Life-Link Alpine Extreme Composite probe poles

[lagunabackcountry]

im thinkin of buying these as i'd love to hav a light pole that doubles as a probe....

anyone here have these.......if so what are the pros/cons.... and woud you recommend me getting them for backcountry/resort use

any suggestions would be great..

[Hutch]

pros are they are nice and light.

cons are that they make a really fucking short probe.

none of my friends would ski with someone that had this as their only probe.

[flip]

ignore any probe capabilities of anything but an actual probe. I don't care how much weight you save, you should not be dis-assembling and re-assembling shit when your buddy is buried.

[lagunabackcountry]

which probe would you recommend getting?

[Skid Lux]

The probe is a pain in the ass to put together.

[rungsp]

I've got some.
Real nice pole...but emergency probe only.
Yeah..I know...all probes are emergency only....BUT YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN!

2.5 metre probe is not much different to standard.
Have a few practise goes and it really doesn't take long at all.

As a pole swing weight/balance is good, only downside is they are just a bit too stealable.

The replacement tips are cool though...I've broken mine a couple of times and it really is the work of a minute to put a new one on.

[snoboy]

Awesome poles. I am buying my second pair, as I just broke one of my originals... but they were at least 11 years old, and I have never babyed them. I got 1/2 the pole stuck in a rock crack as I skied by. I have fallen on them, whacked lots of branches with them, cleaned rope lines & bamboo, etc...

I like the fact that I have a spare probe when I am using them. If you had to use a pole/probe then I would think that this is the only one that would even come close to working at all.

Get the flex tip version, occasionaly they will snap, but they are easy to replace.

[flip]

which probe would you recommend getting?

I'm pretty indifferent as long as it's a dedicated probe. The ones I've seen do the trick... BCA, Black Diamond. I'm sure Life-Links are good too. Get one at least 240cm (and preferably 280cm).

The poles are probably really good. I'm on the Komperdell carbon probe poles and they're a fine ski pole (I'd be on the BDs, but got these for $35 at STP in Reno), but I have never treated them like a probe even if technically they can be assembled into one.

[fez]

con: a few years back a guy skiing on teton pass snapped one and shoved it through his femoral artery in a beater. bled out before his friends could even get to him.

[Spats]

Another problem with probe poles: if you and your partner are both taken for a ride, but you are only partially buried and have to dig your partner out, what are the odds that you still have both your poles?