CHAPTER VIII 



POLE-LINE CONSTRUCTION 

 Section 51 Selection of Poles 



Poles should be cut as near the proposed line as practicable. The best and most 

 durable timber, such as cedar, tamarack, and Douglas fir, should be used, if it can 

 be obtained at a reasonable cost. 



All poles should be cut from live or dead standing trees and should be free from 

 heart-rot or butt-rot, or any other defect which might weaken them. As a means 

 of reducing- the cost of poles delivered at the hole it may in some cases be desirable to 

 purchase poles from commercial companies. 



Whenever possible poles and braces should be cut in winter to secure better season- 

 ing. They should be peeled as soon as cut and all knots and branches trimmed close. 

 Unpeeled poles must not ~be used under any circumstances. Poles should be reason- 

 ably straight and of the dimensions shown in the table below : 



TABLE A LENGTH AND TOP DIAMETER OF STANDARD POLES 



Length of pole Diameter of top Length of pole Diameter of top 

 ft. in. ft. in. 



18 6 35 7 



22> 6 40 8 



25 6 45 10 to 11 



3>0' 6 to 7 



When a line will be subjected to severe stresses from high winds or unusual 

 strains, these diameters should be increased by from % inch to 1 inch. High poles 

 should be very fine quality. The butts of poles should be cut off square; the tops 

 should be cut slanting on both sides to form a right-angled " roof " as in Eig. 10. 



Section 52 Skidding and Seasoning 



It is sometimes possible to collect a number of poles or braces at one point as they 

 are cut, and later to distribute them along the line without undue expense. In sucih 

 cases the poles should be completely barked and piled in tiers, with a space of at least 

 6 inches between poles in the same tier and between tiers. The bottom tier should 

 be of sufficient height from the ground to allow of the free circulation of air under the 

 poles, which should be seasoned for at least two or three months. Seasoned poles are 

 lighter and therefore easier to handle. Poles should not be held in storage too long 

 as they are liable to start to decay. 



When it is not feasible to collect poles or braces at one point, the individual pieces 

 should be peeled and raised off the ground or leaned against trees or rocks in an open 

 position to season. Sound dead timber need not be seasoned. 



It is particularly necessary, when poles are to be treated with any form of pre- 

 servative, that they be well seasoned and, so far as possible, be accumulated at a very 

 few places along the line. In most cases it will be found desirable to prepare such 

 poles a season before line construction is contemplated'. 



Section 53 Preservative Treatment 



If durable woods cannot be obtained at a reasonable cost it may be necessary to 

 give the poles preservative treatment. Before doing this, however, the district inspector 

 should be consulted. The poles of branch lines less than 3 miles long need not be 

 treated in any case, unless the branch is constructed at the same time as a main line 

 of treated, poles 1 . 



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