[pct-l] Tent poles

[kdpo@xxxxxxxxxxx (Ken Powers)]

I have to admit that I was concerned about using carbon fiber poles for
exactly the reasons Henry states below. We decided to ship aluminum poles in
our bounce box - just in case. After we developed a small crack, we put the
tent through a couple of really strong wind/rain storm along the CDT.

We were not sure the tent was going to stay on the ground at Heart Lake in
Yellowstone. And we were both in the tent! The poles flexed a lot during
that storm. The next morning I carefully examined the poles looking for the
small crack. The pole was still sound - the crack had not grown. We met a
ranger on the trail the next morning and he mentioned that the storm was the
strongest he had seen in many years.

Would I use carbon fiber poles on another thru-hike? Yes. But I probably
would want aluminum poles in my bounce box again. I don't think the carbon
fiber poles would suddenly snap. I think you would notice them starting to
fail and could duct tape them long enough to get replacements. That's my
plan.

Ken Powers
http://home.pacbell.net/kdpo/

----- Original Message -----
From: "henry shires" <hshires@jps.net>
To: <pct-l@mailman.backcountry.net>
Sent: Monday, January 20, 2003 11:28 AM
Subject: Re:[pct-l] Tent poles


> My observations of carbon fiber poles is that they will not stand the
stress
> loads that aluminum can.  Carbon fiber is made of, well, fibers.  The
fibers
> have an orientation and if you stress them too much "off-axis" they will
> break/shatter.  Having said that, carbon fiber poles are ok for long spans
> with relatively gentle changes in radius.
>
> Henry
>
> ----------
> >From: pct-l-request@mailman.backcountry.net
> >To: pct-l@mailman.backcountry.net
> >Subject: PCT-L digest, Vol 1 #755 - 7 msgs
> >Date: Mon, Jan 20, 2003, 10:00 AM
> >
>
> > Subject: [pct-l] Tent poles
> >
> > This is a multi-part message in MIME format.
> > --
> > [ Picked text/plain from multipart/alternative ]
> >     Does anyone have any experience using carbon fiber poles instead ol
> > aluminum? I'm primarily concerned with strength and durability.
> >
> >                                                        Thanks, Neil
> _______________________________________________
> PCT-L mailing list
> PCT-L@mailman.backcountry.net
> http://mailman.backcountry.net/mailman/listinfo/pct-l