Whisker Pole (revisited)
 

I finally made up my mind to purchase a Forespar whisker pole and wanted the
line control unit suitable for my boat size. Went directly to the marine
store I have a wholesale account with and found out that model was out of
stock and a call to Forespar revealed a 20 unit backlog (month or so wait).
Couldn't live with that.

This dealer finally offered me a Forespar pole of similar size but with
button or pin lock. Since this is now a discontinued type from Forespar,
they were able to give me a good discount in addition to my wholesale price.
Ended up paying $360 for what did list at about $900.

Now I need to learn a little about these pin lock operating procedures.

When the pole is fully collapsed, the release button is at the inboard/mast
end of the pole. In order to pull the inside tube section out, you have to
pull on the outboard end. Too far for on person to reach..

Is the intended procedure, here, to attach the outboard end to the sheet and
then pull against it to extend the pole??

Seem kinda awkward to me.

Since I would like to keep the pole stored vertically on the mast, in it's
collapsed length, it looks like I will have to deal with this problem each
time I use it.

What am I missing here?? Is this a "two person job".?

Steve
s/v Good Intentions

Steve,
About Telescoping whisker pole with pin lock.

Basicly, you set the length tand then hook the pole on a clew, push it
out and hook it to the ring on the mast.

Get a paint pen or a good marker and put a stripe all the way along the
inner part that line up wit the pin. This is so you know where the pine
is when you are trying to lock it - Just line up the line you made with
the pin and pull or pust to the nearest hole.

You will be hard pressed to change the length with the pole in place,
but again, a couple of marks on the inner part will let you set the
length you like on the first try.

Matt Colie



Steve wrote:
I finally made up my mind to purchase a Forespar whisker pole and wanted the
line control unit suitable for my boat size. Went directly to the marine
store I have a wholesale account with and found out that model was out of
stock and a call to Forespar revealed a 20 unit backlog (month or so wait).
Couldn't live with that.

This dealer finally offered me a Forespar pole of similar size but with
button or pin lock. Since this is now a discontinued type from Forespar,
they were able to give me a good discount in addition to my wholesale price.
Ended up paying $360 for what did list at about $900.

Now I need to learn a little about these pin lock operating procedures.

When the pole is fully collapsed, the release button is at the inboard/mast
end of the pole. In order to pull the inside tube section out, you have to
pull on the outboard end. Too far for on person to reach..

Is the intended procedure, here, to attach the outboard end to the sheet and
then pull against it to extend the pole??

Seem kinda awkward to me.

Since I would like to keep the pole stored vertically on the mast, in it's
collapsed length, it looks like I will have to deal with this problem each
time I use it.

What am I missing here?? Is this a "two person job".?

Steve
s/v Good Intentions

"Matt Colie" wrote in message
...

Get a paint pen or a good marker and put a stripe all the way along the
inner part that line up wit the pin. This is so you know where the pine
is when you are trying to lock it - Just line up the line you made with
the pin and pull or pust to the nearest hole.

You will be hard pressed to change the length with the pole in place, but
again, a couple of marks on the inner part will let you set the length you
like on the first try.


I understand the procedure that you suggest, however, I am still left with
the question of how to you pull the inside tube out while pressing the
buttons on the other end. That is a ~10 ft reach. What I have been doing,
this far, is hook the outboard end onto a deck fitting, press the buttons
and pull, until the pins are past the "stow-lock" position. Once released
from the "stow-lock" position, I can work from the outboard end of the pole
and rotate the inside tube so that the pins don't engage any of the holes in
between.

As a new pole, I can also allow the inside tube slide of it's own weight by
dipping the pole at about 20 degrees, however, I doubt this will work after
a couple seasons of exposure to use and elements.

Thanks,

Steve
s/v Good Intention