Masonry Magazine January 1962 Page. 40
Basic Corner Pole Requirements
Corner poles have been made from wood, steel and aluminum. As long as the pole itself is straight, the material is not too important except that its cross section must be sufficiently strong to resist bending when the line pull is from one side of the pole.
Line blocks or line holders should be attached to the pole so that they will not snap off under line tension. These line guides should carry separately the line for each side of the corner. This allows each wall to be carried up independently of the other. When a single line is stretched completely around a building much time can be lost by the entire crew should it break or be cut by the mason's trowel.
A coursing scale or story pole is necessary for each corner pole. Here again the type is not so important. It should be set so that the line blocks or line holders can be easily indexed to it, course by course, as the work progresses. Certain poles have various bricklayer scales etched right in the material. It has been our experience that a coursing scale, which is adjustable after the corner pole is set, is more desirable.
To do the job for which it is intended, a good corner pole should be adaptable to either brick veneer or load-bearing construction.
On brick veneer construction the pole should have certain adjustability so that brick can be laid as required despite the condition of the foundation work or the building frame.
A desirable feature for both load-bearing and veneer poles is a base which can be set directly on grade or on a slab. Situations such as this occur on porch, patio and driveway slabs, and on trenched footings where an accurate corner is not available. The pole itself should be set sufficiently far away from the masonry corner itself so that the mason can tool the joints without having to remove the pole.
On load-bearing poles bracing should be attached so that it can be fastened directly to the foundation or brick work or fastened into the ground either parallel to the building walls or away from the walls in case that back-filling is not complete. Base fittings for the pole should normally bear on the foundation itself and be fastened in some manner so that they cannot be knocked or pulled out of position easily.
An added feature which is desirable but not absolutely necessary is adaptability of the corner poles to multi-story construction. This requires a method of fastening the veneer top fitting to the concrete or steel column of the building frame.
All corner pole systems should be adaptable to both outside and inside corners. It is also desirable that the poles can be set along the walls as an intermediate or trig pole for long walls or to provide a convenient stopping place for the masons if the crew is not large enough to work the entire building at one time.
No mention has been made of the height of the poles. Some masons prefer a pole which is approximately 5 ft. long. This will carry masonry up to scaffold height and then it must be moved up to top out the wall. However, most poles are built approximately 7 to 9 ft. long. If the pole is made of wood, it can be sized to the height of work most common to the contractor usually about one ft. longer than the actual height of the masonry required. Height, of course, is more critical in veneer work, where, in most cases, the pole must fit under an overhang. In most cases the poles are built fairly short-less than eight ft. because it is simple to move them up if additional height is required. A number of poles are adjustable in height either by use of a special top or base fitting or by telescoping sections of the corner pole, itself. When telescoping sections are used, an adapter should be provided to make the smaller section the same size as the larger one. This is necessary, if the line holders are not adjustable, to assure a straight plumb corner.
One manufacturer has developed a free-standing corner pole for load-bearing or veneer work which does require bracing.
Certain poles have built-in leveling devices. While seems desirable it is generally considered unwise because in the normal moving and handling of corner poles from one job to another it is quite easy to get the vials broken or out of adjustment.
In selecting a corner pole system, the contractor should choose the one best adapted to his own particular job. It is hoped that the foregoing discussion and recommendations will prove helpful to him in making the right selection. Fig. 1 shows various types of corner poles in use.
Davis Free Standing Corner Pole
FIGURE 1
Current "SCR corner
"Perfect" Corner Pole
"Stay True Story Pole"
New "SCR corner pole" (Veneer)
New "SCR corner pole" (Load-bearing)
MASONRY JANUARY,