[matt]

now here is my story, i allways used a unger ali 3 X 2 M telescopic pole for years ( or cleantechs own brand ali pole ) it lasted years

i then went down the Fishing pole modular road, the RT Zensorflex


h ttp://wfpole.110mb.com/

OR

h ttp://wfpole2.110mb.com

that was about 9 months ago, the pole is so light its unreal, people have contacted me on the DIY forum and have said it add's £20 to the days earnings

now my round is i guess a average type of round, its very well compact but nothing out of the ordinary, the unger 3  X 2M and the RT does all the work aparts from a glass roof and a few commercail jobs, i use the unger 3 X 3 M for them ( its a bit whippy BUT the man hours its used, its fine )

so i jumped at the chance of trying the SLX and the new superlight brush

my honest opinion, which im sure most will disagree with if you have brought it

its heavy, its not far off the weight of the unger ali 3 X 2 M pole with my lightened Vikan on ( its reallt not, if you have tried them both side by side, you would be able to tell which is heavier, but its not by much ), its alot heavier than the RT zensorflex with my lightened Vikan on, i understand it wil go higher than them, but i have ZERO need for that for a everyday domestic pole, i understand it will outlast the RT Zensorflex ( but at 21 quid, its not going to last, mine is 9 months old now )

if i was looking for a lightweight pole for everyday domestic use, then the SLX would really disappoint me ( it would be too heavy ), sorry alex, just some honest feedback, i guess ive been spoilt by the weight of the RT

let the flaming begin

[alanwilson]

bang bang

you're dead

[Alex Gardiner]

I completely agree Matt, that the SL-X is too heavy.  It is the lightest 25ft telescopic pole on the market but when compared to seriously light poles (like the SL2) it is heavy which is why there is such a demand for the Super-Lite and similar.

Today myself and my workmate cleaned 180 apartments.  I used the SL2 at 35ft-45ft wherever possible as it really is light but for large areas of the work a telescopic was needed and I would then switch to the SL-X which although heavier was far more convenient and as a result I could work faster.  For me, both poles are needed, one doesn't replace the other.

The good thing about the SL-X though, that whilst being light enough for the majority of users on ground floor work, it will very easily reach third storey work.  This puts it in a class of its own if you really need to reach third storey work on a regular basis.

I'd love to make the SL-X lighter and I'm constantly looking at ways of achieving this!

[Wayne Thomas]

Alex Gardiner

I need a replacement No 4 & No 5 section for my SL-2. I'd used it for 30 mins from brand new. Tried to take 2 sections off and they were jammed in solid. I had 2 strong men, one on either pole section trying to pull it apart whilst I was trying to twist it. It got well and truly crushed in the attempt to try and remove no 5 section out of no.4.
My honest opinion of this new pole compared to the SL-1 (maver fishing pole).....Not impressed one little bit. It's very similar to the last version, can't see much extra strength in the new pole, same thickness and just the same problems with sections jamming in too far.
Would I buy another one....not likely, I'll be sticking to telescopic poles again, maybe they're heavier but they're much more practical to work with and built to last in comparison to a leightweight modular pole.
Now I'm stuck with a pole that is unusable until I can get 2 replacement sections to complete the pole.

[NWH]

Alex Gardiner

I need a replacement No 4 & No 5 section for my SL-2. I'd used it for 30 mins from brand new. Tried to take 2 sections off and they were jammed in solid. I had 2 strong men, one on either pole section trying to pull it apart whilst I was trying to twist it. It got well and truly crushed in the attempt to try and remove no 5 section out of no.4.
My honest opinion of this new pole compared to the SL-1 (maver fishing pole).....Not impressed one little bit. It's very similar to the last version, can't see much extra strength in the new pole, same thickness and just the same problems with sections jamming in too far.
Would I buy another one....not likely, I'll be sticking to telescopic poles again, maybe they're heavier but they're much more practical to work with and built to last in comparison to a ligthweight modular pole.
Now I'm stuck with a pole that is unusable until I can get 2 replacement sections to complete the pole.

All i can say Wayne is that you were very unlucky,don`t do what i did and get rid of it give it another go.I have never had this problem with sections jamming on mine and i find that i hardly ever need to spray the sections either,the best way to separate them is to hold them with both hands over the join and get someone else to do the same.1 person twists and the other person just holds the other and stops it from twisting and it comes out easily but like i say i`ve never had this trouble with the new pole only the old 1.

[Wayne Thomas]

NWH, I spent Saturday in pain because my arthritus flared up as a result of struggling to remove a jammed section with the SL-2. Made myself look a right prat whilst window cleaning trying to remove the sections with helpers at hand to assist in the centre of a busy town with many onlookers. Spent Sunday asleep most of the time because of the pain killers to deal with the arthritic flare up. I'd rather use a heavier telsescopic pole that is 100% reliable than an unpredictable modular pole which is nice and light but has a high price to pay when it jams.

[Alex Gardiner]

Alex Gardiner

I need a replacement No 4 & No 5 section for my SL-2. I'd used it for 30 mins from brand new. Tried to take 2 sections off and they were jammed in solid. I had 2 strong men, one on either pole section trying to pull it apart whilst I was trying to twist it. It got well and truly crushed in the attempt to try and remove no 5 section out of no.4.
My honest opinion of this new pole compared to the SL-1 (maver fishing pole).....Not impressed one little bit. It's very similar to the last version, can't see much extra strength in the new pole, same thickness and just the same problems with sections jamming in too far.
Would I buy another one....not likely, I'll be sticking to telescopic poles again, maybe they're heavier but they're much more practical to work with and built to last in comparison to a leightweight modular pole.
Now I'm stuck with a pole that is unusable until I can get 2 replacement sections to complete the pole.

I'll give you a ring from the Office tomorrow Wayne, I'm sure we can get the pole sorted for you.  It sounds like there must be a fault as this not a common problem.

I have been working with a new substance today which we are using on the joints of the Super-Lite.  So far, this new product seems to work completely.  It allows the joints to tighten stiff enough to use but prevents them from becoming over tight.  As soon as we've finished our trial, it will probably become standard on the Super-Lite kit.

[Wayne Thomas]

On my SL-1 I use to put a velcro strip just below the joint where one pole inserted into the one above to prevent the pole from jamming together which worked very successfully.
I didn't do that to my new SL-2 because I trusted the PTFE spray instead.
In my opinion what you need is a ribbed lip built into each pole section just below the level at which each pole section sits loose but securely into the one above to have the same effect. Wouldn't need to spray the pole once a month with PTFE and no chance of ever jamming two sections together as it would be impossible even if any SL-2 pole user was heavy handed and didn't realise their own strength.

[ftp]

Couple of turns of insulation tape do the trick. Can't have anything permanent 'cos the joint needs to compensate for wear and gradually sits lower. If you jolt the pole on the ground they tend to jam.
Rubber gloves or freezer gloves are good for untwisting sections - plenty of grip without the need to crush the pole. 

[Wayne Thomas]

Tried them as per the instructions that came with the pole. Hi visabilty bright yellow marigolds The pole sections are U/S now so it makes no odds.
What's irreplacable was the embarassment the situation caused me, the wasted time and the onstart of my arthritic flare up which you can't put a price on. 
I have tried most poles going, most brushes going, hot and cold wfp, I've tried many things you wouldn't even consider thinking to make my working life easier. If you had chronic arthitus and wanted to keep your independance by being able to work, you'd probably do the same as me.
I was so looking forward to using my really lightweight pole on Friday on suitable high work and again today (Monday) to give my hands a break from heavier poles but it seems like I am cursed with these modular poles. Alex thrives on customer feed back to improve the products he sells which I congratulate him on and his customer service is very good which I can't fault him on where as I could with some other suppliers.
Alex, I'm out all day tomorrow, could you leave me an email instead (easycleanwayne@msn.com) regarding the replacement sections (4 & 5)

[Jeff Brimble]

While your waiting for the new sections Wayne, tape the joints of the rest. Its simple and works and can be re-located as the pole wears slightly. I and others sympathise with you and well understand the "hot cast iron" wrist feeling. Mine got better after 6 days, hope yours do.
Smithys and other fishermen have some similar substance that Alex is refering to and it does work but not as well as my tape trick.

The two manuf. current poles need to go through a third generation fix to solve one or two problems but as no one has asked me what needs doing I aint volounteering.

After nearly 4 years in October I am still using  my £250 F16 

[Paul Coleman]

now here is my story, i allways used a unger ali 3 X 2 M telescopic pole for years ( or cleantechs own brand ali pole ) it lasted years

i then went down the Fishing pole modular road, the RT Zensorflex


h ttp://wfpole.110mb.com/

OR

h ttp://wfpole2.110mb.com

that was about 9 months ago, the pole is so light its unreal, people have contacted me on the DIY forum and have said it add's £20 to the days earnings

now my round is i guess a average type of round, its very well compact but nothing out of the ordinary, the unger 3  X 2M and the RT does all the work aparts from a glass roof and a few commercail jobs, i use the unger 3 X 3 M for them ( its a bit whippy BUT the man hours its used, its fine )

so i jumped at the chance of trying the SLX and the new superlight brush

my honest opinion, which im sure most will disagree with if you have brought it

its heavy, its not far off the weight of the unger ali 3 X 2 M pole with my lightened Vikan on ( its reallt not, if you have tried them both side by side, you would be able to tell which is heavier, but its not by much ), its alot heavier than the RT zensorflex with my lightened Vikan on, i understand it wil go higher than them, but i have ZERO need for that for a everyday domestic pole, i understand it will outlast the RT Zensorflex ( but at 21 quid, its not going to last, mine is 9 months old now )

if i was looking for a lightweight pole for everyday domestic use, then the SLX would really disappoint me ( it would be too heavy ), sorry alex, just some honest feedback, i guess ive been spoilt by the weight of the RT

let the flaming begin

I'm surprised to read this but I suppose it depends what you've been using previously.  I started with an ali pole, moved on to glass, then recently got an SLX.  So, to me, it's amazingly light.  I have used an Unger pole before for awkward trad work (and I still use it on the odd job).  One of the things that would put me off using it all the time would be that it is better to extend it from the fatter sections first so it would often be better to lower the pole to change the length.
No flaming from me as a lot of it depends what you've been using before.

[Paul Coleman]

Alex Gardiner

I need a replacement No 4 & No 5 section for my SL-2. I'd used it for 30 mins from brand new. Tried to take 2 sections off and they were jammed in solid. I had 2 strong men, one on either pole section trying to pull it apart whilst I was trying to twist it. It got well and truly crushed in the attempt to try and remove no 5 section out of no.4.
My honest opinion of this new pole compared to the SL-1 (maver fishing pole).....Not impressed one little bit. It's very similar to the last version, can't see much extra strength in the new pole, same thickness and just the same problems with sections jamming in too far.
Would I buy another one....not likely, I'll be sticking to telescopic poles again, maybe they're heavier but they're much more practical to work with and built to last in comparison to a leightweight modular pole.
Now I'm stuck with a pole that is unusable until I can get 2 replacement sections to complete the pole.

I had this problem some months back with nos 3 and 4 sections.  I did get them apart eventually but I needed to spray WD40 in there several times during the day (on Alex's advice) and then enlist someone's help.  My initial attempts before doing this were abortive.  The key to it was turning the sections clockwise (with the weave) while pulling apart.  Unfortunately, the section ends did sustain some damage but are quite usable.  Next time I do a lrge job with this pole, I will be pulling it apart at natural breaks in the work and re-applying the PTFE spray.  I will allow it to dry while doing the lower work with a telescopic pole.
I much prefer telescopic too.

[ftp]

I've driven home with jammed sections on the roofrack before and had to soak another make in WD40 overnight and still struggled to get it apart. I won't use a pole without the wrap of tape anymore - for me it's just not worth the risk. Wet pole sections are also prone to jamming. It's a design problem that sometimes pops up with the taper fit modulars, but overall the SL2 is a superb pole.

Funny how the thread has changed poles.