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Finding your flag pole parts & accessories

Once you know the basic dimensions of your flag pole, it is time to evaluate which flag pole parts or accessories need to be replaced. It is important to make sure your parts are also compatible with each other. For example, the ornament should be able to screw into the truck, the truck should fit over the pole top or screw into the pole top and the halyard diameter should easily pass through the truck pulley. The guide below will help you get started finding the parts that work for the three dimensions, HEIGHT, TOP DIAMETER and BUTT DIAMETER mentioned above.

Ornaments

The ornament can add a lot of character to a flag pole. Typical ornaments are balls, eagles, and crosses. For tapered flag poles, the ball ornament should match the BUTT DIAMETER. If you have a straight pole shaft you can use the Flagpole Finder to find an appropriately sized ornaments for a given HEIGHT. For example, a 20' straight pole shaft, could use a 4" ball ornament to simulate the look of a 20' tapered flag pole with a 4" butt diameter. If you're interested in an eagle ornament, the width of the wing span should be roughly equal to half the HEIGHT of the flag pole in inches (i.e. a 30' flag pole would use an eagle ornament with a 15" wing span).

Trucks

The truck sits at the top of the flag pole and has a pulley which allows the rope to move the flag up or down the pole. There are three (3) types of trucks for external halyard flagpoles.

• Cap Style Stationary

  These trucks fit over the top the the flag pole and are secured with set screws. They are fixed and will not rotate. It is best to put the pulley away from the prevailing direction of the wind.

• Cap Style Revolving

  These trucks fit over the top of the flag pole and are secured with set screws. They rotate or swivel with the wind. At any time, you only need 180º of rotation as the wind blows one direction to another. Even though the halyard is tied to a cleat, there is still enough motion to relieve stress for the flag and pulley.

• Threaded Type Revolving

  These trucks have a male threaded end designed for the receiving threaded end at the top of the flag pole. These trucks also rotate with the wind. When rebuilding a flag pole with a threaded top, make sure you're able to unscrew the original flag pole truck. If not, you may need to saw off the truck and attach a Pole Top Adapter.

	Cap Style Stationary [?]Stationary Cap Style Do not revolve and fit over the top of the flagpole. They are secured with 1/4"-20NC stainless steel set screws.	Threaded Type Stationary [?]Stationary Threaded Type Do not revolve and have a 1-1/4" NPT threaded spindle which screws into the top of the flag pole.	Cap Style Revolving [?]Revolving Cap Style Revolve or rotate and fit over the top of the flagpole. They are secured with 1/4"-20NC stainless steel set screws.	Threaded Type Revolving [?]Revolving Threaded Type Revolve or rotate and have a 1-1/4" NPT or 1-1/2" NPT threaded spindle which screws into the top of the flag pole. *Note: The 150 Series are an exception and have a 1-1/2" NPT threaded spindle.
External Halyard Flagpoles w/ Single Pulley [?]Single Pulley Designed for flag poles with a single external halyard (or rope).	ST-1 Trucks ST-32 Trucks OT Trucks Fiberglass-1 Trucks		RTC-1 Trucks	RTS-1 Trucks HDT-1 Trucks XHDT Trucks
External Halyard Flagpoles w/ Double Pulley [?]Double Pulley Designed for external halyard flagpoles with a double halyard (or rope).		Fiberglass-2 Trucks	RTC-2 Trucks	RTS-2 Trucks HDT-2 Trucks 150 Trucks BA Trucks

Pole Top Adapter (PTA)

Pole Top Adapters are very useful for pole shafts that require a threaded type truck but have no threading at the top of the pole. PTA's come in 2-3/8" to 6" in diameter. The size of the PTA should match the size of your TOP DIAMETER (i.e. a flag pole with a 3" TOP DIAMETER takes a 3" PTA). The PTA is secured with stainless steel set screws.

Halyard (Rope)

There are two (2) types of halyard found on flag poles.

• Polypropylene Halyard

  Polypropylene Halyard is the most common and affordable type of rope used on flag poles. It comes in several different diameters. It is important to keep an eye on your rope for signs of fraying and wear. If the rope breaks, you may need a lift to get to the top of the flag pole and replace it, which can be expensive. If you replace the rope before it breaks, often times, you don't need the use of a lift. Please contact us for ways to replace the rope without the use of a lift!

• Nylon Wire-Center Halyard

  For external halyard flagpoles, Nylon Wire-Center Halyard is the most durable type of rope. The wire center core helps prevent the rope from breaking. It is important to keep an eye on your rope for fraying and signs of breakage. If the rope snaps, you may need a lift to get to the top of the flag pole, which can be expensive.

Swivel Snaps

Swivel Snaps are made of nylon, nickel plated zinc, brass, or stainless steel. Nylon snaps are generally found on residential or budget commercial flag poles in mild wind zones. Nickel plated zinc and brass swivel snaps are the most common and work best on commercial flag poles in moderate wind zones. Stainless steel swivel snaps are the heaviest duty and are used on large commercial flag poles in heavy wind zones. TIP: if any of your swivel snaps begin to show signs of wear it is advised to replace them before they eat into the flag. If noise is a concern, add a vinyl snap cover to each swivel snap to help reduce noise.

Illustration of how to attach a swivel snap to the halyard

Cleats

Cleats are found on external halyard flagpoles only. Cleats have two "horns" around which the rope is tied. The rope is wrapped around the cleat with cleat hitches. For added security you can install a cleat cover box and halyard cover. This prevents people from being able to raise or lower the flag with a key to unlock the cover box.

Flash Collar

A flash collar is an aesthetic finishing piece. The flash collar rests on the bottom of the flag pole and wraps around the base covering the foundation. Make sure the flash collar ID matches your flag pole BUTT DIAMETER (i.e. a flag pole with a 5" BUTT DIAMETER could use a 5" x 12" x 1-3/4" flash collar). Flash collar sizes are displayed as For Pole Diameter (in.) x Collar Outside Diameter (in.) x Collar Height (in.). TIP: A split collar can be useful when replacing or adding a collar to an existing flagpole.

Foundations (and Mounting Hardware)

There are four types of flag pole foundations:

• Ground Sleeve

  
  Ground Sleeves
  Ground sleeves are the most common type of flag pole installation. For residential and budget commercial flag poles, the ground sleeve is made of PVC. For larger commercial flag poles, however, the ground sleeve is made of galvanized steel. Concrete is poured around the sleeve to set the foundation. After that, the flag pole is placed inside the sleeve with sand (add wooden wedges to help level larger flag poles).

• Shoe Base/Tiling Shoe Base

  Shoe Base installations are very common for light poles, but not as common for flag poles. A form is used to set anchor bolts into concrete. The flag pole is then set on top of the anchor bolts, leveled and secured with nuts and washers. Tilting Shoe Bases have a hinge so the flag pole can be lowered after it has been secured to the anchor bolts. Tilting Shoe Bases are recommended for one-piece flag poles only.

• Counterbalance Tilt System

  A counterbalanced flag pole has two beams which suspend the flag pole with a cotter pin. The flag pole has additional weight welded into the bottom so the flag pole can pivot around the cotter pin. Counterbalanced flag poles are installed much like shoe base flag poles with anchor bolts and a form.

• Wall Bracket

  There are two different types of wall brackets for commercial flag poles, vertical and outrigger. For all other applications, try our brackets for small flag poles. Wall brackets allow a flag pole to be anchored to a wall or surface. Vertical brackets allow the pole to stand parallel to a building and often extend past a roofline. Outrigger brackets allow the flag pole to extend outward at an angle (generally 45^° or 60^°). Most wall brackets are secured to a surface, with threaded rods set in an epoxy gel, thru-wall bolts, or mounting bolts with expansion shields.

Other useful information to keep in mind

Flag Size (and the # of Swivel Snaps Required)

The number of swivel snaps required to hoist each of our American Flags varies by size. See the chart below.

Size	# of Thimbles	# of Grommets	# of Swivel Snaps Required
12" x 18"	-	2	2
16" x 24"	-	2	2
20" x 30"	-	2	2
2' x 3'	-	2	2
2-1/2' x 4'	-	2	2
3' x 5'	-	2	2
4' x 6'	-	2	2
5' x 8'	-	2	2
5' x 9-1/2'	-	2	2
6' x 10'	-	2	2
8' x 12'	2	1	3
10' x 15'	2	1	3
10' x 19'	2	1	3
12' x 18'	2	1	3
15' x 25'	2	3	5
20' x 30'	2	3	5
20' x 38'	2	3	5
25' x 40'	2	5	7
30' x 50'	2	5	7
30' x 60'	2	5	7
40' x 70'	2	7	9
40' x 75'	2	7	9
50' x 80'	2	9	11

Flying multiple flags

When flying more than one flag on the same pole, you want to separate the flags by about 6 inches for the best fly-ability. Simply adjust the location of the swivel snaps so there is a small space (about 6 inches; doesn't have to be exact) between flags.

The second thing to keep in mind is the maximum wind speed rating flagged of your flag pole. Different flag poles are designed to withstand different maximum wind speeds. Check your flag pole's wall thickness, butt diameter, and height to determine the appropriate flag size for the pole. From there you can reasonably judge what the appropriate flag sizes you can fly.