golfdane wrote:
It looks like the carbon layer wrinkled when the top layer was wrapped on top of the carbon. Perhaps if the carbon layer wasn't tight enough, when the top layer was wrapped? There's almost no resin in the carbon layer (one of the ways to save weight). It crumbles very easily.
This is an example of a failure to roll the glass aligned. I have seen poles with wrinkles that in fact become stronger at that point.
And this may be an older weave pole. As the employees get better with the process I am sure there will be less of this.
Sometimes when rolling the glass may slack up and wrinkle.
I am not a fan of going so far out on a limb to make the very lightest pole with carbon as others have. I have chosen to be lighter than Spirit and Altius but not as light as GIll with what I feel is a much safer carbon solution. They use T300 weave strain to ratio of flexibility 1.2 % out of alignment ( weave also increase the ratio of flexibility) and we use T700 strain to ratio of 2.2% and T600 Uni strain to ratio of 1.8% placed helical in 13' poles on up. With helical we also gain some strain to ratio of flexibility over the length of the pole. Since we have done this we have not had any New Carbons break! (We had one pole this year that had a nick from a standard but did not break)
I am sure the expense companies have gone to to make a clean room and refined their techniques of rolling they will get better at it.
Just a note; Pole Ovens do not cook the pole!the oven does not heat or cure the pole the mandrel maintains the heat and radiates it to the glass. The oven is only an insulator to keep the heat in. Adding sensors may provide insulation info but the mandrel is where the hot and cold spots are created due to improper transfer of heat due to air rushing through the metal rod. We find using oil is the best transfer of heat transfer within the mandrel and it provides the most even distribution of heat!
Yes a very light weight pole will help you to lift the pole and carry it down the runway faster. IN most cases on a high school level it is over emphasized and unnecessary. JUST how light do we make these poles and just how much more can we charge for them? My carbon material cost me lost of money to get the best and the most flexible carbon made!
Are buying CARBON poles to provide a pole that comes back faster/Quicker than the double pendulum of the jump? If so you do not understand the art of pole vaulting. Faster/Quicker poles is not the answer it is the harm of the technique!!! Remember when for years poles were made to come back fast? And many vaulter could jump up to the bar by 2 feet get their hips over the bar but could not clear the bar? We had poles out here that required you to cheat and volzing the crossbar with your hand to make the bar or you just hit the bar all over and if it stayed on you jumped high! It is not about how high a pole can throw a 100 lbs weight straight up in the air? It is about getting over the bar and vaulting with what you brought to the meet!
So now we have Carbon that should be used only to lighten and stiffen the pole NOT make the pole return to vertical faster than the vaulter can swing up his/her pendulum??? The double pendulum pole swing and vaulter swing blending together to give you the most power and penetration to clear the bar.
( The key word penetration once thought needed only in the lower portion of the jump is also needed over the bar and also to land in the pit)
We made some poles for EARL Bell once that came back faster and he told us those poles we made special were very fast but he was not Superman enough to keep up with them.
As long as you vault with the understanding that any pole glass or CARBON can break if not built correctly or taken care of then you take all the risk in your own hands. The pole in the picture above does have a flaw in the rolling, this may or may not of contributed to its failure. I have seen less Carbon poles break in the industry and in fact it has taken ESSX three years of building and investing a tremendous amount of money and research costs to be where we are today with better CARBON poles that will hold up to today's Pole Vaulting needs.
Bruce Caldwell
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