I just purchased a set of old oars from a club and they came with something cool that I’d never seen before.

Check out the quick release cam lever on this button. I believe that these Sutton oars are 1980s vintage and this part looks to be original and not a modification. I know that Dreher are making a mechanism to easily adjust their modern oars whilst on the water, but this goes to show that there is not much new under the sun!