tentpole = probe

[Alpine_Butterfly]

HI y'all, this is my first post but i've been reading for a long time. so here is my question. i am kind of new to the back country thing and it seems like an avalance probe is pretty much just a fancy tent pole. So to save a few bucvks, would it be okay to substiute? thanks

 

AB

[Gary_Yngve]

A tentpole would not work well as a probe. The probe is designed to have less flex and not to pull apart on extraction.

[Alpinfox]

The flex wouldn't be a big deal, but yeah, the tent pole would get stuck and pull apart at the joints when you tried to pull it out.

 

Maybe you could duct tape the joints together? Might work in soft snow for crevasse probing or something. Probably not in avalanche debris.

 

 

[ashw_justin]

Yeah the probe is stronger, and obviously doesn't pull apart. But feel free to waste some time trying to make it work, when someone's life doesn't depend on it.

[Gary_Yngve]

The flex wouldn't be a big deal, but yeah, the tent pole would get stuck and pull apart at the joints when you tried to pull it out.

 

Maybe you could duct tape the joints together?

 

Hmm...

 

I'd be worried about trying to bust through a hard ice layer and the darn pole just flexes instead of punches through.

[mattp]

It would be nice if you could carry dual-use items instead of a specialty product that only performs one function, but unfortunately they just don't work. Fairly common is a pair of ski poles that converts to a probe, but I believe these don't really work all that well, either. I haven't actually tried to use my probe poles in quickly hardening avalance debris, but I'm told that the fact that they taper away from the middle renders them much less effective and I have a hard time believing this would not be the case. The probe poles work fairly well for a tent pole for something like a Megamid, though (mine did break in a windstorm in the enchantments once).

 

If you want a probe, you're going to have to get something made for that purpose.

 

Meanwhile, maybe they should make the avalanche beacons also function as an Ipod.

[dt_3pin]

So to save a few bucvks, would it be okay to substiute?

 

prolly not a good way to save bucks . . . probes are relatively inexpensive. If you've already spent 3 bills on a beacon, why be cheap? you're friends will appreciate a real probe and a real shovel.

Edited January 14, 2006 by dt_3pin

[Double_E]

Tentpole idea doesn't sound good AT ALL to me, cuz of them coming apart when you pull on them. As for probe-poles, I've been meaning to ask people's thoughts on, or do a search on, CC/TAY about this. I have em and think they're just fine.

 

Some say they take longer to assemble than a real probe ....... I've always thought the opposite; would be very interested to test sometime.

 

Some say the taper makes them harder to use than a real probe .... again, am skeptical and would like to test.

 

Some say they aren't good cuz the probe you make isn't as long.... now this one I can sort of understand. But.... if they're buried more than SIX FEET .... it's probably gonna take so damn long to dig them out that it's doubtful whether they'll live anyway.

 

 

 

 

 

Another thing I'm wondering how people feel about....

 

In the gear list in my copy of FOTH (6th ed., 1997) it actually calls the probe something that can potentially be shared by group. I don't think that's totally wise, but I've heard a lot of people say that, in a group of like 4 or more, it's OK to have only 1 probe per 2 people in the group. Reasons:

 

(1) in many avalanches, the victim's only buried by 1-2 feet;

(2) single-victim burials are way more common than multi-victim burials;

(3) I forget reason #3, but I remember it sounding good.

(4) ditto to #3

 

(I haven't seen actual stats to back this shit up, this is just what I've heard people say.)

 

I mean, in theory,... if the Mounties think it's safe it's GOTTA be safe right?

[larrythellama]

The flex wouldn't be a big deal, but yeah, the tent pole would get stuck and pull apart at the joints when you tried to pull it out.

 

Maybe you could duct tape the joints together? Might work in soft snow for crevasse probing or something. Probably not in avalanche debris.

 

 

scary ignant answer.

[Alpinfox]

The flex wouldn't be a big deal, but yeah, the tent pole would get stuck and pull apart at the joints when you tried to pull it out.

 

Maybe you could duct tape the joints together? Might work in soft snow for crevasse probing or something. Probably not in avalanche debris.

 

 

scary ignant answer.

 

well it would probably work better than a ski pole with the basket removed which is what I always used when I lived in Alaska.

 

Why don't you share your great bucketloads of wisdom with us Llama? You do a lot of probing for crevasses there in the Sierra smartass?

 

[larrythellama]

seems to me that buddy is talking about b/c skiing and not probing for crevasses...ever waded thru any avy debris, real firm. we could talk about as an avy accelerates it heats the snow crystals with friction and then as it slows and stops refreezes and bonds real well creating a real firm condition. in the sierra we call them bergschrunds.

[EWolfe]

One could drill a small hole at the pole joints, and use baling wire to secure the joints. You would probably have to do a bit of filing to regain smooth operation.

 

Duct tap and cold

Edited January 15, 2006 by MisterE

[Figger_Eight]

Poking for crevasses is one thing, but completely inadequate for as a search tool. You might be hard pressed to find partners who would be happy knowing you would have to duct tape your tent pole together before you started looking for them if they get buried.

 

I figure a lot of these questions can be answered by putting yourself in your partners shoes. 4 people and 1 probe...? I wouldn't want to be the unlucky guy who's carrying the probe and gets buried

[catbirdseat]

One could drill a small hole at the pole joints, and use baling wire to secure the joints. You would probably have to do a bit of filing to regain smooth operation.

 

Duct tap and cold

If you really wanted to you could replace the elastic in your tent poles with Kevlar cord. You'd have to figure out a way to tension the cord after you've put the poles together so they stay tightly together. Some sort of clamp would be required. Simpler to just buy one ready made, IMHO.

[crazy_t]

Buy a real probe. Your friends will be glad you did. No way a modified tent pole would cut it.

 

It's part of your basic responsibility as a member of a backcountry group to have a probe, shovel, and beacon all in good working order and to know how to use them, and efficiently. That's all there is to it.

[allsetcobrajet]

I agree with crazy_t on this one. It's a basic responsibility to have the right gear and know how to use it. The probe is not something that is just there to show the ski patrol when you leave the access gates at Baker. It's intended use is as a potentially life-saving tool.

[cj001f]

There's no fucking way a tent pole would make a good avalanche probe - borrow a good probe and test it in the snow. Compare and contrast design vs. tent pole

 

 

On the other hand, I've turned an old CF probe into a decent pair of light tent poles for my betamid

[jmace]

I have the skii pole probe, it sucks, too much time pulling off the basket and the handle then screwing it all together. Lost a million baskets and now one of them wont come off after I smashed it on. Now I have shitty poles and a shitty probe.

[philfort]

if they're buried more than SIX FEET .... it's probably gonna take so damn long to dig them out that it's doubtful whether they'll live anyway.

 

I bet this guy was happy his buddies had a real probe.

[marylou]

Damn! That's a testament to not skimping on safety gear!