Whisker pole options

[Analgesic]

I'm looking for some real world experience.  I was thinking of adding a Forespar line control aluminum 12-22' whisker pole.  My local rigger gave me a quote (with his 20% discount)  of $3600 installed.  He recommended a Harken track and car control assembly with on the mast storage for $1100.  This set up is certainly very nice but for a lot less money I could get a short Forespar track with a pad eye pin control attachment and deck or rail storage.  I cruise mostly with my family and would like the advantage of a pole for the 3-6 hour run/broad reach we often see.  The wife and I do the work while the kids lounge.  I do 2-3 pursuit  races per year with a full crew and it would be a big advantage to have a pole although we're not that serious.  I am looking for feedback on how easy or difficult it is to use the pole, whether the track vs pad eye makes a big difference as far as ease of use goes considering the extra weight of aluminum vs carbon (prohibitive), and a sense of whether it is worth the investment or not.  My worst fear is that I spend the money and then find it's too much of a pain to actually use it frequently.  Thanks in advance for any help.
Brian McPhillips

[Ted Pounds]

I had mine set up with a simple track and eye.  I stored it in chocks on deck.  Two useful things are a trip-line to release it from the clew easily and a topping lift so that you can raise it up the mast out of the way (temporarily) after you trip it.   The topping lift also helps control sail shape in light air.  I used it a lot in jib & main club racing and with my asymmetric spinnaker when going straight downwind.  The price you mentioned seems a bit high, by the way.  You might try getting a second quote or buying from Defender.

[David Sanner]

If you're racing and will want to gybe the pole quickly it is nice
to be able to run the car up the track.  Also having a longer
track allow the pole to be stored on the mast, a big plus for some.

If you're not thinking of doing any of the above a pad eye (without
any track) will do the trick and you don't even have to go to your rigger.
(unless you want him run your topping lift).  If you're not certain
you could always start with a pad eye that you mount yourself and if
you find that you would prefer a track use the pad eye at the bottom
when storing the pole.


I added 14' of T track (1.25"), the articulating Forespar car,
(FC125), a couple blocks and a set of cam cleats (about 2 feet apart),
and the 12-22 aluminum whisker pole.  (12-22 UXP-UTR)
I also added a  basic topping lift with a block just below the steaming
light. (apparently the higher the better but my mast already had a
pad eye mounted there)  I thought about getting the more
expensive Harken track that supports ball-bearing cars but
wound up going with the less expensive T-Track which works well.


Most of the work was drilling and tapping the machine
screws for the track but I someone did it myself within
a few+ hours (2 drill bit sizes & tap all with cordless driver).


With a topping lift it's not very difficult to deploy the pole, even with
one person but as the wind builds it helps to have two people that
know what they are doing... and when racing having sometimes having
two people forward and one back can make efficient gybing more likely.

The 12-22 (2.5" /3") pole can take a lot of abuse and stress and
we use them regularly in 20+kts of wind while racing on SF Bay.
(@ 16'9" w/ our class max 130 sails).

http://flickr.com/photos/c34fleet1/3264829196/

[Ken Juul]

A PO mounted mine on the mast.  Fixed rings top and bottom.  It is an alum telescoping model.  Heavy!  Next to impossible to get it back on the mast underway in any kind of sea.  Go to a store and heft a few different models.  Imagine how you would do it underway.  End result is I only use mine once or twice a year. If you want to make it useable, go with the track or get a carbon model to keep the weight manageable.  I'm sure I would use mine more if it wasn't such a pita.

[Craig Illman]

David - When you get the opportunity, could you take a picture of your mast setup? My pole is stored on deck, it's a bit underfoot at times and gybing is a pain. What's a few more holes in the mast? I have a little eye strap up by the streaming light, I've always wondered what it might have been for. I've used the spare jib halyard as a topping lift.

Craig

p.s. congratulations on your Fleet 1 award for 2008.

[rirvine]

Some comments:

The pole that David discussed above weight about 40lbs. 

Use a lighter pole and you have a high risk of it breaking.  I have two pieces of a lighter pole in my garage.

Using a long T-track on the mast allows:
The pole to be stored on the mast out of the way of feet and toes
The pole can be raised up the pole to make jibing easier

A toping lift makes managing the pole during a jib easier. Once set, it usually does not need to be adjusted.

Two people on the deck during a jib is the best way to go – one to raise the pole up the mast and one to manage the changing of the sheets.

Use the FC-125 heavy-duty car- yes it is expensive but it will reduce the risk of breaking the mast end fitting.

Ray

[C Martinson]

How do you keep the whisker pole from bouncing or banging the mast when in the vertical position?  I assume it is held inplace with more than just the topping lift??

Chris
More Therapy
Hull 945 1989

[David Sanner]

The pole is stored on the mast by running the car (FC-125) and
the inboard end of the pole all the way up the track and clipping the
outboard end of the pole onto a ring at the bottom of the track just
above the deck (others have a ring mounted on the deck)

When pole is stored the topping lift simply snugs up next
to the pole.

I've attached a photo but it's fairly grainy as it's from my
cell phone.   

On the left you can see the top of the pole in its
stowed position with the blue topping lift running
up from the bottom (on the far side) and through a block
I have mounted just below the deck light.  You can also
just make out the car control line that starts on a padeye
just above the track, runs down to a block on the car, back
up and around a cheek block mounted above the pad eye
and then down along the port side of the mast where it runs
through two cam cleats, the top one being about head height.

On the right side of the image you can see the bottom of
the track and the ring that I use to stow the pole.  Just to
the left of the ring is a block where the car control line goes
through.  The left most (white&red) line comes down from
above, passes through both cam cleats (about 4' apart),
passes though the cheek block and then back up through
a block on the bottom of the car and then finally back down
and ends on a padeye just to the right of the ring.

[Craig Illman]

David - Thanks for the pictures. Just to clarify, the cam cleats are mounted in opposite directions? One to hold the car up and the other to hold the car down?

Craig

[Stu Jackson]

We have the deck mounted pin for the bottom of our pole, so our track doesn't go down all the way to the deck like Dave's does.  The only downside of a vertically mounted pole is that the pistons tend the get gummed up with salt, so they need to be lubricated regularly.  We use a spare jib halyard for our pole topping lift.

An idea for gybing the pole that I learned from a Fleet 1 member:  Tie a loop of stout line through the jib clew cringle so that you don't have to switch the sheets when gybing.

[David Sanner]

Craig,

Yes, the cam cleats are mounted in opposite direction about
4' feet apart.  The top one is in a nice position to easily
operate as well as doesn't interfere with pull down
(or up) on the control line.

The one at head height keeps the line from goign up
(towards the top block) which keeps the pole from dropping.

We have a lower one but rarely cleat it as they car never
moves up on it's own.

Here's a snap of the top cam cleat