Source of Trekking pole handle

That is awesome! Do you have a pic of the original 7 y.o. floam handles? When I read this thread I was highly skeptical those would hold up over time, but it seems like they have. Very cool.

My low tech pole handles consist of crepe bandage bound on with 2" wide zinc oxide tape. Enough to use with both the poles to splint a broken leg with.

Slight diversion here— I stopped by Salvation Army today and looked through their barrel of golf clubs, hoping to pick up a pair to make my poles. There were two or three drivers with graphite poles, but they were not near long enough. I'm planning to make 130 cm poles. These clubs only came up to less than an inch above my belt. They'll of course be shorter after I cut off the head. Have others had to look a while before finding clubs that were long enough?

It looks like someone used the top of a cross country ski pole grip and then used fishing pole cork grip rings below (see http://www.acidrod.com/corkGrips.html for photos— never dealt with them otherwise)

Cross country ski grips are quite light and allow the option of a strap. They are typically just a bit large for golf shafts which is easily remedied with a layer of duct tape. Polyurethane glues like Gorilla Glue have good gap filling properties and silicone adhesive works well too. I've found brand new cross country poles at thrift stores for $5 a pair! I gripped the handles in a padded vise and simply twisted the shaft out. Warming with a hair dryer or cautiously with a heat gun helps.

The replacement tips from Black Diamond Z Poles work very well for the bottom end, giving minimal baskets and replaceable carbide and plastic tips: http://blackdiamondequipment.com/en/trekking-poles/z-pole-basket-BD1121260000ALL1.html There too, some gap filling glue helps as the taper on the golf shafts doesn't match the pole parts. If using polyurethane glue, watch out for over-run as the stuff foams up and will make quite a mess.

For longer poles you will have to buy golf club shaft extensions(see link). They glue in well with epoxy and are pretty lightweight. I made a pair of MYOG poles a while back and had to go this route.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/like/271565412443?ul_noapp=true&chn=ps&lpid=82

Ryan

or another option if you can pick up entire clubs cheaply is to saw off the top 22 inches and jam it into the top of the longer shaft. Then saw off as much of the bottom shaft as you need to get the desired length. I made MYOG poles this way and get away with them as carry on luggage in two pieces. I glued in some plastic tube I can push-fit 1/8" Ti nail stakes into as points. Plenty of scope at the top for fitting camera/strap mounts too.

Interesting. Could you post photos? Particularly your tip construction?

Sure. Here's the push together pole: .:-). On the flat I'm too busy fiddling with cameras or rolling cigarettes. Also, 43" is just right for my Golite Hut 1 front pole in 'elevated' mode. For 'storm' mode, I just reverse the two pole sections and it comes down to 39". The longer section *just* fits in my pack diagonally for the pre-flight handbaggage check. This is important, as cut-price outfits like Ryanair can get picky about bag size sometimes, in the hope of making a fast buck – forcing you to check it as hold luggage.

Thanks for the photos and explanation.

How did you decide on 22 inches? How much does the top pole insert into the bottom pole?

Has anyone spoke with Champion Shine that Matt provided a link to?

Here it is: http://www.chps.com.tw/product_view.asp?PidNo=200703290002

They have a variety of nice looking grips.

Yes – minimum order quantity of 1,000 pieces IIRC.

Ryan

Ouch!

https://backpackinglight.com/forums/topic/possible-source-for-cork-and-eva-pole-grips/

What about molding a pair using a grip to make the mold? Cork and a glue poured into the mold and make as many as needed?