The Wooden Flagpole Construction Process
Our stock is selected for its close grain characteristics and lack
of defects. The pole is fabricated from eight staves, accurately sized
using an engineering formula based on the overall diameter of the pole.
This ensures that the staves are dimensionally stable but light. The
tapers are cut into each stave which are then run through the shaper
which cuts a 90° joint. This is a superior glue joint that allows the
staves to interlock and conform to their designed shape.
Once the pole is glued up, the hand shaping begins by
knocking off the "ears" from the 90 degree glue joint. The pole is
rounded then sanded on the lathe. Our poles are hand shaped instead of
tooling on the lathe. A lot of labor goes into milling the parts, and
shaping needs to be controlled. The overall shape has already been
determined in the milling stages. Shaping is simply finishing the
rounding process.
The truck is a round section of the lignum vitae
vine. It is turned then drilled and carved to create a sheave that has
no metal parts, will not corrode or jamb and needs no finish.
The
ball is a turned fir ball sized to the tip of the pole. It is then
gilded with gold leaf, which will last years.
Halyards consist of
3/16" Dacron twist line, with two spliced brass clips. A bronze cleat
completes the package.
Yardarms and gaffs are available as an
option. Please consult us for the appropriate size. Our yards and gaffs
are rigged just like our spars: we use Amsteel grommets in lieu of
drilling eyebolts through the poles. This follows the same reasoning as
our trucks. We want to eliminate any potential hardware problems. The
blocks for the yard and/or gaff halyards are superbly handcrafted by
Garhauer Inc. in San Diego.
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