This is my test solution for holding the end of the spinnaker yard when not in use. Seems to be working out. I will replace with a new one before launch next season. Much better than hanging the end on the lifeline or cabin top.
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Great minds think alike.
In my case I used carbon fiber to fab two hooks. One Stbd one Port. The pole weighs about 40 lbs so I wanted to carry it to windward when feasible.
This was mostly for offshore where I would be on port or Stbd tack for long periods of time. I would plan ahead and store the pole as point of sail dictated.
I actually mounted four of these. One set was for pole storage, the second was mounted on the next station fwd. allowing the pole to extend forward of the gum mount/pulpit as a 5+/- foot retractable sprit. I was planning to try a code zero but never got round to it. I still think a small code zero would be perfectly doable.
I have subsequently removed and stored the fwd set of “pole hooks” because they somewhat impeded movement on deck.
About using this setup for a code sail… When I put a Selden retractable bowsprit on my F30 I spoke to a tech advisor at Selden about using it for a code zero (with a removable bobstay). They weren’t keen on it. Because unlike a spinnaker you have to keep the code’s luff tight. They likened the bowsprit to then be an arrow in a pulled back bow, pointing back at the boat. The padeye where the bowsprit attached to the deck wasn’t designed for the shear load. You’d want to plan for that load vector.
That’s interesting. So here is a description of what I had in mind.
My pole is 4" diameter 18 feet in length. With the pole secured in a hook mounted on a stanchion I would have 5 foot of the pole projecting from outboard end of gun mount. 12 feet of the pole would extend over the deck to the hook (+ 1 foot inside the gun mount tube).
My thought, untested, was that I could secure the tack to the pole end ring. As the sail is set, the luff tension would basically drive the “deck end” of the pole into the hook using the gun mount as a fulcrum. This would place load at the gun mount and reinforced pulpit which is, or appears to be, very strong.
My carbon hook includes a tube which fits over the stanchion. So the force exerted inboard is almost directly downward on the stanchion.
I thought I could use existing gun mount system rigging to lock the pole so it would not rotate. I think the gun mount would be robust enough to deal with shear as it does when Spinnaker is flying.
Having said all of this, no doubt there are going to be some interesting “findings” if and when I actually try to use such a rig.
The gun mount is also useful for downwind sailing absent a spinnaker. After blowing out my Spinnaker, I successfully used the pole and rig as a preventer for both main and camberspar simultaneously when running downwind for days at a time. This was a surprisingly effective way to lock in a wing on wing configuration. And it was fast too.
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