Just a tip to check your tips

[TooOld2Hike_EP]

The height of my (Costco) poles have held ever since I printed up some washes for the locks. So I don't check their height much anymore.

Did the other day. A half inch difference. Started to look for what section had slipped. None.

"What's going on?"

Then I noticed that the carbide tip was missing from one pole and the metal sleeve/socket was worn down to half.

Am ordering new tips. Which brings me to another tip that I read online a couple years ago.

Instead of ordering a replacement tip from the cheaper Costco supplier (actually, they sell the whole lower section as an assembly - $8 before shipping), someone suggested buying Black Diamond or Leki Universal Flex tips.

Presumably better quality, longer lasting. Currently I can buy pair of BD tips for $15 - $25 after shipping.

[shelby147]

@TooOld2HikeQ
I've been pleased with my BD poles. The poles tips are still going strong after a year of frequent off-trail use. I hear other people complain about broken poles and I don't think I'm that careful.

[TooOld2Hike_EP]

I just bought pair of replacement tips from a local shop for $16. (Would have cost $25 mail order after shipping.) Am I allowed to mention the name of the shop here? (Am planning to go in for a pack evaluation. The owners were tour guides at the Canyon for many years.)

Question: The tips they sold me were the Black Diamond "long" tips. I was looking for the normal length BD Tech Tips.

Aside from the length, the carbide in the long tips is not replaceable. Whereas the carbide in the normal tips screw out.

I could make the argument that it's better that the tips can't screw out.

What do you say?

[xsproutx]

The owners were tour guides at the Canyon for many years

If it's a local shop in Scottsdale then it's quite likely a group convicted of criminal activities related to that guiding...

I'm personally a big fan of the costco special cascade poles these days; cheap, light, haven't broken on me yet. When I wear out the tips, I just buy new lowers for the most part. When I accidentally run over one with my car, buying another pair isn't a big hit. With that said, the tips that screw out aren't an issue really; they get gunked up so quick that they're not accidentally falling out or anything.

[TooOld2Hike_EP]

If it's a local shop in Scottsdale then it's quite likely a group convicted of criminal activities related to that guiding...

Yes, one store in SDL. Another in N. Phx.
I can't tell if you're joking. (About the criminal activity.)
If not, got a link? (Or PM a link.)

[CannondaleKid]

Although I've averaged replacing just over one tip a year, I'm still on the same pair of Black Diamond poles since late 2013 and with 9K+ miles they are still doing the job.
One secret to their longevity: Tighten the screws on the folding clips on a regular basis as they tend to loosen and/or stretch slightly.

[azbackpackr]

@TooOld2HikeQ
Why PM a link? It's public knowledge, very well-known. https://arizonadailyindependent.com/201 ... nd-canyon/

[RedRoxx44]

I don't worry too much about the tips. I have broken about every major pole out there except the Helinox, which I reserve for backpacking because of their light weight and toughness. I have some Leki's and some REI poles. The Rei ones have a bent tip but still usable.

[LindaAnn]

I guess I don’t hike enough, because I’ve never worn out the metal tips on either set of (Black Diamond) trekking poles, and no, I generally don’t use rubber covers, just the metal on rock.

[TooOld2Hike_EP]

@LindaAnn
Good to know that they last. That's why someone on the net recommended swapping out tips for Black Diamond. (Altho I thought that you didn't use poles much.)

[LindaAnn]

@TooOld2HikeQ
I use a pole only on steep hikes, snow, backpacking, so a few times a month. Not for most regular hikes. Both sets of my poles have a few thousand miles on them though, they’re fairly old.

[TooOld2Hike_EP]

@azbackpackr
Okay, read the story. Tnx. (From 2018. I didn't buy backpacking gear until 2019.)

Well, it's not like she murdered someone. As I tend toward the libertarian side, I'm not too bothered. She's served her "time." So I'm willing to forgive.

(I hope we all agree that there are far too many bureaucrats and far too many regulations. (Backpacker charged with federal crime for making a mistake. At 3 Felonies a Day, we're all 'guiltly' of some 'crime' in our country.)

[azbackpackr]

@TooOld2HikeQ
It wasn't really a mistake. It was deliberate. The business didn't honor a contract they had signed. They were at fault, they basically got caught lying. I was unaware that Libertarians don't care about honoring business contracts. And the punishment wasn't that bad. The owner did not go to prison, they just simply could not do business in that area anymore for a while.

[TooOld2Hike_EP]

@azbackpackr
Sent a PM.

[azbackpackr]

@TooOld2HikeQ
You haven't sent the PM yet. Just FYI, I have worked in the industry for 10 years for three different Park Service concessionaires. Imagine if my current company decided to rig and launch rafts in Grand Canyon on a date not specified in their permit? Or imagine that the van tour company I used to work for suddenly decided they were going to suit up folks for backpacking and take their people down to Phantom Ranch, which is not specified in their permit? Obviously they would have some legal problems to do with their permits if they did things like that. These legal problems would begin with physical contact with law enforcement officers! The kind with guns! Imagine that! We are supposed to be a country of laws. You are supposed to obey the laws, or you have tacitly agreed to take the consequences.

[xsproutx]

"I'm a libertarian, so I don't care about laws"
"I spent my career as a pilot, where the FAA makes sure everything is as safe as possible and I now try and carry that experience to other parts of my life"

Pick and choose. Typical. We also all know that the company in question obviously didn't get caught tons of times before they DID get caught and I wouldn't be completely surprised if they continued after to an extent.

[azbackpackr]

@xsproutx
Yeah I don't think Libertarians are advocating disobeying laws, I think they are advocating changing laws.

Here in Arizona we have many laws which are considered somewhat libertarian, such as the ability to purchase any firearm (except full auto), unregistered, unrecorded, from a private party. You can then legally carry it into a bank and get money out of your account, just so long as you don't point the gun at the teller and demand money!

[TooOld2Hike_EP]

For the record (albeit way off topic now), I did send a PM when I said I did, offering to discuss. It appeared to have gone through that evening. But wasn't showing in my Outbox the next morning.

But moot as I see that there's nothing to discuss.

[TooOld2Hike_EP]

Confirmed today. 3 mph. In drizzle.