Trekking poles, like any good piece of gear,
requires some regular care and maintenance.
If you’ve been a long time users of internal
lock trekking poles you probably know that
every once in a while your trekking pole may
stick or not lock in.
It’s not typically a big problem and it’s
something you can fix in a few easy steps.
So let’s walk through them now.
It’s good to understand what’s going on
inside your trekking poles so that you understand
what you’re fixing or what the issue is.
So, an internal locking trekking pole, very
much like this one, has a mechanism on the
inside.
This mechanism, which we see right here in
blue, um, basically expands out to put pressure
on the inside of the pole wall.
What this does is locks the pole in place
and keeps it from sliding.
If your trekking pole is not locking in as
you turn it, the easiest thing to do first
off is to pull the section that isn’t locking
all the way out.
You’ll see a stop mark on many of the brands
and you’ll just need to go, just a little
bit beyond that.
What you’re doing is pulling the locking
mechanism down to the thinnest part of the
pole.
That way the locking mechanism is making as
much contact with the pole wall as possible.
From there you can start to turn your pole,
just like you were locking it in.
You’re going to feel it start to tighten
up and you can simply back your pole off and
lock it in where you want to.
In very, very rare cases, if your pole doesn’t
lock in from there, you might have some debris
or dirt caught in the pole.
In those very rare instances, the easiest
thing to do is actually separate the two parts
of the trekking pole.
When your pole sections are apart ad you want
to clean the locking mechanisms you can simply
either, take them apart, you can then clean
the threads at the top of the post with a
damp paper towel.
Also clean the locking mechanism and reassemble.
No matter what your locking mechanism it’s
important to remember to never lubricate the
inside locking mechanism.
This will only cause, basically slippage inside
the pole.
This is a Komperdell locking mechanism called
the Duo Lock.
This one as well; you can clean the outside
contact pads just with a damp paper towel,
clean any dirt and debris.
And finally a more captive lock, one that
won’t slide right off the top.
Ah, this one can be cleaned on the outside
with a damp paper towel.
Backcountry Edge stocks a number of these
pieces and some of them we need to go back
to the manufacturer for.
Either way we can always try to help you get
your trekking poles back up and running.
These couple simple tips will help keep you
on the trail with your internal locking trekking
poles functioning the way that they should.
