Telescoping XC ski poles

[randoskier]

I second the Black Diamond Traverse pole at 155cm!
...
I replaced the stock baskets with these 120 mm baskets. They sell the baskets at Aventure Nordique for about 15 bucks.

Was the basket upgrade something you did because of equipment failure?

Asnes makes telescoping poles to 155cm. I don't have any but I watched a video about them and read Johnny's rave review (of the Combat NATO poles) and will be buying a pair of whatever they have available in the states next season. Seem like the best poles around from what I saw, re strap system and extended grip.

Didn't even think to check if Asnes makes poles, thanks for pointing out. If their poles are like their skis, probably a wise choice.

No I replaced the narrower diameter stock BD baskets with 120mm baskets (even the BD Powder Basket is too narrow), they are better in almost every type of snow, almost everyone mountain touring in Scandinavia has 120mm baskets on their poles. Makes a huge difference. I carry one spare basket too and carry the two originals.

[fgd135]

I've been using Ramer adjustable poles forever, but this season picked up a pair of Komperdell 280 adjustable poles, which are quite a bit lighter in wt., and by that, I mean about 5 ounces lighter per pair, a significant difference.
I used those Ramer poles not only for their durability, and rock solid push-button length adjustment, but also for their capability to join together to create a hasty avi probe. However, for quite some time now I also carry a dedicated collapsible avi probe, and decided to ditch the redundancy and the wt. of the Ramers in favor of a better balanced, lighter adj. pole. This goes along with my personal attempts this season to lighten up my gear load where possible.
Fwiw, the old Ramer poles, and these much lighter Komperdells, adjust from 110cm--145cm, plenty long enough for me.

[bark-eater]

I just sent back a set of Black Dimond Traverse poles with the plastic Flicklock levers. As they came the levers did not have enough tension for me to come up from a knee with and slid. I called Black Diamond technical support and they said send them back or try and tighten them. The did not have a tourque spec for me. I tightened them up a little and they still slip. the lower section seemed a little noodley also.

Any suggestions for a "stronger" pole set? I was going to try the Traverse Pro's with the metal flick lock next.
Thanks, Woody

[Stephen]

I have the Traverse Pro and have been happy with them.
I’m pretty rough on them with falls, and have only put minor bends in the lower section that I have straightened out.
Never had them slip.
The breakaway strap is nice and has worked many times for me, and easy to re-engage.
Only complaint is that the strap adjustment lock (separate, different than the breakaway feature) tends to slip and I need to retighten the straps occasionally.
Also, I see they now have a lower “tour grip” which looks like a nice upgrade.

I think the slippage would be most likely when new and might decrease as the surfaces wear in?
One thought would be to wipe the contact surfaces with solvent, just to make sure there is no residual product from manufacture that might be involved.
And possibly to lightly roughen the inside clamping area with some 220 - 320 grit sandpaper to give it more tooth (but that’s a completely untried and random idea).

I noticed a little aluminum corrosion inside my poles from me leaving them wet, so now take them apart to dry after each use.

[Theme]

Many good suggestions, Åsnes makes a bunch of poles, and BD Traverse is just fine but the baskets need changing as pointed out

I have been using Swix Mountain Explorer carbon poles for a while now. They do not pack that small but nor do the others two section poles, and do not have a flick lock but the aluminum twist piece is pretty good still.

These are very stiff for maximum transfer of energy, go up to 164cm and the leather basket is nice and bendy, so your poles do not slip on steeper surfaces. These can be replaced with their composite baskets too, in fact I will try them this season if I can find a large pair.

I did a 1300km ski tour through Sweden last winter and am overall happy with the poles, they did take quite the beating too and a couple crashes. Easy to adjust the loops with mittens on. Many others used the same poles that winter, even for tours twice as long as mine through the length of Norway. The leather baskets wear out after roughly 1500-2000km so at ~1000+ miles. Otherwise poles are like new, color does fade away a bit though

Now personally, for those kinds of distances I am looking to go even lighter on the poles, probably change the tips and baskets on a fixed racing pole set with the Swix tips and lighter composite powder baskets. Will accommodate faster paced skiing, now that I did upgrade to MR48S and Xplore, and hopefully will get the Alpina Pioneer Pro boots too. But for overall touring, you want the strongest poles you can get with acceptable weight, probably never less than 200g per pole unless you are aiming for speed and efficiency only.

These Swix poles are light in their category still, at a low 235g a piece. Have an excellent swing to them when pulling a pulk/carrying loads. Now, the tip is not that grippy on ice when the poles are new, but it will get better. You will also find that on some smooth ice, you are better off using the poles and their stiffness to your advantage by pushing harder anyways

Personally I would not go any heavier than 270g per pole even for slower touring. Also, having an EVA or cork handle is more comfortable in the cold, although some rubber/plastic handles have better grip.

Swix has a whole range of other, fixed length poles too. A friend of mine did manage to crack a pair of his mountain advanced composite poles. So, there can be some merit to going with Åsnes for example, as they use aluminum. Personally I have never had any problems with carbon in trekking or skiing poles and feel that the load needed to crack a carbon pole is higher than it takes to bend an aluminum pole

[bark-eater]

Well I went ahead and ordered a set of the BD Traverse Pros. Hopefully they'll be a little more confidence inspiring.

I also found some cheap snow baskets on line. Has any one seen these in real life?

https://yukoncharlies.com/product/powder-baskets/



PS. I found them on Amazon for $10, but the reviews say that the mounting hole while threaded is oversized so duct tape is required.

[JohnSKepler]

I just ordered a set of Asnes poles from Varuste during their campaign last week. I’ll report back when they arrive.