I will buy them!

When ** gives their name then I will reply to their posts :)

I'll stop buying them. :D

Chris, what is the advantage to the current design?

I've had bad luck with similar designs slipping and $160 is a LOT of money... They are oh so light though.

I've used the GG LT4 and the TiGoat AGPs, only had slipping the first times using them. I figure if they slipped, then I hadn't tightened them enough and needed to recalibrate. No problems after that.

In my experience, Leki and Komperdell twist-locks always took a long time to tighten fully, and often slipped because you had to tighten them like a vise to get them to stick. Flick locks seem to have become so popular because they were a way around dealing with those crappy twist locks, rather than just making a better twist lock.

I've been using GG LT4s for the past year plus, and I've found that their twist locks require only a few easy turns to lock into place. They just work better than the other brands I've used. If all twist locks worked as well as GG's, I don't think there would be any need for flick locks.

I hope to get a heads up if they do. So I can purchase another pair like I have now. I like them they way they are and hope GG doesn't decide to "upgrade" them by making them heavier and more difficult to operate. I haven't had any problems with mine and have put quite a few miles on them.

Never had problems with mine either. Though I have seen others have problems with theirs. Mainly with the adjuster getting stuck way up in the upper portion. I suspect though that this is caused by some type of misuse. And seriously * * can't you put a name(any) up there? Or should we call you two stars?

^ Agree with Christopher. I wouldn't buy them. I've put mine through hell and far exceeded any reasonable expectations of their durability to clearly define in my mind that they are perfect for my needs and are top quality.

I've had people on the internet seriously violate my privacy in the past so I hope you can understand. I'm not using the initials to be snotty or anything, nor am I making a statement about your choice to use your real names.

So, perhaps the GG mechanism is a bit more reliable than Leki/Komperdell...

Probably the thing to do would be to see if you can find a set of the GG's that you can play around with to test them out. I always have this problem with cottage industry companies-- not being able to swing by REI and test the product out before buying is kind of hard for me. I had a friend's LT4s to convince me to buy my pair.

If you can't find anyone who owns a pair that you can test, there's always Trail Days or the ADZPCTKO. Or you could call GG and see if they'd let you buy a pair with a return policy if you don't like the adjustors. I'm not sure what they'd say to that, but I've always found them to be super helpful and friendly on the phone.

Bottom line... Find a way to test a pair if you're unsure. I think they're worlds better than the locks on the leki and komperdell poles.

"So, perhaps the GG mechanism is a bit more reliable than Leki/Komperdell"

Yes they are. I went from Lekis to GG's. Lekis use to slip on me every 3 miles or so...especially on rocky trails where the vibrations would jar the mechanism loose. GG's have been great. I won't say that they are slip-proof but they definitely don't bother me. I re-tighten maybe once a day with GG"s.

That said, I do have some BD flick locks for winter use. I wanted a burlier pole for winter--b/c lets face it...we tend to fall a lot more in winter due to ice etc. Also, I didn't want to deal with twist-locking my poles in the winter because handling freezing cold poles sucks.

Edited by Konrad1013 on 04/30/2011 22:41:49 MDT.

My travels frequently take me into fast paced hopping through talus type terrain. That said, I'm light on my feet and only use the poles for balance (they aren't taking too much weight), but are they going to snap off at the ends if they're banged against a rock?

I have a pair on gear swap right now. I'm looking to trade for some good, light three section poles if anyone is interested.

Rog, check your private messages.

Edited by jsj42 on 05/01/2011 01:10:26 MDT.

Replied

I swung by ADZPCTKO yesterday and had a look at the GG LT4's. When I first saw them and tried them out I couldn't figure out the locking mechanism. Once I was shown how to properly lock them I was convinced that these would be my next pair of poles. I put all my weight on them and they didn't slip.
In a way, I regret checking them out as I'm now ruined on my old Komperdells.

"but are they going to snap off at the ends if they're banged against a rock?"

Not in my experience. I used them last year on the Teton Crest trip, and banged them against plenty of rocks. They'll break, of course, if you get them wedged between rocks and you keep on going.

I, and others, use a very light grip on the poles. If they wedge, they come out of my hand. No snapping. I've had my pair for a couple of years with no issues.

When Gossamer Gear puts a flick lock on their LT4's...

They won't be Gossamer Gear poles anymore, they'll be Black Diamonds, or whatever garden variety pole is out there nowadays. They also won't be 3.6oz. per pole.

I keep the baskets on so they don't get wedged to far down in a rock crevices.
I did have one snap off while I was climbing over a log. I as not sure what I did but assumed that it was my fault. I called GG and they asked if it was a clean break which it was. they said it was a defect and sent one out for free right away.