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Pirate flag

26K views 59 replies 28 participants last post by  cataraftgirl 
#1 ·
Does anyone fly a flag (pirate or otherwise) on their raft? How & where do you secure it? Do you use one of those ATV pole/antennae thingies to fly it? Do you worry about the pole harpooning your raft? Pics of your flag & attachment appreciated.
 
#3 ·
I fly flags. My setup is a hollaender fitting cut in half with a piece of pipe welded onto it (OD is 1" at the most). I then use two hose-clamps to secure it to the crossbar. I have also used the pole to mount my gopro.
I posted some pics of my newest setup in the "Show us them rigs" (?) thread. Pretty sure the flag is on there.
 
#7 ·
Cascade Outfitters has an umbrella mount that will fit an NRS frame. That should work. How do you keep the flag pole secure in the umbrella mount? I was wondering about putting some foam inside the mount to keep the flag pole snug in place. Like pool noodle type stuff.
 
#8 ·
here's a pic, although the pirate flag is on the gopro mount in this one. The gopro mount idea was copied from Kazak and works great (Thanks Alex)

The flag goes on the lower part of the umbrella pole, mounted to cascades umbrella stand. (edit: the umbrella holder has a long set-screw to tighten the pole in place)

This was on Lodore last fall
 

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#11 ·
If I use one of those ATV whip poles, will the set screw tighten enough to hold it in place?

Thanks for the pictures everyone!
 
#12 ·
I fly Froggy the Gremlin! You've reminded me that I lost it last November and need to make a new one. I think my setup will be perfected this time and I won't lose another one. I attached a clevis pipe hanger WP112848 Clevis Hanger - Grainger Industrial Supply around my frame with a 1/4" compression fitting through the bolt hanger hole (had to drill it out a little). My flag will go on a 6" driveway marker fiberglass pole with the compression ring and nut on the end. Thread the nut onto the fitting and it should be a solid mount. The last one failed because the compression ring was a little too large so I put a few wraps of electrical tape on first. When it got wet and windy, it managed to slip off. This time I will crimp it or something instead of using any tape.

Hope that helps someone. Thanks for the reminder!
 
#14 ·
window flag

I fly a team window flag (the kind you see clipped onto car windows on game day) astearn. I use a Pacific River Bag that has metal "O" rings where the straps attach to the bag. I simply run the flag up through the rear "O" ring (which lies flat against the boat when tightened) and the window-clip base on the flag keeps it from sliding up and out. It even holds it at a jaunty angle. The same flag has been on there for 8 seasons now. I even leave it flying while the boat is rolling down the highway on my trailer.
 

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#15 ·
i use an oil field truck spot flag pole for my flag. has a nice coil spring at the bottom for the *** pole to flex on. flag connects and disconnects from the spring using a standard air tool fitting quick disconnect so you can easily store it when running rapids so that you dont have an annoying flag on a "whip" pole bouncing around.

 
#17 ·
Use a PVC Tee that is the same diameter as your frame pipes. The vertical leg of the Tee needs to be 1". Cut the horizontal piece in half so that you can put it on the top half of your frame pipe. Glue a 2" long piece of the 1" pipe to the vertical leg and a male threaded coupler to that. Attach the Tee to the frame using two hose clamps. Now glue a female coupler to the actual pole made out of 1" PVC pipe and make it as tall as you want. This also works well for a camera mount but requires bracing to have a stable platform.
 
#18 ·
Myself and couple others use AAA's umbrella mount for our flag poles. Pole is PVC. Not sure diameter. Just took the metal tube from the mount with me to home depot. I bought the flared kind of PVC pipe so I could fit a little thicker/stronger dowel rod(with flag attached) on the other end. Friends of mine believe you have to attach your flag to a river stick, and therefore go with a PVC pipe with no flared tip. Maybe the pictures will help. And yes, I've been told my legs are quite sexy!

Note - I've witnessed 3 flag departures, but never had mine come out. Two were flips in Skull where the boats weren't up-righted until after Sock-it-to-Me. These flags and poles were donated to the river gods. The other was a direct hit of the meat in Canyon Doors on the Ark where the flag whipped all the way backwards in the hole and the water snapped the PVC. Both pole and flag were recovered in Pinball.
 

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#21 ·
I boat with yesIamapirate...

As a friend and fellow boater of yesiamapirate, I concur the AAA umbrella holder & home depot PVC pipe work great. My boat has been upside down and lost a flag in skull, but then again who's hasn't :) At any rate, I fly the "Jack Rackham" variety and a small CO flag to represent, YO! If you see us in the river upside down or not, say hi and let's toast some grog! AAARRRGH!!!!
 

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#22 ·
Mine will be a girlie version.....the Pirate Queen. So what's the female version of a Jolly Roger? Jolly Ronda?

This reminds me of a friend who saw the "pirate flag" on a commercial raft and started calling them the Jolly Ranchers. We laughed and told her it was Jolly Roger, but the Jolly Rancher name stuck for the rest of the trip. Every time we saw them, she'd yell...."look it's the Jolly Ranchers." Now I can't say Jolly Roger without laughing.
 
#23 ·
Thanks all you pirate brothers & sisters for the pictures and advice. I have a friend who's got some of the PVC umbrella holders that he made for a GC trip that I can try out. I also have a stray lopro with a short pipe section laying around that also might work. I have time to mess around with it until spring.

What kind of pole are you folks using? Length, type, thickness? The ATV whip thingie looks good, but I don't want too much "whippiness" that might cause problems/ injuries/ impalement. I just want my flag to fly high & proud. I'm getting a custom flag done up that's kind of a pirate queen version of the Jack Rackham.
 
#29 ·
Used to be mildly impressed with flags, raised as a military brat, my dad went off to Viet Nam twice (1964 and 1965) and brought back a Viet Cong hand-sewn one with a bloodstain on it... I thought that was way cool, until I thought some more, and didn't - don't. "Flags are bits of cloth governments first use to shrink wrap people's minds and then as burial shrouds for the dead." (Arundhati Roy). There's lots of symbols to show your colors - and other ways... I prefer to keep any statements private.
But on a strictly boating basis, fly your flag - one more item to rig, take care of, and let me know where you're coming from!
P.S.. Groover flags don't count - that where you need something to announce "occupado" and should fit in with your seat/chemicals. Also where my VC flag disappeared, on a GC trip in 1984 - today I would not have used it.
 
#30 ·
Wow, this thread has taken a turn towards the philosophical. Too deep for me. I just want a fun flag to fly off my raft. No deeper national, regional or personal reason.....just for fun. I've seen a few on the river and thought they looked kind of cool. Jolly Roger aka Pirate flags seem to be appropriate for boats, so that's the direction I went.
 
#32 ·
Cool. That's what it's all about. I'll keep my eye out for the Froggy!
 
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