2008 LuxuryLite Big Survival Stik Walking Staff REVIEW

What… me worry? about California? When lots of websites sell bowie knifes, butcher knives, etc. In Texas you can legally carry a concealed handgun. But the word 'concealed' is the tricky one. The whole Survival Stik is very hard to conceal. A hunter with a bowie knife in a sheath on his belt is breaking the law in CA, it appears. Same with a trout fisherman and his fillet knife. Or a VET with a big Horse hypodermic in his truck.

Texas Law says: (a) A person commits an offense if intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly carries on or about his person a handgun, illegal knife, or club. [Exceptions: official; actor was own premises; was traveling; engaged in lawful hunting, fishing, or other sporting activity; security guard].

Therefore, I suspect you are on the trail, you are OK, if you are hiking thru the local mall and stabbed someone, they could get you on the 'concealed' part of the law. And I bet most states kinda follow the same thinking.

BUT, you can easily cut the needle knife down to the length of the standard joint if you are worried. It is aluminum and you can cut it with any hacksaw or carpenter's chop saw.

Or, leave the whole needle knife at home… it's modular!

the woods around Houston have thousands of wild pigs. They love to poke at your tent at night, that is the main reason I came up with the needle knife… I wanted to poke right back.

Bruce Warren

Josh,

…but the LuxuryLite Big Survival Stik is a great example of LUXURY light… even Doug 'felt' good when using it.

One BSS weighs less than almost all pairs of ultralite adjustable poles, which are typically 13 to 17 ounces. It's a difference in hiking style, not weight.

And the BSS has a lifetime warranty against breakage… no other carbon pole offers that because skinny carbon tubes break easily.

Bruce Warren

LoL Who's lifetime warranty is this?
Is it the BSS Walking Staff or is it mine(mine's pretty much worn out) or is it your's Bruce?
I might bite the dust before you, can it pass on to my children?

Loved the review and the video!
In all truthfulness Bruce makes GREAT products and I love the fact of thinking outside the box!

Great question Gail!

Actually it's my lifetime, unless some big corporation buys LuxuryLite, then it would be your lifetime… I guess.

(A lifetime warranty is actually an R&D expense… we get to see where the product needs improvement. The warranty says you get a new part when you send back the failed part… that is a benefit of modular designs… it is not too costly to do a lifetime warranty.)

So send lots of orders so I have lots of money to buy health insurance, drive big safe vehicles, eat expensive organic health food, hire lots of employees so I can relax on the beach, etc, etc.

Bruce

My son wants to watch the "Trail Ninjas" video over and over and over again. You're a hit!
Best,
Addie

I think you have a small typo in the text of your review.

At one point you say that the pole deflected 1.1 *inches*.

But the chart has all of the deflections measured in *cm*, including the figure of 1.1 cm for the BSS.

So I think the inches figure must be a mistake.

the staff looks great–if I were a rich man, I'd get one.

Thx for taking the time to reply to my post in a kind and detailed manner Doug. Sorry it took so long to get back to you Doug. Very busy lately. I 'll try to answer your comments/Qs in order.

First: I fully understand and appreciate that you may only review what you've been given and (*of course*) cannot review items not listed on an MFG's site. WTS; as I mentioned earlier …. BPL staff reviews are exemplary! I do hope you didn't think I was criticizing your review.

Basket Tips: Please note that LuxuryLite now offers a "Tip Top" kit which includes QD basket tips and accessories. Very Nice! Bruce listens.

Custom lengths: As others have noted; LL will do some custom work. Just ask. :-) E.g. I needed a 45in (nominal) size pole for my Sixmoondesigns Gatewood Cape. A quick eMail to LL and voila!

Comparisons: Tough One! Most LL's products are unique but look similar to other products. For example the Modular Frame pack looks (kinda/sorta) like a typical external frame pack.

And like the LL Stiks; hikers w/lesser experience may be disappointed if they don't realize that the LL product is indeed different. And must be used in a different manner than what they are accustomed to for best performance.

A good example is the hand-strap: Those who are somewhat knowledgeable and used to "Legacy" trekking poles would probably try to place their hands thru the bottom of the strap and suffer for it. Of course, your pics show you using the hand-strap properly. BTW, I seldom use the straps. Usually I just grasp the Stik's body.

My Hiking Style: Undefinable because it varies not sooo much. Easier to say I do not hike for longer than 2 weeks at a time now. Getting old and crippled.

Peace,

Richard.

By posting the image and choosing "Edit" I am now able to reply to your post. Here goes………

I haven't had any probs w/the poles coming apart …. in snow or mud. I mix and match sections for the tightest fit. Plus I have found that after a while the aluminium oxidizes, causing an even tighter fit. My poles require a twisting motion and good hand strength to R&R sections and tips.

Note: The pic below is of a new Leki snow basket and a slightly used LL basket, as delivered w/the LL "TipTop" kit. The Leki basket is much more pliable than the LL.

I avoid winter mountaineering. So please forgive my ignorance if i'm wrong. But it seems to me that a pair (or?) of LL Big Survival Stiks would make a pretty good avalanche probe when joined together. Thoughts?

I was rushed when I posted the parts pic earlier in this thread. Some captions would've helped. Ooops.

From left to right:
LL Basket tip which I cut down. It's lighter weight (Hooray!). And doesn't tangle as much on overgrown (ie; nonexistent) trails.
LL Basket/Tip as delivered in "TipTop" kit.
My original basket/tip made from sourced LL parts.
Custom 19in OAL section made for me by LL.
17in OAL section w/a P&S adapter which I cut down.
Needle *trowel* w/a one gram cork plug and a velcro adjustable handstrap. Comfy and multi purpose. Weight similar to OEM handstrap.
Needle Knife w/a hose (water filters, etc) adapter plug. Also multi purpose. And LTW. ;-)

I enjoy modding gear. Specially LL gear.

Peace,

Richard.

Frank has some good observationsand some incorrect observations:

1) The Tip/Top kit now available includes a rounded rubber cap for those hikers who insist on using a 54" hiking pole when they really need a 72" length to cross those deep streams. An extra long hiking staff is oh so useful once you try it…

2)The hand strap slides down the full length so you can instantly make a very short Stik to dig in when clawing your way up hill. The tip has a flare to stop the strap from falling off and so does the top section.

3)Frank says he is "tired of sticks letting me down." But his LuxuryLite Stik finished a 1,000 mile trip still functioning despite his re-engineering of the joints. The aluminum joints expand/contract at exactly the same rate since the two mating pieces are the same alloy, so they do not get loose or tight due to temperature changes. This is why an aluminum liner is bonded to the carbon with flexible glue since carbon and aluminum have very different coefficients of expansion. The tip is designed to come off when it gets really stuck so that your forward momentum does not break the staff. If you are hiking in very unusual conditions like streams with sticky clay bottoms, you can put some bathtub caulk on the joint piece and then slip the tip on. You can get it off later if you really twist and turn the tip.

4)We sell an 11" Top Section with no needle knife for those places where you don't want to carry the needle. Or you can easily cut the end off the needle off with any hacksaw.

5)And wild pigs in Texas were the reason for creating the needle knife.

7) You can slide the hand strap to just above the middle and hang the Stik from your pack like other hiking poles with wrist straps.

8)To make a self-arrest pick, just use one section, put the other parts in your pack before you do the slippery crossing. Also, a traditional basket tip is now available. Maybe we need to add a tip that uses an ice axe point?

9) I am very impressed that Frank did 1,000 miles in the mountains of Spain. That is the most gruelling test the Stik has been thru so far. And Frank's report reveals that the Stik never failed him, the worst happening was retrieving a tip stuck in the mud. The Stik never collapsed or broke. It finished the 1,000 mile trek. And the joint liner that slipped a little is covered under the Lifetime Warranty.

Chris,

Things that cost about $199: iPod, GPS, tent, sleeping bag, backpack, gas for one day of driving, one LuxuryLite Big Stik.

The secret is you only need one. Just one. When you use those skinny bendy poles you need two because you cannot trust them. My 5 years as a pro motocrosser trashed my knees (ACL, MCL, missing in action), I discovered that going downhill with one very long and very stiff staff is easier on the legs and knees than using two bendy poles. Because your brain knows you cannot really trust those skinny poles and your muscles stay tense all the time… just in case.

Sorry the Stik is out of your price range… but where else can you find ANY carbon hiking pole with a lifetime warranty and hand made in Texas? Add up how much have you spent on hiking poles in the last 10 years.

You don't have to buy the special knife-less section, you can cut the needle knife off with any hacksaw if you are sure you'll never want to carry the thing.

The needle knife is a very important feature to most customers, a lot of solo hikers feel a bit vulnerable out there with wild animals, loose dogs, and a few strange characters wandering around.

But, in reality, the needle knife is a mere toy compared to the classic hi-carbon 8" hunting knife in the leather sheath you see hanging from the belt of many outdoor travelers.

-=Bruce Warren

Too much the overpriced gadget for me. I would question the concealed weapon issues too. Not much use as a shelter pole for me as it isn't adjustable.

Might as well have a section of bamboo with a strap. I've built ones with bottom sections from discarded trekking poles bedded in silicone adhesive. Bamboo pole with a carbide tip and snow basket mount!

I'll stick with my Black Diamond poles and Komperdell staff. Heck, all my poles, knife, and frog spear head didn't cost what this thing does!