DAC tent pole spares

[Sweep]

Ok, first, I don't have a tent with DAC poles but may end up with one.

I understand that they are very good poles and am not questioning this.

But a casual search for spare sections the other day seemed to show that, if available (and I came across a few desperate sounding folk having trouble getting spares for their tents, even from the tent manufacturer) they might cost about a tenner a section and have to be posted from abroad.

One thing from my search seemed pretty clear, you would be unlikely to be able to source a spare section on tour so would have to use a splint and tape for the rest of the tour.

Over to you knowledgeable folk ...

[PH]

As said before, I wouldn't waste me precious holiday time trying to source the perfect replacement when a repair is a perfectly adequate way of continuing. In the unlikely event that a repair isn't possible, maybe a dinosaur stood on the tent, the replacement pole would need to be similar to the original, it would have to be about the right length, and about the right diameter to fit through any sleeves and for any clips to fit, but there would be no requirement for it to be made out of the specific material as the original.
It's no different to any other component choices I make to tour with, tyres for example. Would you restrict your choice based on availability of the exact replacements in the event of a failure? A far more likely occurrence IMO.

[tatanab]

All my DAC poled tents have come with a spare section as well as a shorter oversized sleeve. If your tent does not have a section perhaps you can find one, or something suitable from https://shop.georgefisher.co.uk/c/1731/ ... a:919&x=ca

[pjclinch]

Wot tatanab and PH sed...

But if you must have a spare section, Scottish Mountain Gear are probably worth getting in touch with.

Pete.

[pete75]

Best place I've found is here https://www.extremtextil.de/en/tent-poles.html . All sections appear to be 3.90 Euros be they 8, 9 or 10.25 mm diameter. If repolling they do the correct ends as well.

[Sweep]

Best place I've found is here https://www.extremtextil.de/en/tent-poles.html . All sections appear to be 3.90 Euros be they 8, 9 or 10.25 mm diameter. If repolling they do the correct ends as well.

thanks for that reply Pete - I came across my question and your reply in google searching the question I had posted all that time ago. For those of us with goldfish minds I do find that this happens a fair bit.

and found this on their site under "delivery".

"GREAT BRITAIN: Since Great Britain is not part of the EU we are currently only able to ship to GB if the invoice amount is higher than 160€ due to customs regulations that our systems can't apply. All customs fees are paid by the customer. Sorry for any inconvenience."

I have since actually acquired two tents with Dac poles

Snugpak Ionosphere

and

Snugpak Scorpion 2

The poles look excellent and maybe won't fail within my lifetime but the question still remains.

Maybe should contact Snugpak.

I stress that all I need, potentially, is spare pole sections, not a repair service - even non techie non practical me is capable of doing a fix myself.

Both of my Snugpak DAC-poled tents came with a repair/bodge sleeve but no spare pole sections.

I did note that my usual repair sleeves, for 8.5mm poles (typically used by Vango) didn't fit - I think the DAC poles may be 9mm - and they definitely bulge, reassuringly so, at the pole section ends.

So am pretty sure that common 8.5mm pole sections won't actually fit.

edit - a bit more online research seems to indicate that Hilleberg uses 9mm poles, so maybe their bits, easily available in the UK I think, may fit.

https://ultralightoutdoorgear.co.uk/9mm ... ir-sleeve/

[pete75]

Best place I've found is here https://www.extremtextil.de/en/tent-poles.html . All sections appear to be 3.90 Euros be they 8, 9 or 10.25 mm diameter. If repolling they do the correct ends as well.

thanks for that reply Pete - I came across my question and your reply in google searching the question I had posted all that time ago. For those of us with goldfish minds I do find that this happens a fair bit.

and found this on their site under "delivery".

"GREAT BRITAIN: Since Great Britain is not part of the EU we are currently only able to ship to GB if the invoice amount is higher than 160€ due to customs regulations that our systems can't apply. All customs fees are paid by the customer. Sorry for any inconvenience."

It's because of VAT rules post leaving the EU. The retailer is meant to register for British VAT and charge it on goods under about £135. Obviously a lot of bother if they don't do much retail business in Britain.

Scottish Mountain Gear probably sell DAC poles. They're the official Hilleberg repair centre for the UK.

[Sweep]

It's because of VAT rules post leaving the EU. The retailer is meant to register for British VAT and charge it on goods under about £135. Obviously a lot of bother if they don't do much retail business in Britain.

yes, and have just spotted that the ultralight UK outfit I listed says:

(Unfortunately, we are unable to ship Hilleberg products outside the UK)

[RobinS]

I wouldn't worry - our experience:

In 2018 we toured Europe for three months with a Berghaus Peak aluminium poled tunnel tent. Four weeks in, we were down near the Mediteranean in France when one pole section split at the joint. We repaired it with the supplied pole sleeve. A couple of days later the repair split. We found a Decathlon and bought a generic spare pole set in the same diameter, and by juggling different sections got a satisfactory pole sorted. During the rest of the tour a couple more sections of the originals failed, but we just used more of the spare sections, so the tent lasted all the way home. Back home I contacted the supplier, and as the splitting poles had damaged the tent fabric (which I had also repaired with tent repair tape) I got a full refund.
Nowadays we tour with an F10 Xenon 2+, and as well as the sleeve repair carry just one spare section, though this tent has been faultless over several tours.

[Sweep]

I wouldn't worry - our experience:

In 2018 we toured Europe for three months with a Berghaus Peak aluminium poled tunnel tent. Four weeks in, we were down near the Mediteranean in France when one pole section split at the joint. We repaired it with the supplied pole sleeve. A couple of days later the repair split. We found a Decathlon and bought a generic spare pole set in the same diameter, and by juggling different sections got a satisfactory pole sorted. During the rest of the tour a couple more sections of the originals failed, but we just used more of the spare sections, so the tent lasted all the way home. Back home I contacted the supplier, and as the splitting poles had damaged the tent fabric (which I had also repaired with tent repair tape) I got a full refund.
Nowadays we tour with an F10 Xenon 2+, and as well as the sleeve repair carry just one spare section, though this tent has been faultless over several tours.

Those poles on your berghaus more standard though?
I too wouldn't worry about getting spares for 8.5mm - as used a lot by Vango and others.
Am confident that these dac poles are significantly superior to standard ally crimp-ended 8.5mm poles but i like to be prepared.

[RobinS]

Being prepared mentally is good - but you can't be prepared in terms of kit, tools, and spares for every eventuality - you have to sort it on the fly. On our multi-month tours we have had several issues, apart from the tent poles that could be regarded as serious. In southern France my rear wheel started breaking up - I got a replacement swiped from a hybrid at Decathlon Montelimar that lasted the next two months touring. I had a gear cable break, right in the brifter (so even if I had a spare I couldn't have fitted it) - again a 25k ride as a three-speed to a Decathlon in Besancon and two people with all sorts of prooger tools sorted it. The wife had her rear wheel start to disintegrate as we crossed from the Czech Republic into the former East Germany, again a visit to "Fahrrad XXL" in Dresden sorted it. You can fix, or bodge, or get fixed all sorts of stuff on the road.