Trekking poles model?

by **welle** » Mon Mar 08, 2010 7:11 pm

Snowy wrote:
radson wrote:In my opinion, dont get twist lock poles. They are bloody annoying. I like flick-lock, they dont fuck up as much.

+1

+2 my Leki twistlocks fail in sub-freezing temps - they just stop locking. And it's not just a particular model failure - Leki replaced mine with brand new and they still fail. My next pair is BD Contour. And don't bother with fancy antishocks - bloody annoying.

by **FlatheadNative** » Mon Mar 08, 2010 7:18 pm

Black Diamond Flick-locks are a nice set-up as well. Bomber when locked in place and super easy to adjust.

The make varoius models. I use the contour elliptical shock and have been happy with them. perhaps they are more stable because of the tubing being eliptical rather than round. they feel a whole lot more stable than my previous pair that was twist-lock and thus round.

by **Diego Sahagún** » Mon Mar 08, 2010 7:24 pm

rlshattuck wrote:Spend some bucks on a decent pair of poles, like the LEKI MAKALU.

My dad recently went trekking in Nepal and I tried to tell him to spend the bucks for a good pair of poles, but my Mom and her wal-mart sensibilities got to him first and he went over there with a junk pair that cost, I think, $15.00 (fifteen dollars) which made my mom feel really good, like she found a great deal.

Then, on some high pass one of his poles gave out, telescoped down and off he went, tumbling down the mountain, stopping just sort of the last edge he'd ever see . . .

Took a team of porters and sherpa to piggy-back him down to where a chopper could come in for him. One broken Femur, big gash in his forehead and lots of bruises and somewhere between ten and eleven grand to fly him back to kathmandu and fix him up.

Do the math. Don't buy junk poles. Makalu's are bomber. had the the same pair now for about 12 years (9 JMT's, 1 nepal trek, lots of snow camping and short trips and the poles are still rock solid)

+1. Go for Makalus :!:

We have two pairs since many years ago

by **hikingMaineac** » Mon Mar 08, 2010 10:35 pm

rlshattuck wrote:Then, on some high pass one of his poles gave out, telescoped down and off he went, tumbling down the mountain, stopping just sort of the last edge he'd ever see . . .

I have no experience with the "cheap" flick-lock/lever-lock poles from Walmart, but have read good things on here and on other sites. I would be quite surprised if they were prone to telescoping down, or collapsing like the more traditional twist-lock style that I dislike so much.

The point of the story is well taken, though... Just as it is with any gear that can prove dangerous IF it fails: it's always nice to know that your money is well spent when buying the good stuff.

by **Cascade Scrambler** » Tue Mar 09, 2010 12:18 am

The Komperdell's are pretty easy and cheap to repair- you can always find a set of them at an REI garage sale cheap. Why? Because the twist lock mechanisms are terrible. I'll never own another pair of that style again.

by **Brad Marshall** » Tue Mar 09, 2010 2:26 am

I've used a pair of Life Link twist-lock poles for the past 5 years on numerous expeditions to Aconcagua and Denali and have only recently developed a problem with them (I bent one). Other than that the Life Link poles are nice because they are a two piece pole not a three piece and can be much lighter (14oz vs. 19oz).

by **aglane** » Tue Mar 09, 2010 4:03 am

Komperdells (REI house brand) can be a real problem if you extend them too far or if you over-loosen so that the tightening mechanism goes awry. Can be carefully put back together though, with a bit of luck.

I've also had a problem, as has a climbing friend, with the baskets coming off, have now put hoseclamps underneath to lock them in solid. (They don't tell you when they come off and are easily lost in snow.)

So probably flicklocks next time, unless the cautions come in on those too.

by **norco17** » Tue Mar 09, 2010 7:27 am

squishy wrote:Flicklocks all the way...I returned my twist lock crap to REI...the snow baskets on the BD are nice as well...

+10,000 on the flick lock. If you want them for snow BD does come with baskets.

I did see a friend self arrest with a pole once saved her ass big time. I find they help my back more than anything, but they do also keep the legs alive.

As far as cheap vs. expensive I think the major differemce is weight. I personaly don't like the shock absorbers but I hear they do help.

by **drpw** » Tue Mar 09, 2010 7:36 am

Watch for them on Steep and Cheap. I work from my computer at home and see them come up all the time. In fact, just snagged some BD Trail Shock for $55 (retail at $110). Just keep checking religiously and you'll get some realy good ones for a good price.

by **Moni** » Tue Mar 09, 2010 2:20 pm

My poles are the twist, but they don't always work (REI Kompadell). Fred had 3 pair of the REI ones fail, including having the shaft on one of them shatter. He gave up on those and went with the heavier flip-lock ones by Black Diamond. Those have been working well. I will probably replace mine with a pair of those.

Trekking poles model?

Black Diamond Flick-locks

Re: crappy poles can cost as much as $10, 000 . . .

Re: crappy poles can cost as much as $10, 000 . . .

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