do this, try this, or heard of anyone doing differential pitch in a scull?
Re: Rigging a 1x with different sternward pitches?
I have never tried this, so I can't directly help. However, three things that spring to mind are:
1) 4 degrees sternwards pitch is quite normal so that seems like a good starting point.
2) Have you checked your sculls both have zero degrees pitch? Earlier this year I was surprised to discover my sculls both had different pitches, neither of which was zero degrees! Concept2 kindly fixed this for me.
3) What is the offset in heights between your left and right gates? A sculler's left (Starboard) gate is generally a bit higher than sculler's right (Portside) as most of us scull left-hand-over-right, but if this offset is too big I have found it affects blade depths and balance.
1) 4 degrees sternwards pitch is quite normal so that seems like a good starting point.
2) Have you checked your sculls both have zero degrees pitch? Earlier this year I was surprised to discover my sculls both had different pitches, neither of which was zero degrees! Concept2 kindly fixed this for me.
3) What is the offset in heights between your left and right gates? A sculler's left (Starboard) gate is generally a bit higher than sculler's right (Portside) as most of us scull left-hand-over-right, but if this offset is too big I have found it affects blade depths and balance.
Jack of all trades. Lightweight rower and sculler on the river and the coast, occasional cox, reluctant indoor rower, occasional boatman. Definitely master of none!
Re: Rigging a 1x with different sternward pitches?
I tend to agree with some2903 in that the height of the riggers needs to be looked at. You need to find the height with which you feel most comfortable.
Back in the day when I sculled, the standard was to have a small height offset between the riggers (and some scullers had no offset). Mechanically, to keep the blades even depth in the water, you have to tilt the boat ever so slightly down to port during the drive. Surprisingly, it doesn't take much tilt (due to the long lever arm of the rigger), which is why you really don't notice the tilt
It is my understanding that there is a growing trend to rig the scull so that there is enough clearance so the oars won't hit each other even if there is no tilt to the boat. So you have a choice of a flat rig with a tilt during the drive all the way up to a significant differential so that you have clearance without tilting the boat.
Back in the day when I sculled, the standard was to have a small height offset between the riggers (and some scullers had no offset). Mechanically, to keep the blades even depth in the water, you have to tilt the boat ever so slightly down to port during the drive. Surprisingly, it doesn't take much tilt (due to the long lever arm of the rigger), which is why you really don't notice the tilt
It is my understanding that there is a growing trend to rig the scull so that there is enough clearance so the oars won't hit each other even if there is no tilt to the boat. So you have a choice of a flat rig with a tilt during the drive all the way up to a significant differential so that you have clearance without tilting the boat.
Stewart MH 63+ https://log.concept2.com/profile/4926
Started rowing in 1975.
Started rowing in 1975.
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NavigationHazard
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Re: Rigging a 1x with different sternward pitches?
It's not impossible that one or more of your limbs is longer than its correspondent, and that this is affecting your drive slightly. Bilateral symmetry in nature is approximate, not exact, and both leg bones and arm bones in humans tend to differ in greater or lesser degree in multiple dimensions. In general, genetics and gender seem to have the greatest influence on just how much difference there is in any given individual. Additionally there seems to be a fairly consistent right-over-left bias, especially in the arms. If you're really interested in the details, see http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/do ... 1&type=pdf. Anyway, since pitch doesn't seem to be the issue, you might also experiment with altering your gearing slightly.
67 MH 6' 6"
Re: Rigging a 1x with different sternward pitches?
I think a differential pitch of the sculls is the most likely cause for the problems. It is a well-known fact that most (C2) sculls and oars tend to twist with time. Since the carbon fiber of port and starbord sculls/oars spiral the same way, the pitches change in either direction from original, i.e., the differential pitch becomes gradually larger with age. The maximum I ever measured was 8 degrees! More commonly you will find differential pitches in the range of 2 to 4 degrees in sculls several years old. This doesn´t sound too much but articularly in small boats you won´t be happy with this asymmetry...
The measured pitch very often deviates the same value (positively and negatively) from the original pitch which proves the unidirectional change in fiber length. IMO the problem would be far less, if the the fibres of port and starbord were simply wrapped in opposite directions. Then the pitch would change symmetrically und wouldn´t cause these balance problems.
In our club every boat has its own set of sculls and/or oars. This makes things far easier as you can set the oarlocks of every seat in every boat on the corresponding sculls/oars. If the boats are used with different oars with variable differential pitches, however, things become really difficult...
The measured pitch very often deviates the same value (positively and negatively) from the original pitch which proves the unidirectional change in fiber length. IMO the problem would be far less, if the the fibres of port and starbord were simply wrapped in opposite directions. Then the pitch would change symmetrically und wouldn´t cause these balance problems.
In our club every boat has its own set of sculls and/or oars. This makes things far easier as you can set the oarlocks of every seat in every boat on the corresponding sculls/oars. If the boats are used with different oars with variable differential pitches, however, things become really difficult...