I was not impressed by the construction or finish of the Sawyer brand of oars. They are ok but it is fairly easy to build your own and end up with a much nicer oar from superior materials. One thing I noticed was the finish ,a standard spar urathane varnish. I have built traditional archery equipement for a number of years and have learned to master epoxies and lamination. Here is how to make a superior finish. Take any two part quick cure epoxy. If its a small job like a set of row boat oars or a rail on a boat you can just buy the double hypo of 2 ton for $1.97 at lowes. Pour the correct proportions of epoxy into an old glass mayo jar. Then mix acetone 4 to 1 or 5 to 1 with the epoxy and stir it up. You now have a finish that goes on smooth and will dry in just a few minutes. You do not have to sand inbetween coats. One thing you do have to do is work quickly and depending on the temp you may not even be able to go back over your fist brush stroke before it becomes tacky dry. You can use a foam brush or standard paint brush. The fumes are strong so ventilate. Put a layer of saran wrap on the jar before you put the lid on and it will store for weeks if not months. I mix up no more than I will use. 4 or 5 coats of this finish and you have a bomb proof finish on your oars. You can touch them up anytime without sanding.