Thank you for an excellent answer to my question. You shared various ideas on this matter,
you've saved me lots of time and money. The result is that I am going with the put over carbon.
Thank you again,
James
________________________________
From: William Gowen <wdgowen_at_gmail.com>
To: Indoor_Construction_at_yahoogroups.com
Sent: Sunday, July 21, 2013 12:26 PM
Subject: Re: [Indoor_Construction] Re: Steering poles
Here are my personal opinions about pole lengths and styles. Others probably won't agree.
I think you should buy the longest pole you can afford if you're
planning on using it at anything higher than low Cat 1 sites. The
reason is that longer poles have stiffer lower sections so at any
given length a longer pole (assuming equal quality) will be stiffer.
A stiffer pole is much preferable for steering b/c the top end will
be easier to control.
A different discussion is what type pole to get. There are basically
2 types of poles - collapsible (telescopic) and put over. In a
collapsible pole the sections nest inside each other and extend by
pulling the a shorter section out until it locks into the top end of
the next larger section. Probably everyone is familiar with this
type of pole.
In the put over pole you have to lay out all the sections as
separate pieces and then assemble the pole by putting each smaller
section into (or over) the socket in the top end of the next larger
section. Obviously this is a lot more trouble than extending a
collapsible type pole. But most of the people you see using long
steering poles will opt for this type of pole.
The collapsible poles have a couple of big drawbacks. The first is
that it is very difficult to change the length while your model is
in the air. They only work with all the sections pulled out and
locked into place. The only way to adjust the length is to use fewer
sections. If you need to lengthen or shorten the pole on short
notice it is pretty difficult to accomplish.
Another drawback is the possibility of the pole collapsing while you
are attempting to steer. This means you have to really make sure the
sections are pulled tight and it also means more possibility of the
sections getting jammed in that position. I've had both problems.
The first can be a disaster and the second can be a major pain to
fix.
An advantage of the collapsible pole is that they generally close to
a shorter length than put over poles. I have one that is about 32"
long when closed while my put over pole is around 5' when stowed.
In our TTOMA flying site there is often a need for different pole
lengths depending on where the model is flying. With a put over
pole the usual technique is to have enough of the top sections of
the pole put together to reach the lower ceiling and to carry a
couple of lower sections that can be quickly assembled to the upper
sections when needed.
Sorry this got so long but maybe it will save someone from an
expensive purchase that they aren't happy with.
On 7/21/2013 11:02 AM, James Taylor wrote:
>Should one have more than one length of pole? What lengths? Assuming that you only need one,
>what is the best "one size fits all" length to get?
>
>Thank you,
>James
>
>
>From: mailto:mkirda_at_sbcglobal.net mailto:mkirda_at_sbcglobal.net
>To: Indoor_Construction_at_yahoogroups.com
>Sent: Saturday, July 20, 2013 8:32 AM
>Subject: [Indoor_Construction] Re: Steering poles
>
>
>http://www.allfishingbuy.com/Fishing-Pole-14-18.htm Poles such as these have been recommended to me previously. I plan to get one later on this year so I can practice with it in Racine. Regards. Mike Kirda --- In mailto:Indoor_Construction%40yahoogroups.com, "linardic" mailto:linardic_at_... wrote: > > I am looking for a source of carbon steering poles 18-20 m. Can anyone reccomend a source or brand from their experience. >
Received on Mon Jul 22 2013 - 07:06:39 CEST