Z poles?

[silverfox]

I am really interested in the folding trekking poles. Is there a good reason not to have folding? If not, Leki or black diamond?

[Rasty]

I am really interested in the folding trekking poles. Is there a good reason not to have folding? If not, Leki or black diamond?

I have the Black Diamond Distance FL which fold and adjust for length. Great poles with the only drawback is no snow baskets. They fold up short to get out of the way when not being used. I'm 150# and they easily support me.

[Deadeye]

I bought a pair and busted one within the first 25 miles. Got lousy service from BD, they essentially told me I was too tough on UL equipment. I think the idea was great, but there's weak spot in the design where the elastic cords attach. Caveat emptor.

[jeffmeh]

I have seen the internal connectors on the BD Z poles fail within a few dozen miles, seen the poles break under moderate stress, and generally don't find them sturdy enough to count on them on aggressive terrain. I would suggest something beefier.

[Rasty]

I'm curious about others experience with the z-poles. Do the poles work for those larger than 150 pounds unlike myself?

[Papa D]

I weigh 150 on the nose so I can't speak to support for more weight but as for durability, I have had no problem with mine. I've probably hiked about 400 miles with them - - you have to be a little gentle taking them apart and folding them evenly but aside from that, I have had no problems - the nice thing for me is that I often like hiking without poles - - up scree or talus, on a long flat road walk, or in a town (where they could be left or forgotten) - - the Z-Poles easily go on your pack with very little weight or hassle. I've never had to have "service" for mine, but I have had good experience with other Black Diamond products in the past - - about 8 years ago, they repaired a well used Beta-Mid Tent's stitching for me without a hitch.

[Rasty]

One other thing I like is they fit inside my suitcase when I travel for work.

[Kingpongg]

I've put a several hundred miles on my z poles with no issues. I am 5' 11" and 175lbs. I honestly never have worried about them.

[silverfox]

Thanks guys for all of your input. Think I'm really going to try to find the best black diamond z poles. I'm sure this will work better for me;-)

[Rasty]

Silverfox, don't forget there is two versions of the z poles. Fixed length and adjustable. Suggest the adjustable.

[Tumor]

I had the adjustable versions. They were wonderfully light and held my weight well. Unfortunately the tip of my right pole ripped out and that destroyed the line tension. I had used electrical tape to fix the floppy pole and it got me from Sugarloaf to Rangeley. Be sure to break them down every night and wipe the connection points so they don't bind up on you.

[colorado_rob]

Wow, what different stories from different folks. I'm 185#, hike in super rugged terrain all over Colorado, bought a pair of BD Z-poles and really didn't expect them to last a week. Had them for 2 months now, abused them repeatedly, no problem. I just cannot resist the fact that these puppies weigh 4.7 ounces each. By the way: I generally only use one at a time. STILL expecting one of them to fail at some point. But: I bought them at REI (Return Every Item).

I like the fact that they are a fixed length (I use 120's), but fold up in thirds and tuck away while scrambling.

+1 for BD Z-poles.

[Bucho]

Can z-poles be used with the lightheart solo?

[Rasty]

Can z-poles be used with the lightheart solo?

Mine extend to 140 cm if that helps.

[Whack-a-mole]

I was at Winding Stair Gap NC this past Mem Day weekend, and my poles were all messed up. They just didn't feel right, and I couldn't place the problem. My hike was wonderful, but things were just goofy with my poles. I finally figured out that when my wife dropped me off I had grabbed her poles by mistake. Oops...

[silverfox]

Silverfox, don't forget there is two versions of the z poles. Fixed length and adjustable. Suggest the adjustable.

Hadn't noticed that thanks for the suggestion Rasty:)

[saltysack]

Love my 120's but have less than 100 miles on them. Bought new off eBay for less than $99. I'm 210lbs

[Starchild]

I did consider them but ultimately when with the REI Carbon Fiber sticks, fully adjustable and has taken abuse such as pole vaulting down rock scrambles.

[Persistent]

@Bucho,
Yes, The Z-Poles will work with the LightHeart Solo. If they are adjustable, they will work as is. If they are fixed length and not 130 cm, you may require a custom ridge pole which I could make for you. Please email me: marc at lightheartgear dot com and I can take care of it. Numerous LH Solo users have BD Z-Poles and have had no problems.
Marc Penansky
LightHeart Gear

[simply_light]

Tried z-poles, but just did not have the confidence in them that I felt was necessary for this piece of gear. To me, the folding up aspect was not a huge decision maker, as I usually strap my poles to the outside of my pack if not using them on the trail.

[Weather-man]

I bought a pair and busted one within the first 25 miles. Got lousy service from BD, they essentially told me I was too tough on UL equipment. I think the idea was great, but there's weak spot in the design where the elastic cords attach. Caveat emptor.


I had a very similar experience with BD customer service after I bent a Z-pole on a section hike. Was essentially told that BD warranty covered manufactures defects but not normal usage. My rationale to the service rep that if something breaks in normal usage IT IS a manufacture's defect....!

Was told sorry, no warranty. So I researched BD on the financial web sites to establish the names of all the corporate leaders. From there I reviewed the email naming convention of the customer service rep and duplicated it using the BD leaderships names.

I had a responses back from the CEO, COO, CFO, etc... within about 2 hours. Had a new pole by the end of the week. YMMV but worked for me.

[mhurley]

I am 6'0" and a bit over 200#. I use the zpoles at 120 fixed. I like the light weight and the ability to easy put them in a suitcase. I have had no issues. If I were to change anything with them, it would be better handles.

[Rasty]

Black Diamond has recently been adding to the Z-Poles selections. Lots of new options including cork, carbon, snow baskets.

http://blackdiamondequipment.com/en/trekking-poles

[Kraken Skullz]

I have z poles as well and they have worked out just fine. I got mine from geartrade.com for about $50.

[BensMusicHiker]

I have a set of the Aluminum ones, 120cm. I go backpacking about every other day here in CO typically no less than 5 miles. I also have several 30+ mile trips on mine up in the high country. I weight 155# and I have a bum knee so I tend to put a lot of my weight on them especially down hill. I also use them for my shelter which is a GOLITE poncho tarp. I have had 0 issues. They easily have 200+ miles of rough terrain on them and I can say with great confidence that with just a bit of care they will last. I do overnighters all the time with just my MountainSmith Tour lumbar pack and I love being able to stow them on the bottom straps. I love mine, rarely use my others now.

[MikekiM]

I have a few seasons on my BD Z-Poles. I have never missed the length adjustment and have had a great experience with them.

Best part is that since their internals are limited to a length of cord to keep the sections together, they are dead quiet..

[Offshore]

I'm curious about others experience with the z-poles. Do the poles work for those larger than 150 pounds unlike myself?

185 and no problem with either the carbon or aluminum folding Z poles. The inner connector cord is Kevlar, so you can't get a much stronger flexible material. Just be careful that you deploy them fully so that the pole section ends are fully seated in one another. That said, on rocky terrain, I go with either carbon or aluminum "full size" BD pole with the flick lock system. The full size poles seem to be more stable due to the larger diameter but at the cost of heavier weight not collapsing down to as small a size as Z poles. Like anything, there are trade-offs and no absolute right answer. It depends on your needs and priorities.

[HooKooDooKu]

While I normally use a solid 6' tall bamboo pole for a hiking stick, I purchased a pair of light-weight BD Z-poles for a recent JMT thru hike because I had to fly out to California.

My weight for the trip was right around 190#, and there were a few times where I tripped and put most of my weight on one of the pole (recall even seeing one of them bend pretty good and expected it to break because of the many breaks I've heard about regarding hiking poles). Obviously your mileage might vary, but I tried to keep the attitude that I knew at any moment I likely could break one of these light weight poles and just tried to remember that I at least had two and would have something to walk with unless I broke both of them.

Actually, my two biggest difficulties with the poles were:
1. Don't drop them when pausing to take a picture.
2. Don't loose the rubber tip if you buy the larger rubber tips that slide over the ends.

Rather than use the tiny metal tips, I left the other tips on and bought a set of the larger rubber tips to go over the ends. The poles worked much better on rock, dirt, sand, and basically all around with the large rubber tips over the standard tips. However, because they don't lock on, I had to be extra careful if I was around mud or snow/ice. I finally learned that when ever I was near anything questionable, I would slide them off and put them in my pocket until I passed the hazard that was likely to suck them off.

When I would pause to take a picture, I would frequently just try to lean the poles against my chest. But they often tried to roll off to the side and fall to the ground. I had to learn that anytime I was near a cliff, on a bridge, or anywhere else where dropping the poles would make them difficult/impossible/dangerous to retrieve, I would try to lock them in place with the pole carrying cords that came with my Osprey back pack.

[lilbear]

I love the z-poles, lightweight, easy to pack, etc. Downside was that in a year's use (I've been doing mostly 3-6 day trips once every month or so) the inner rubber part that connects the sections has worn thin. I've been mindful of how I've folded them to avoid creating pressure points, but still have had the rubber wear down on both of them.