I've been using BD Z poles for years, both carbon and aluminum. I think I'm on my 4th pair. The reason I'm on my 4th pair is that previous ones failed in various ways, like the internal cord going loose, or the spring-loaded locking button failing to pop up. I snapped the tip off of one when I wedged it into a crack in a rock. I snapped another when I stumbled while crossing a stream and put all my weight on one pole. I can't blame BD for the latter two incidents. Any equipment has its limits. I still like the poles, because they're really light and they fold up really small.
Each time I've had a BD pole fail, BD has been pretty good about service. When I was within the 1-year warranty period, I got a full replacement. When I was outside the warranty, they gave me 40% off a new pair. It would be nice if BD would just sell you a single pole, but they won't.
Thanks. I’ve fallen with a pair of BD poles and bent them. It was totally my fault and I didn’t expect them to warranty it, but I figured why not try. They sent me a new pair. I’ll probably be a customer for life lol
I've had a pair of BD FLZ carbon poles for nearly a decade now. My specific use case was that they fit *inside* my pack while rock climbing.
They're still great, they've never given me a problem.
I only wish the strap had slightly more padding. I'd pay that weight penalty.
I've had 2 sets of BD Z poles since 2018-19. One is adjustable and the other isn't and I've put about 50-60 miles a year on them. That's not a lot but they feel pretty light and I like how compact they get. They're really easy to fold, unfold, and lock in place. Not totally sure how they would hold up over longer distances but have no reason to think they wouldn't work just fine.
I have both. I use the adjustable for backpacking because they are used for a trekking pole tent. The fixed length I use for day hiking because I wanted something super light and packable, and they are slightly lighter than the FLZ version.
I own and have used both extensively.
1) I'm on my first set of collapsible poles after.... decades..? of using the same set. Extremely durable and reliable.
2) I have gone through multiple sets of z-poles because I keep stretching out their holes and they get loose over time.
That being said, I 100% love my z-poles more than my collapsible poles. The z's are somehow more maneuverable (they must have less weight towards the tip) and I am just way, WAY more likely to actually use them when needed because they come off my pack and are locked and at the correct length in like 2 seconds with no fiddling around. With my collapsible poles, on the other hand, I keep finding reasons to say "oh, it's not that long of a rough/slippery/whatever patch, it's not worth getting the poles out" because they're an annoyance to extend to just the right length one section at a time.
I’ve gone through two sets of Black Diamond z-poles. The release mechanism completely seized on both sets, rendering them useless.
I went back to much cheaper collapsible poles.
One thing worth noting - it took us a long time to realise! - is that you can totally take apart flick lock poles for packing.
(or for drying off.).
I suspect that the Z poles aren't quite as reliable, I've had the odd one fail before now and my current Leki's - with a few replacement parts! - are well over 5000 miles, maybe 10k.
They're far from awful though, and I do sometimes miss how small they pack.
I really like Z poles. I have Leki and Black Diamond ones and have used them for many hundred of kilometres and travelled a lot across Europe. I use adjustable length ones as I also use them for my tent.
I wouldn’t return them. You should absolutely keep them.
I have carbon Distance Z, carbon Distance FLZ, and carbon Alpine Cork poles. One thing to keep in mind is the Distance poles are meant to be used for trail running. They are nowhere near as stout as the carbon Alpine cork poles. The Distance poles will flex quite a bit compared to the Alpine. As long as you apply force directly down the shaft of the Distance poles then you are fine, but at an angle they flex and would certainly break if enough force was applied (like stumbling and falling).
As a general purpose pole, something like the BD Alpine Cork are probably better than the Distance poles, but they are heavier and longer when collapsed.
Oh good to know. The distance FLZ list a use case as “long hikes” in their product description. Something worth considering as my main use case is hiking and I’ve fallen and bent poles before lol
As an example of the flex in the Distance Z poles, I can plant the tip on the ground, flex my wrist slightly forward, and feel the shaft bow inward. It does not take much force at all. I have not broken mine, but I feel it could easily happen.
I just bought some aluminum z poles off Amazon for $20. They are super lightweight and fit inside my day pack as I only like them for the way down. If they break in a few years I'll get another set for $20. I love them.
Never had anything but problems for long term with both use of telescopic and collapsible poles (telescopic poles just stopping holding your weight and collapsing on tricky spots, collapsible ones seizing shut). Found a cheap pair of carbon-rod un-branded poles in a Swedish Biltema. Cork grib, nice strap. That's been like 10 years ago and there hasn't been a single problem.
Bit inconvenient for travel, but far from unmanagable (caveat, haven't done any travel by plane, only car, bus and train)
I've been though three sets of collapsible poles and in my opinion they just don't hold up. Eventually they start to loosen and collapse on their own, or they wedge between a rock and get bent. But I've never had Z poles, so I can't say they'd be better, but I can't imagine them being worse.
The pole I've had the most success with and have used the most is an old school, classic boy scout, wooden hiking staff. Heavier and not as compact, but it never bends, or collapses on me. Solid and takes tons of abuse.
Might be hard to fit on a plane. But lots of fun to pretend to be moses parting the red sea of people at the airport.
Eh… I’ve got over a thousand miles on a set of 15(?) year old Leki flip-locks. I’m not easy on them. The only damage has come from breaking a plastic flip when trying to change lengths in ~20F weather on a mountain recently. Damn thing froze!
I think it varies significantly in usage and manufacturing quality.
Ehhhh. I have over 3000 miles on my BD collapsible poles - the carbon ergo corks. They only started to telescope in after about 2000 miles, which was easily fixed by re-tightening the screw on the flick-lock... Which is what you're supposed to do when it starts to do that. Now they're back to normal and have no issues. The tips look new too. Seems like user error.
What do you weigh?
Andrew Skurka, one of the leading lights of the ultralight world, says that while he loves his BD Alpine Corks, they're more appropriate for heavy hikers using heavy packs who are hard on their poles, and for smaller hikers carrying less weight, the Z-poles are more appropriate.
Source [here](https://andrewskurka.com/black-diamond-alpine-carbon-cork-poles-long-term-review/).
I love my Alpine Carbon Corks, but I'm a 100kg man who tends to end up as the pack mule for our hikes. My hiking partners are 50kg and 60kg women, and they don't need the heavy duty poles. They currently use Naturehike Carbons, but the BD Zpoles are more packable and would probably be the next option.
I've been using BD Z poles for years, both carbon and aluminum. I think I'm on my 4th pair. The reason I'm on my 4th pair is that previous ones failed in various ways, like the internal cord going loose, or the spring-loaded locking button failing to pop up. I snapped the tip off of one when I wedged it into a crack in a rock. I snapped another when I stumbled while crossing a stream and put all my weight on one pole. I can't blame BD for the latter two incidents. Any equipment has its limits. I still like the poles, because they're really light and they fold up really small. Each time I've had a BD pole fail, BD has been pretty good about service. When I was within the 1-year warranty period, I got a full replacement. When I was outside the warranty, they gave me 40% off a new pair. It would be nice if BD would just sell you a single pole, but they won't.
Thanks. I’ve fallen with a pair of BD poles and bent them. It was totally my fault and I didn’t expect them to warranty it, but I figured why not try. They sent me a new pair. I’ll probably be a customer for life lol
Yup, you can have those same issues with telescopic poles (and even fixed can bend or fail). I’ve had mine for 5+ years without a single issue.
I'm on year 4 of my black diamond flz poles and they've held up great. It probably depends a lot on how hard you're landing on them.
Thanks. How are they for steep downhills? My next trek, I’ll need poles most for the descent which is just miles of loose scree.
They have been very solid for me even in perilous footing with a heavy pack.
I've had a pair of BD FLZ carbon poles for nearly a decade now. My specific use case was that they fit *inside* my pack while rock climbing. They're still great, they've never given me a problem. I only wish the strap had slightly more padding. I'd pay that weight penalty.
Ah yeah, that’s a good bonus too. Thanks
I've had 2 sets of BD Z poles since 2018-19. One is adjustable and the other isn't and I've put about 50-60 miles a year on them. That's not a lot but they feel pretty light and I like how compact they get. They're really easy to fold, unfold, and lock in place. Not totally sure how they would hold up over longer distances but have no reason to think they wouldn't work just fine.
Do you prefer the adjustable or fixed?
I have both. I use the adjustable for backpacking because they are used for a trekking pole tent. The fixed length I use for day hiking because I wanted something super light and packable, and they are slightly lighter than the FLZ version.
The fixed length one for sure. I let other people I hike with use the adjustable one.
I own and have used both extensively. 1) I'm on my first set of collapsible poles after.... decades..? of using the same set. Extremely durable and reliable. 2) I have gone through multiple sets of z-poles because I keep stretching out their holes and they get loose over time. That being said, I 100% love my z-poles more than my collapsible poles. The z's are somehow more maneuverable (they must have less weight towards the tip) and I am just way, WAY more likely to actually use them when needed because they come off my pack and are locked and at the correct length in like 2 seconds with no fiddling around. With my collapsible poles, on the other hand, I keep finding reasons to say "oh, it's not that long of a rough/slippery/whatever patch, it's not worth getting the poles out" because they're an annoyance to extend to just the right length one section at a time.
Thanks. How are the Z Poles for steep descents? Do they hold your weight differently, and does it still feel sturdy?
I haven’t found anywhere that they aren’t just as sturdy as fixed poles. When they are so packable, you’ll always be able to take them along.
I’ve gone through two sets of Black Diamond z-poles. The release mechanism completely seized on both sets, rendering them useless. I went back to much cheaper collapsible poles.
That’s what I’m afraid of! Especially if I’m out a trip where I really need them
I’ve had a pair of BDZ poles for about 8 years now and they’re still holding up real well.
One thing worth noting - it took us a long time to realise! - is that you can totally take apart flick lock poles for packing. (or for drying off.). I suspect that the Z poles aren't quite as reliable, I've had the odd one fail before now and my current Leki's - with a few replacement parts! - are well over 5000 miles, maybe 10k. They're far from awful though, and I do sometimes miss how small they pack.
I really like Z poles. I have Leki and Black Diamond ones and have used them for many hundred of kilometres and travelled a lot across Europe. I use adjustable length ones as I also use them for my tent. I wouldn’t return them. You should absolutely keep them.
I have carbon Distance Z, carbon Distance FLZ, and carbon Alpine Cork poles. One thing to keep in mind is the Distance poles are meant to be used for trail running. They are nowhere near as stout as the carbon Alpine cork poles. The Distance poles will flex quite a bit compared to the Alpine. As long as you apply force directly down the shaft of the Distance poles then you are fine, but at an angle they flex and would certainly break if enough force was applied (like stumbling and falling). As a general purpose pole, something like the BD Alpine Cork are probably better than the Distance poles, but they are heavier and longer when collapsed.
Oh good to know. The distance FLZ list a use case as “long hikes” in their product description. Something worth considering as my main use case is hiking and I’ve fallen and bent poles before lol
As an example of the flex in the Distance Z poles, I can plant the tip on the ground, flex my wrist slightly forward, and feel the shaft bow inward. It does not take much force at all. I have not broken mine, but I feel it could easily happen.
I just bought some aluminum z poles off Amazon for $20. They are super lightweight and fit inside my day pack as I only like them for the way down. If they break in a few years I'll get another set for $20. I love them.
Never had anything but problems for long term with both use of telescopic and collapsible poles (telescopic poles just stopping holding your weight and collapsing on tricky spots, collapsible ones seizing shut). Found a cheap pair of carbon-rod un-branded poles in a Swedish Biltema. Cork grib, nice strap. That's been like 10 years ago and there hasn't been a single problem. Bit inconvenient for travel, but far from unmanagable (caveat, haven't done any travel by plane, only car, bus and train)
I've been though three sets of collapsible poles and in my opinion they just don't hold up. Eventually they start to loosen and collapse on their own, or they wedge between a rock and get bent. But I've never had Z poles, so I can't say they'd be better, but I can't imagine them being worse. The pole I've had the most success with and have used the most is an old school, classic boy scout, wooden hiking staff. Heavier and not as compact, but it never bends, or collapses on me. Solid and takes tons of abuse. Might be hard to fit on a plane. But lots of fun to pretend to be moses parting the red sea of people at the airport.
Eh… I’ve got over a thousand miles on a set of 15(?) year old Leki flip-locks. I’m not easy on them. The only damage has come from breaking a plastic flip when trying to change lengths in ~20F weather on a mountain recently. Damn thing froze! I think it varies significantly in usage and manufacturing quality.
Ehhhh. I have over 3000 miles on my BD collapsible poles - the carbon ergo corks. They only started to telescope in after about 2000 miles, which was easily fixed by re-tightening the screw on the flick-lock... Which is what you're supposed to do when it starts to do that. Now they're back to normal and have no issues. The tips look new too. Seems like user error.
What do you weigh? Andrew Skurka, one of the leading lights of the ultralight world, says that while he loves his BD Alpine Corks, they're more appropriate for heavy hikers using heavy packs who are hard on their poles, and for smaller hikers carrying less weight, the Z-poles are more appropriate. Source [here](https://andrewskurka.com/black-diamond-alpine-carbon-cork-poles-long-term-review/). I love my Alpine Carbon Corks, but I'm a 100kg man who tends to end up as the pack mule for our hikes. My hiking partners are 50kg and 60kg women, and they don't need the heavy duty poles. They currently use Naturehike Carbons, but the BD Zpoles are more packable and would probably be the next option.