We're looking at buying a whisker pole for our O'day 26. We race in a PHRF governed regatta, so we want something that will conform to their rules. (I don't know the specific rules for whisker poles because everytime I try to open their Web page, it crashes.) Do you know the PHRF whisker pole requirements? Also, Forespar offers two poles that look like they would work for our boat. The cheaper one costs aboat $130 and extends to 12 feet. The other one is $350 and extends to 15 feet. I've heard that you don't need anything longer than the boat's J measurement, which is roughly 10 feet on our boat. Seeing as how we would probably only use the pole in light air, will the cheaper one work? We have a 140% genoa on a roller furler, if that helps. Thanks.
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tommays
No J limit anymore
At least with the YRA of Long Island Sound the limit is only on spinnaker poles and not wisker poles
You want the longest one you can handle as it will allow many more positions of sail
Dead down wind is very slow and you will get much better VMG jibing more unless it is really windy
If you Google for a POLAR for your boat or one close to it will show the best angles to sail at up and down wind and the boat speed you need
Tom Mays
At least with the YRA of Long Island Sound the limit is only on spinnaker poles and not wisker poles
You want the longest one you can handle as it will allow many more positions of sail
Dead down wind is very slow and you will get much better VMG jibing more unless it is really windy
If you Google for a POLAR for your boat or one close to it will show the best angles to sail at up and down wind and the boat speed you need
Tom Mays
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Jim
Whisker pole
I made one from an extendable swimingpool brush pole I bought at Home Depot. I put a "pin" at one end, and fashioned a mast-ring hook at the other end. Cheap, light weight and it's adjustable. It's fun to make your own stuff and cost about $25.
I made one from an extendable swimingpool brush pole I bought at Home Depot. I put a "pin" at one end, and fashioned a mast-ring hook at the other end. Cheap, light weight and it's adjustable. It's fun to make your own stuff and cost about $25.
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CalebD
I think it is the 'J' dimension that is used for max WP length
Having said that, we use our spinnaker pole as a whisker pole on the jib frequently on downwind race legs. We race on Weds. nights which is corrected with PHRF ratings. I suppose that our spin pole is longer than our 'J' dimension. Are we cheating???
Having said that, we use our spinnaker pole as a whisker pole on the jib frequently on downwind race legs. We race on Weds. nights which is corrected with PHRF ratings. I suppose that our spin pole is longer than our 'J' dimension. Are we cheating???
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Ed
whisker pole length
You do not want the $130 pole unless you like folded metal art. The poles are under a lot of compression.
Forespar has two lengths of the proper size poles.
They recommend the HD 6-12-DL for jibs and ADJ 7-17-DL for genoas.
Another problem will be getting a ring to fit the mast profile. You're going to need a ring with 1-5/8id to fit the pole end and the ones with a curved bracket don't have a tight enough radius to fit the front of your mast extrusion. A torch and anvil are helpful to form the mounting plate to the correct radius. Your mast is most likely a D-500 extrusion. You can get a line drawing of the cross section at dwyermast.com. Make a template to check the shape of the pole ring mounting plate and you'll avoid frustration when you take it to the boat for install.
You do not want the $130 pole unless you like folded metal art. The poles are under a lot of compression.
Forespar has two lengths of the proper size poles.
They recommend the HD 6-12-DL for jibs and ADJ 7-17-DL for genoas.
Another problem will be getting a ring to fit the mast profile. You're going to need a ring with 1-5/8id to fit the pole end and the ones with a curved bracket don't have a tight enough radius to fit the front of your mast extrusion. A torch and anvil are helpful to form the mounting plate to the correct radius. Your mast is most likely a D-500 extrusion. You can get a line drawing of the cross section at dwyermast.com. Make a template to check the shape of the pole ring mounting plate and you'll avoid frustration when you take it to the boat for install.
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j
Whisker pole
You should follow the advice of the previous poster and check with your local PHRF office, they are not all the same. In PHRF of SoCal there still is a limit on whisker poles of 1.4 x J. Just ask around locally.
You should follow the advice of the previous poster and check with your local PHRF office, they are not all the same. In PHRF of SoCal there still is a limit on whisker poles of 1.4 x J. Just ask around locally.
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CalebD
Jimq26, thanks for the link.
I checked my PHRF org.s website (HRYRA - Hudson River ...) and there was no mention of any pole lengths. It is a pretty small association so I guess they just go along with the prevailing rules.
According to your link I understand that you can use anything you like (eg., boat hook)for a whisker pole but whatever you use for a spin pole must be reported so PHRF can be adjusted accordingly.
So using our spin pole as a whisker pole is not illegal. Our spin pole is original on our 1967 Tartan 27' and about 6" diameter aluminum and is more likely to break us then itself. Since we do not race in the spinnaker division the point is moot for us.
I checked my PHRF org.s website (HRYRA - Hudson River ...) and there was no mention of any pole lengths. It is a pretty small association so I guess they just go along with the prevailing rules.
According to your link I understand that you can use anything you like (eg., boat hook)for a whisker pole but whatever you use for a spin pole must be reported so PHRF can be adjusted accordingly.
So using our spin pole as a whisker pole is not illegal. Our spin pole is original on our 1967 Tartan 27' and about 6" diameter aluminum and is more likely to break us then itself. Since we do not race in the spinnaker division the point is moot for us.
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Ray T
Wisker poles
Mike, PHRF of the Chesapeak specifies that spinnaker poles and wisker poles are the dimension of J. If the wisker pole is adjustable it should have a red band so that if you exceed J the red band will show. Ray T
Mike, PHRF of the Chesapeak specifies that spinnaker poles and wisker poles are the dimension of J. If the wisker pole is adjustable it should have a red band so that if you exceed J the red band will show. Ray T
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Nereussailor
Whisker pole
I used to race on a Catalina 25. We used the Forespar ADJ6-12 whisker pole and it worked fine. I wouldn't go any smaller for the boat that you have, but it will work great for light air and even moderate air. We never had to use it in heavy air, but I would think with the sail furled in or a smaller head sail, it would be fine. just my 2 cents.
Mauri pro sailing has it for $124
I used to race on a Catalina 25. We used the Forespar ADJ6-12 whisker pole and it worked fine. I wouldn't go any smaller for the boat that you have, but it will work great for light air and even moderate air. We never had to use it in heavy air, but I would think with the sail furled in or a smaller head sail, it would be fine. just my 2 cents.
Mauri pro sailing has it for $124
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S. Sauer
Adjustable Pole
I had an adjustable 7-17 on my Hunter 25 and kept it when I moved up to a Hunter 28.5, though it is really too light or too small a diameter at the small end. I'd only use it a foot or two over the J even if the length were unlimited. I also installed a sliding car on a 4' track section which is a nice feature but isn't really necessary. I'd try to get the pole horizontal with the largest Genoa if I were setting a single ring fitting on the mast.
With the genoa sheet run to a snatch block on the rail you can reasonably control the sail without a bridle or down haul if you want to simplify and save money. If we were spinnaker racing I would have a 3" diameter pole at 12'-1" (J) with a double bridle. If you don't have swept back spreaders and do have lower standing rigging that the pole can touch when you bring it perpendicular to the centerline, you risk bending the pole or breaking a fitting.
For a 26' boat, I'd say a lightweight adjustable whisker pole is fine for light air, but shorten it up or don't use it at all when the wind picks up.
I had an adjustable 7-17 on my Hunter 25 and kept it when I moved up to a Hunter 28.5, though it is really too light or too small a diameter at the small end. I'd only use it a foot or two over the J even if the length were unlimited. I also installed a sliding car on a 4' track section which is a nice feature but isn't really necessary. I'd try to get the pole horizontal with the largest Genoa if I were setting a single ring fitting on the mast.
With the genoa sheet run to a snatch block on the rail you can reasonably control the sail without a bridle or down haul if you want to simplify and save money. If we were spinnaker racing I would have a 3" diameter pole at 12'-1" (J) with a double bridle. If you don't have swept back spreaders and do have lower standing rigging that the pole can touch when you bring it perpendicular to the centerline, you risk bending the pole or breaking a fitting.
For a 26' boat, I'd say a lightweight adjustable whisker pole is fine for light air, but shorten it up or don't use it at all when the wind picks up.
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