Is this a Spi or whisker pole?

[LifesBetterWhenYoureBeating]

Hi folks,

I believe this is one of the last pieces of gear (together with the Spinnaker) that I haven't used on my recently acquired boat, but in my defense I should point out that in over 2000nm I haven't had wind aft of the beam for more than a handful hours. But I'm hoping that will change at some point so better figure out when/how to use it.

Anyway, this pole sits on a track on the mast of my Passport 41 (J=4.8m). It is telescopic and ranges from 4m to 6.8m. I assumed it was a Spi pole but when doing a bit of research I saw some people saying a telescopic spi pole is not a good idea as they can bend/break on the joint because of the angle of the force exerted on it by the sail. So, is this a whisker pole only or would it be ok to use it for the spi as well?

Also, if anybody can identify the maker of this thing I'd greatly appreciate.

Thanks in advance!Attachment 266740

[wholybee]

A regulation spinnaker pole is the same as your J measurement. It could be shorter(which would not work as well), but not longer(which would incur a penalty).

Of course, if you are not racing, those regulations don't apply. But an adjustable length pole that goes much longer than your J measurement is certainly a whisker pole. It would probably work fine to about 5m as a spinnaker pole. You should try poling out a Genoa with it though. That can work really well and is much easier. If you have a furler with 2 slots, you can raise a second headsail, and pole-out the windward sail, and sail almost as fast as a spinnaker, but be able to furl them and unfurl them quickly if need be.

[LifesBetterWhenYoureBeating]

The pic of the other end of the pole is not showing up on the original post... Here it is

[s/v Jedi]

It should be a whisker pole but man it’s heavy duty… I think it was used for both.

[Tailwheel]

As Wholybee said, if the pole length is just same as J, then it's a spinnaker pole. Also, spi poles are typically stronger than whisker poles, which are not subject to the same compression loads.

[LifesBetterWhenYoureBeating]

Originally Posted by wholybee

A regulation spinnaker pole is the same as your J measurement. It could be shorter(which would not work as well), but not longer(which would incur a penalty).

Of course, if you are not racing, those regulations don't apply. But an adjustable length pole that goes much longer than your J measurement is certainly a whisker pole. It would probably work fine to about 5m as a spinnaker pole. You should try poling out a Genoa with it though. That can work really well and is much easier. If you have a furler with 2 slots, you can raise a second headsail, and pole-out the windward sail, and sail almost as fast as a spinnaker, but be able to furl them and unfurl them quickly if need be.

I certainly intend to pole out my Genoa with it, but unfortunately have only one slot on the furler

[LifesBetterWhenYoureBeating]

Originally Posted by s/v Jedi

It should be a whisker pole but man it’s heavy duty… I think it was used for both.

I doubt it was ever used for the Spinnaker by the POs, as the Spinnaker looks like it has never seen the sun.

I'm curious as to how you can access its heavy dutyness, though. It doesn't look flimsy to me but I couldn't say more than that

[Gary Mc]

That is definitely a spin pole and you have the adjustable mast track for it. You would not have an adjustable track if your boat was not set up for a spinnaker.
It does look pretty heavy duty.
With that mast fitting you can only do a dip gybe, but on a 41 foot boat that is what you would do anyways.

[Jim Cate]

Over the years we've seen a fair number of bent telescopic poles and very few bent proper spinnaker poles. There may be a reason for this observation...

Jim

[Davidasailor]

Spinnaker poles take much higher compression loads than whisker poles. With a spinnaker, especially on a beam reach when the pole is far forward, the guy is pulling back toward the mast to a large extent. Generally speaking telescoping poles are not designed for that kind of compression

Some whisker poles do ride on mast tracks. That’s sometimes done so the pole can be stored against the mast, and sometimes just for finer adjustment to match clew height.

[wingssail]

I agree that this is a whisker pole, but possibly strong enough for use with a spinnaker. It looks to be 4" which would be stronger than a normal 3" whisker pole.

The question is? What kind of spinnaker and what other spinnaker gear do you have?

Spinnaker poles (or whisker poles used as such) would most commonly be used with a symmetrical spinnaker. For that you will need a pole lift, a foreguy, and two after guys, and a symmetrical spinnaker.

Spinnaker poles (or whisker poles) can be used with an asymmetrical spinnaker if one wishes to run deep downwind. In that case a fewer number of lines will be needed, and if you avoid hard reaching with the whisker pole on, it may be strong enough.

Spinnaker poles (or whisker poles) can be used to "Pole out" a headsail which is a fast way to go down wind with out useing a spinnaker (see my avatar photo). However we think that spinnaker sailing is by far the most fun and we do it whenever it is possible.

I once made a spinnaker for a passport 41, what color is yours?

[LifesBetterWhenYoureBeating]

Originally Posted by wingssail

I agree that this is a whisker pole, but possibly strong enough for use with a spinnaker. It looks to be 4" which would be stronger than a normal 3" whisker pole.

The question is? What kind of spinnaker and what other spinnaker gear do you have?

Spinnaker poles (or whisker poles used as such) would most commonly be used with a symmetrical spinnaker. For that you will need a pole lift, a foreguy, and two after guys, and a symmetrical spinnaker.

Spinnaker poles (or whisker poles) can be used with an asymmetrical spinnaker if one wishes to run deep downwind. In that case a fewer number of lines will be needed, and if you avoid hard reaching with the whisker pole on, it may be strong enough.

Spinnaker poles (or whisker poles) can be used to "Pole out" a headsail which is a fast way to go down wind with out useing a spinnaker (see my avatar photo). However we think that spinnaker sailing is by far the most fun and we do it whenever it is possible.

I once made a spinnaker for a passport 41, what color is yours?

I was actually wrong, the Spinnaker has been used. In fact it was probably bought second hand as it's a Hood MP-S (so asymmetrical) apparently made for a C&C 36 (at least that's what the sailbag says)

Now I need to find an opportunity to try the Spinnaker both with/without the pole.

Thanks a lot for the help, everyone!