- Time of past OR future Camino
- CF (2000); St. Giles (2013); Le Puy-SJPP (2015); VDLP (2016); Mozárabe, Almeria to Granada (2018)
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My z poles came with a set of replacement tips in a tiny pocket attacked inside the mesh carrying bag. The tips unscrew off and on.
Last year when I walked from Le Puy to SJPP I used a pair of Black Diamond Z-poles (which I liked very much). I forgot to carry replacement tips . I was using the rubber tips (the actual screw-in tips that come with the poles, not the rubber covers that you just push on). By the time I got to SJPP, the rubber tips had worn down to the metal underneath. You can see in the photos what the tip looks like now and what it looked like when it was new. I haven't been able to figure out a way to remove the old tip and replace it with a new one. But maybe someone on the forum has a suggestion for how this might be possible? I have the rubber slip on covers - but they inevitably fall off and get lost.
Thanks. Mary Louise
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I had the same issue. I took one of my poles to REI to buy the replacement tips and the salesperson was strong enough to unscrew the old one. At home I think I used a small pliers to help turning. As Kanga says, the wavy part does make removal a little difficult, but you can do it!Last year when I walked from Le Puy to SJPP I used a pair of Black Diamond Z-poles (which I liked very much). I forgot to carry replacement tips . I was using the rubber tips (the actual screw-in tips that come with the poles, not the rubber covers that you just push on). By the time I got to SJPP, the rubber tips had worn down to the metal underneath. You can see in the photos what the tip looks like now and what it looked like when it was new. I haven't been able to figure out a way to remove the old tip and replace it with a new one. But maybe someone on the forum has a suggestion for how this might be possible? I have the rubber slip on covers - but they inevitably fall off and get lost.
Thanks. Mary Louise
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Edited to add for others: The problem appears to be that the old tip has been worn down so much that not only the old rubber is completely worn away but the base screw that is usually half covered by the rubber and screws into the pole has been worn down so much itself that there is almost nothing to grip onto to unscrew and remove it. It's a long sentence but what to do???
Mary Louise, I think the pictures you have there show the pieces pointing in different directions, right? What I mean is that the metal you see that has worn through the tip on the left has actually worn through at a spot that is at the bottom of the photo at the right. So I think that your tips are no more difficult to remove than anyone else's, it's that wavy screw on thing that causes all the problem.
I suggested a solution that will allow any regular rubber tip to be used with the z-poles here.
This might be an option even if you cannot replace the tip.If I can get the old tips out - my plan is to replace them with the carbon tip and then use dougfitz's method of using a rubber cap, held in place with cloth tape.
Try some chanel lock pliers or a small pipe wrench to remove the old tips and tighten the new ones. Remember, righty tighty, lefty loosey.Last year when I walked from Le Puy to SJPP I used a pair of Black Diamond Z-poles (which I liked very much). I forgot to carry replacement tips . I was using the rubber tips (the actual screw-in tips that come with the poles, not the rubber covers that you just push on). By the time I got to SJPP, the rubber tips had worn down to the metal underneath. You can see in the photos what the tip looks like now and what it looked like when it was new. I haven't been able to figure out a way to remove the old tip and replace it with a new one. But maybe someone on the forum has a suggestion for how this might be possible? I have the rubber slip on covers - but they inevitably fall off and get lost.
Thanks. Mary Louise
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Hummm.. I wonder how much one of those weighs and how it will affect the backpack 10% rule. Or if I carry it in my Macabi skirt maybe it doens't count?Try some chanel lock pliers or a small pipe wrench to remove the old tips and tighten the new ones. Remember, righty tighty, lefty loosey.
I always carry a spare set. Click click click does not make camino friends
Buen Camino
Happy Trails
Normally, you can use your hand to unscrew the tips of these poles.
I was under the impression she was still at home not on the Camino. I carry a Gerber Dime multitool. 5 cm cloasedHummm.. I wonder how much one of those weighs and how it will affect the backpack 10% rule. Or if I carry it in my Macabi skirt maybe it doens't count?
I carry a Gerber Dime multi tool. 6 cm closed. Slips into my pocket .I have found the pliers in a small multi-tool sufficient to remove the tips, but they aren't something I was contemplating carrying on my camino.
I was under the impression she was at home not on the Camino.Hummm.. I wonder how much one of those weighs and how it will affect the backpack 10% rule. Or if I carry it in my Macabi skirt maybe it doens't count?
@MichaelSG, I take a quite different view about this. The design of the tip, with its screw in thread, is just one of the design compromises BD made to keep the z-poles extremely light. I recall the company making much of its discussions with the climbing fraternity in particular in reaching this design. They were a pole designed for a niche market segment, not the broader walking market, even though they are now widely sold across the board.ummmmm........ this isn't a design flaw and channel lock pliers aren't going to help the OP anyway, even if she took them on the Camino. Normally, you can use your hand to unscrew the tips of these poles. If the tips are somehow too tight for your grip, any pair of pliers would normally be able to unscrew them and I bet almost every albergue has a pair of pliers available. For the particular tips pictured that Mary Louise mentioned in the original post, you should be able to see that she is trying to replace tips that are about 300km past their "use by dates". The tips should have been changed (using hands or any pair of pliers) before the last of the rubber is gone and much before the base screw has been used as a substitute carbon tip and worn almost completely away. NOW she needs 'special' tools to replace them (one method requires a clamp, hack saw and screwdriver) but as I am sure she will tell you, next time she will be carrying replacement tips (or rubber caps) and easily repairing the poles while it is simple to do.
And.... in advance, I'll apologize for not being able to use written words better to help anyone understand the issue better. I guess I should also apologize to Mary Louise for not living down the street from her. I am pretty sure I could fix them in a few minutes but she likely has some friend who is handy and owns the simple tools needed take care of her unique problem.
Is this a fishing story? That Gerber Dime keeps growing each time. Or maybe it's a bloke thing. What you think I think might be 6 cm a woman will only see as 5 cmI was under the impression she was still at home not on the Camino. I carry a Gerber Dime multitool. 5 cm cloased
I carry a Gerber Dime multi tool. 6 cm closed. Slips into my pocket .
@MichaelSG, I take a quite different view about this. The design of the tip, with its screw in thread, is just one of the design compromises BD made to keep the z-poles extremely light. I recall the company making much of its discussions with the climbing fraternity in particular in reaching this design. They were a pole designed for a niche market segment, not the broader walking market, even though they are now widely sold across the board.
So what are the design compromises here:
These are issues just with the tip. There are other issues with the design that I don't need to go into here. Whether you think of them as flaws or compromises is not the issue here. Expecting owners to address just one of these compromises might have been acceptable, but taken together they present a strong argument that these are not particularly good poles for regular, long distance walking.
- first, the tips cannot easily replaced without other tools. Some of the weight reduction of the poles is offset by the need to carry a small pair of pliers or a multi-tool. If one already does that, it won't be seen as significant, but it is still there.
- second, If you need to change tips from the carbon tip to a rubber tip regularly, you cannot do this while walking. I can do this with a conventional rubber tip that slides onto the end of the pole and covers the metal tip. I do it regularly on my walks as I move from a soil surface where I want to reduce the penetration effect of the bare metal tip, and other surfaces where I want to ensure that the pole tip does not slip.
- third, the diameter of the pole tip is quite thin - too thin for the company's own regular rubber tips to be securely fitted to the pole. I might cynically suggest that this might have been a deliberate approach to increasing the sales of the specialized screw style tips rather than give their customers the choice of the somewhat cheaper regular tips. Even if it were an oversight rather than a deliberate marketing ploy, it ensures that only BD products can be used as replacement parts. Note that I have already suggested a way of using a regular pole tip (see the link in my earlier post).
- fourth, again on the matter of the diameter of the pole tip, when in use, the rubber tip does not have sufficient contact area to prevent significant penetration into soft soils, increasing the damage that might be done to the environment compared to the regular rubber tips.
- fifth, because regular pole tips cannot be used without some form of modification, these poles cannot, for example, be fitted with the walking style tip that I use in urban areas so that I can use my poles as an adjunct to my training regime.
- sixth, when a regular rubber tips wears out, it merely exposes the underlying metal tip, which then might face additional wear but does not damage the tip itself. As you rightly point out, when the z-poles rubber tip wears out, the exposed metal will wear quickly to the point where it is difficult to replace with normal tools, require specialist tools to remove the remaining stump of the top, and may damage the remaining part of the tip in the process.
It's a fabric-backed waterproof tape. I get it in 50m x 50mm rolls, and wrap a much shorter length around a pen or the like.Doug, what is "gaffer tape"?
I'm used to inches not metric but as I recall 2.5 cm equals 1 inch. My Gerber is 2 inches, 5 cm..... ops, long when closed.Is this a fishing story? That Gerber Dime keeps growing each time. Or maybe it's a bloke thing. What you think I think might be 6 cm a woman will only see as 5 cm.
Also called Duct tape. I carry a back packers roll in my camino pack.It's a fabric-backed waterproof tape. I get it in 50m x 50mm rolls, and wrap a much shorter length around a pen or the like.
Also called Duct tape. I carry a back packers roll in my camino pack.
Like pilgrim shoe blowoutI know what duct tape is. But Doug describes it as "fabric backed." I see items in the US described as "gaffer tape," but it's really expensive. So I'll stick with duct tape for the Black Diamond tip problem.
BTW, I always wrap a several long stretches of duct tape around my poles to be used when needed. I have found an amazing variety of problems that duct tape can solve.
It is a common misconception that they are the same. Gaffer tape is designed to be easily removed following use, such as is needed when it is used for stage work and temporary cabling for audio-visual equipment set ups. For the camino, the differences are probably unimportant!Also called Duct tape. I carry a back packers roll in my camino pack.
You have to unscrew with a screwdriver or vice grip then remove the old top then put in a new tip of your choice. On my caminos, I would change the tops friending in the terrain I foresaw … rubber for city walking and carbide tips for mountain or dirt.Last year when I walked from Le Puy to SJPP I used a pair of Black Diamond Z-poles (which I liked very much). I forgot to carry replacement tips . I was using the rubber tips (the actual screw-in tips that come with the poles, not the rubber covers that you just push on). By the time I got to SJPP, the rubber tips had worn down to the metal underneath. You can see in the photos what the tip looks like now and what it looked like when it was new. I haven't been able to figure out a way to remove the old tip and replace it with a new one. But maybe someone on the forum has a suggestion for how this might be possible? I have the rubber slip on covers - but they inevitably fall off and get lost.
Thanks. Mary Louise
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Thanks for the detailed reply. I'll just point out that the thread is 5 years old.You have to unscrew with a screwdriver or vice grip then remove the old top then put in a new tip of your choice. On my caminos, I would change the tops friending in the terrain I foresaw … rubber for city walking and carbide tips for mountain or dirt.
if the ends of the poles get too worn out, it can be difficult to unscrew. News tips are about $18 (CDN) or 12€. I always carried 3 sets.
Don’t throw out the old tips in case you need replacements st the end. I would use the used carbide Ones cobmvered with duct tape if I ran out if rubber ones.
Let them soak in oil for a day if you can or use WD 40 and let it soak in the thread. You can also wrap an ice-filled plastic bag around the inside part and pour boiling water over the top only ten try to unscrew.Thanks for the detailed reply. I'll just point out that the thread is 5 years old.
Thanks for the detailed reply. I'll just point out that the thread is 5 years old.
Can you send me a closeup picture of the worn tipsYes! And we are still having the same problem. I'm inclined to send a link to this thread to Black Diamond. They really do need to do something about the tips of their poles, love my Black Diamond poles as I do, it is a very annoying problem.
To give some credit to BD, they do now produce a 'after-market' rubber tip that fits over the end of the Z-poles normal tip whether you are using the metal tip or the rubber tip provided with the pole. This is similar to the rubber tips from other makers, but has a much smaller bore diameter. I think that it would be about an 8mm diameter hole, rather than the 11-12 mm diameter hole that thicker poles need.Yes! And we are still having the same problem. I'm inclined to send a link to this thread to Black Diamond. They really do need to do something about the tips of their poles, love my Black Diamond poles as I do, it is a very annoying problem.
AKA duct tape, it's a thick strong, adhesive tape used by plumbers (duct tape) and electricians (gaffer) tape. If you are one of those people who obsessively read the credits at the end of movies, you will see a credit for 'gaffer'. This is not a cockney boss, it is the person who runs around taping down all the cables snaking around the movie set/studio. Sold at hardware stores around the world and reputedly capable of repairing anything that can't otherwise be fixed with WD40 or baler twine.Doug, what is "gaffer tape"?
This is a common misconception, and I have pointed out the differences earlier in this thread (ie, over five years ago). Gaffer tape is fabric backed and has a heat resistant adhesive which allows it to be removed without damaging the surfaces it was stuck to. Duct tape is a vinyl backed tape, less heat resistant, and not intended to be removed.AKA duct tape, it's a thick strong, adhesive tape used by plumbers (duct tape) and electricians (gaffer) tape.
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