UKC

My Leki Microvario Carbon poles, after limited use, are apparently irreparable (a combination of the stuck/collapsing button, and internal cord wear reported commonly on the web; so clearly a design flaw).  

Leki are not minded to replace, which is very disappointing given they were a premium product at a premium price.

Thus if you get no support buying top end, I may as well go cheap.

Are the decathlon poles any good; do they last?

What other short pack length & light poles do people recommend?

I have a pair of the decathlon ones (foldable type) since August and have no complaints so far for weekend walking in bogs.  I am new to poles so can't compare to the premium models.  They seem light enough and sturdy so far.  

Alpkit do a decent pair of lightweight compact poles:

https://alpkit.com/collections/walking-poles

I have a pair of the aluminium ones, and my wife has the slightly lighter carbon ones, and we are both happy with them. The difference in weight is negligible in the grand scheme of things. 

Annoyingly, they seem to be sold out ....

Yes, great whilst they last... which they don't.

Absolutely dreadful design by Leki - they could have relatively easily made it possible to disassemble them and replace individual parts.

Had one break and got a replacement (split a pair with someone else in the same position) however my other original pole now has a tendency to collapse... 

Not entirely sure about what to replace them with though. 

I've a pair from Decathlon which are very similar, & possibly the same, as https://www.decathlon.fr/p/1-baton-reglage-rapide-et-precis-de-randonnee-mt...

I found them in a car park, asked around the village & no one seemed to own them so I've kept them as a spare pair (they live in the boot of the car 'just in case'). They've been used for walking & some downhill skiing & seem fine. Not sure they are as robust as my Black Diamond adjustable poles but much cheaper.

I bought a pair of the Decathlon twist-lock, carbon-fibre(?) walking poles about 8 years ago and whilst they don't get a lot of regular use, they've lasted well and are nice and light compared to their heavier, budget version. (I actually bought them in their Valencia store as I hadn't seen them in my local one.)

I had a pair of the Black Diamond carbon poles which were excellent and did not break after a few years of ownership. They do look very fragile though so I may have just been lucky

And someone was recommending Harrier poles recently:

https://harrierrunfree.co.uk/collections/poles

I got some Fizan aluminium ones when I needed adjustable ones to pitch my trekking tent, pleased with them. 

Had BD carbon fixed length but irreparable when the string broke, very disappointed and BD shrugged their shoulders.

Mountain King

https://mountainking.co.uk/

I have many poles for a variety of uses, however the Terra Nova Trail Elite is the one I use the most.

I've had them for a few years now and the only problem was one of the pins got stuck - this was my fault for packing the pole away wet after walking through brackish water. A drop opf oil soon sorted that out.

https://hillanddaleoutdoors.co.uk/products/terra-nova-trail-elite-trekking-...

Aye check out Harrier. About half the price of Leki/BD, Peak District based, really well made adjustable Z-lock poles. I have the aluminium ones which have been ace, but they do a lighter carbon one too. 
 

Had never heard of them before I saw them recommended on here, and having had them out on the hill about 10 times now I wouldn’t fork out for the better known brands again.

Been using Fizan Compacts for years and they are excellent, light and resilient, been using the same set for over 15 years without a problem.

This happened with me and same response from Leki.

However, there is a spring/cord combination running through the length of the pole that has likely become twisted.

You need to untwist this by rotating the section nearest the tip.  You will notice when you try and break them down that there is either more movement or less movementm after twisting/rotating the lower section.  Evenetually you will hit the sweet spot and they should work again.

Hope this helps.

We have a pair of Black Diamond ali fl distance (lots of words) model. The main thing I liked was they are easy to get parts for if you trash them. Perhaps it is the same for other brands but after breaking 2 poles, we were able to get spares quite easily from Needlesports.