Black Diamond Pole snapped

Raven said:

I'd suggest using a hiking staff. No sections, one length, relatively thick. You lose the telescoping ability of poles, but the staff is not going to break. And you can find one for free if you want.

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I switched to a broomstick at least a decade ago, and it has never let me down.

At last year's Banff Film Fest in Boston, the MSR rep was showing the new MSR poles that are triangular, rather than round. The also have a positive locking mechanism.

Anyone used them?

They looked a bit heavier, but also quite sturdy.


Brian

nartreb said:

I switched to a broomstick at least a decade ago, and it has never let me down.

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That's awesome. I have a bunch of sticks on my porch I've carved over the years I can grab. I have Leki poles as well that I carry half the time. I find I like them on long hikes for tired legs at the end of the day or when carrying a heavy pack but with a small pack on other days, I don't want them.

I've had Komperdells and Lekis and had good luck with both. The Komperdells would collapse on me periodically (not a lot) which always caused a stumble in some way. The Lekis I have now have never done that as far as I can recall. These are probably 8 years old now though.

I have been told by an outdoor store owner that telescoping poles work best when the lowest section is maximized in length to the "stop" and the middle section is the one varied as needed. I've honestly never heard about it either way since, but I have done it that way for 15 years. I've never actually broken a pole. The locks have always eventually just failed on me.

nartreb said:

I switched to a broomstick at least a decade ago, and it has never let me down.

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Not many trails you need a broom from. Perhaps you could adopt the Franconia Notch Recreation Path?

I have had the telescoping fail a few times and the pole collapse. Now I check the tension on the clamps before each use and make sure I have a way to adjust them on the trail.

Tuck said:

I have had the telescoping fail a few times and the pole collapse. Now I check the tension on the clamps before each use and make sure I have a way to adjust them on the trail.

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An occasional cleaning of the insides of the tubes and a touch of silicone grease on the expansion screws will go a long way toward preventing this.

A number of manufacturers also sell replacement expanders (plastic expansion nuts for the twist lock mechanism).

Doug

Leki, Leki, Leki

Bent one and they sent me a free replacement.

Use their web site to pick the model which provides the most strengh.

As I recall, it's clearly indicated.

B the Hiker said:

the MSR rep was showing the new MSR poles that are triangular, rather than round. The also have a positive locking mechanism.
Anyone used them?
Brian

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I have a pair of the MSR SureLock TR3. They weigh the same as my older EMS poles, but are shorter. They only expand to 130cm.
The positive locking mechanism is great. The only drawback I have found is adjusting the wrist straps. I have resorted to only adjusting them in the fall to account for winter glove options, and the spring to go back to bare hands.

A few years ago I hurt my shoulder on a trivial fall while xc skiing. Since then I completely stopped using the pole straps for hiking and downhill skiing and modified how I use them for xc skiing. In no event do they go around my wrists any more. For xc skiing, I will still stick 4 fingers through the strap (not the thumb) to grab the pole so that I can still put downward pressure via the strap.

I seldom if ever drop the poles and when I do (generally while skiing if it happens) I am usually glad that I did. I have on occasion while hiking had them snatched out of my hands by some sticky mud and left standing straight up in the muck, but like others have said, you do develop a kind of 6th sense for backing off when the basket gets snagged under a root or rock.

I had been using the same pair of 3-section Leki twist poles that I got from Campmor 8 years ago until I finally slid my boot over one and bent it coming down Friday Mountain 2 weeks ago. Saved me the trouble of replacing the orange plastic expanders which have been way overdue for renewal. This past weekend I used my wife's poles (same pole bought at the same time) which unfortunately don't get nearly as much use as mine.

Has anyone found a good one-piece pole with the same type of tip as what BD uses?

I have only collapsed my poles once since buying them (Osceola Chimney).

I have been looking for a year or so and have found many decent looking poles but either the length, grips, or tips (points) are not what I am looking for. The circular points with a grooved indentation do not have the same purchase as those used by BD and other trekking pole manufacturers.

Does anyone have a suggestion?


Thanks,

Z