[pct-l] Trekking poles on sale (montypct)

[C. Hansen]

As an '09 hopeful, I've been shopping poles for a while.  I also jumped at this offer from REI, although I bought the UL compact version.  I was fully aware of the poor reviews they received on the REI website, and seriously considered Gossamer Gear and Black Diamond as alternatives.  I didn't choose the GG poles since they are fixed length (that has since changed with the new Lightrek 4).  As for the Black Diamond, I had no such hangup, in fact I love their fliplock system.  So when I was in REI, I was there for the BD's and I saw the sale price on the Peak UL.  Fickle.  I know.

I used the poles immediately on a two day snowshoe trip in North Idaho and they performed great, without any problems at all.  Not to mention they're crazy light in comparison to my snowshoe poles.

C. Hansen 

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Message: 5
Date: Mon, 19 Jan 2009 19:05:41 -0800
From: "montypct" <montypct at gmail.com>
Subject: Re: [pct-l] Trekking poles on sale
To: "Diane at Santa Barbara Hikes dot com"
    <diane at santabarbarahikes.com>,    "Bob Sartini" <r.sartini at rcn.com>
Cc: pct-l at backcountry.net
Message-ID: <7F45D77B037D49EFB4001055CC1331D8 at Monty>
Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed; charset="iso-8859-1";
    reply-type=original

REI Peak UL Trekking Poles on sale:
I just bought a pair

http://www.rei.com/search?query=peak+ul+trekking+poles


Monty


The fun goes up when the weight goes down
-Warner Springs Monty



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Message: 6
Date: Mon, 19 Jan 2009 20:15:45 -0800
From: Timothy Akin <timothyakin at mac.com>
Subject: [pct-l] Trekking poles
To: pct-l at backcountry.net
Message-ID: <2CD89F9C-86BD-4610-81ED-B3A836688F9C at mac.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII; delsp=yes; format=flowed

I just have to chime in about trekking poles.  I have the Black  
Diamond Alpine CF.  Aluminum poles make a clank noise while the CF  
poles make a softer, more satisfying clunk.  I like the clunk, don't  
like the clank.  Also, the locking mechanism is foolproof.  Poles  
lock every time, no special technique required.  I've used them in  
snow, rain, and heat.  I have about 400 miles on them now on the TRT,  
PCT, and New Mexico hikes.  I need adjustable poles for my Tarptent  
Contrail, so these work great for me.  Great poles. YMMV.
Tim A.


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Message: 7
Date: Mon, 19 Jan 2009 20:22:13 -0800
From: Brian Lewis <brianle8 at gmail.com>
Subject: Re: [pct-l] Trekking poles
To: Len Glassner <len5742 at gmail.com>
Cc: pct-l at backcountry.net
Message-ID:
    <bd5c16ca0901192022p2b4aeb22k9095b015ba69ff2a at mail.gmail.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1

Len asked:
>
> "Brian, could you describe the process by which you replaced the tips?"



I found a picnic table with an appropriate sized gap between boards, put the
pole such that tip was above the boards with the rest of pole below, I
pulled down to sharply smack the hub of the tip against the boards until it
popped off.  Pushed the new tip on (friction fit); repeated use of pole
tends to hammer it down more firm thereafter.

It's one of those things you do almost never (I had never done it before),
but if you have problems you might well find other hikers around who can
lend a hand; there were several thru's hanging around when I did mine, not
an a-typical experience.

Looking online just now I found a description for how to do this for another
brand of pole (process is the same).  What they say:
"To remove old tip, slide a hammer along the shaft to hit the rim of the tip
and knock it off. Fit the new tip by placing it on the pole end and then
giving it a sharp rap down onto a firm surface."

I don't favor the hammer method so much, as it just hits one side of the
tip; the gap-between-boards method gets two sides of the tip at once, if you
can find the right size gap.  The key is just knowing that the tip is
friction fit on and a sharp smack with force applied correctly will pop it
off.


Brian Lewis
http://postholer.com/brianle


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Message: 8
Date: Mon, 19 Jan 2009 21:07:03 -0800
From: "montypct" <montypct at gmail.com>
Subject: Re: [pct-l] New Trekking pole tips
To: "Brian Lewis" <brianle8 at gmail.com>,    "Len Glassner"
    <len5742 at gmail.com>
Cc: pct-l at backcountry.net
Message-ID: <B33D7DBC9F974BA4B559C8091A1FA5DD at Monty>
Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed; charset="iso-8859-1";
    reply-type=original

Two or three times now I've gotten new tips while hiking on the PCT.
I let the outfitters change them for me.  Cheap.
I think it was Wilson Sporting goods on the main strip in Bishop, CA the 
first time.
The second was Mammoth Mountaineering in Mammoth Lakes, CA (out at Reds 
Meadow)
I may have had it done there twice.
The total was $18.00 or less including the tips.