We drilled the hole with hole saw and used 5200 for the install because the long arm of the flag pole places a surprising amount of stress on the socket. You also need to eye ball the location to check the esthetic before drilling. Sometimes dividing the beam by two does not look quite right.
Got it at a ships store at Walstrom Marine in Harbor Springs, MI. Bought the pole and flag there as well. The base is stainless steel and none of the three items are anything you could not order from a catalog or pick up at West Marine. Look for a stainless base as the chromed ones will pit.
I think it depends on where it's mounted. Ours is in a flat section of the rear rail vs. on the slope of the transom. We are probably doing around 26-27 knots in this shot and other than wear and tear on the flag can do that for hours without losing the flagpole. Friend with a big Formula runs with his on a sloped transom with no issues, so maybe it is boat specific.I originally wanted a flush mount pole base but I have read more than one story about the poles not fitting snuggly in the flush bases and at cruising speed the flags getting blown out of the base and lost in the water....expensive loss....so I decided to use a raised base with a thumb screw so I can secure the pole in the base....
cliff
