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So im looking at getting a New ucs spirit pole, the poles my school has are all quite old and frankly there is a lack of poles anyway. I know that pole design has com a long way since my school last bought poles (probably in 2002 i would assume.) the pole i just recently moved up to is quite thick (130 pound) im wondering what would be the diameter of a new ucs 400 series pole (13 feet 1.5 inches or 4 meters.)

kwantana wrote:So im looking at getting a New ucs spirit pole, the poles my school has are all quite old and frankly there is a lack of poles anyway. I know that pole design has com a long way since my school last bought poles (probably in 2002 i would assume.) the pole i just recently moved up to is quite thick (130 pound) im wondering what would be the diameter of a new ucs 400 series pole (13 feet 1.5 inches or 4 meters.)

Spirit poles haven't changed at all in the past 20+ years, as far as I know, other than perhaps offering a bigger selection of smaller poles The diameter of a 13' pole depends on the weight rating.

I read a interesting thing by earl bell that the weight ratings on poles are actually how much weight the pole returns upon bending so much and not actually the weight of the vaulter.

kwantana wrote:I read a interesting thing by earl bell that the weight ratings on poles are actually how much weight the pole returns upon bending so much and not actually the weight of the vaulter.

The weight ratings on the pole are an estimate by the manufacturer of what is an appropriate maximum weight for an individual using the pole.

If your looking for a smaller diameter on a UCS pole ask for an S-series pole. I know they do it for the larger weight rated poles they might do it for the smaller ones too.

scpolevaulter wrote:If your looking for a smaller diameter on a UCS pole ask for an S-series pole. I know they do it for the larger weight rated poles they might do it for the smaller ones too.

thanks for the info ill take a look at them. im really not liking jumping with basically a 2 by 4 XD

In general, if you keep the weight rating the same, the diameter of the pole will increase as the length of the pole increases to overcome the increased leverage of the vaulter on the pole.

If you look at the size of the tip/plug on the pole you are currently happy with - you can compare it to the tip size of other poles you are considering. It is usually written on the pole below where the decorative wrap ends and a few inches above the tip. It may be have been covered by athletic tape to protect the pole from the box. The smaller the number, the larger the diameter.

I think UCS tips are sized differently from other manufactures, so compare UCS to UCS tip sizes. You can even look up tip sizes on UCS's website, or other sellers such as MF-Athletic.

For example, comparing today's UCS Poles:
370 12'1" 120 - tip 18
370 12'1" 130 - tip 16
400 13'1" 120 - tip 16
400 13'1" 130 - tip 15

If you are a female, you might want to consider poles made for women (Lady Rocket, Pacer Mystic) which are made with smaller diameters. They also don't change diameters much as they get longer (at the same weight). For example, both of these poles have a tip size of 16 for 120# and 130# at all lengths from 12' up to 14'. I don't know if their tip size 16 is the same diameter of the UCS tip size 16.