how to shorten Scott ski poles?

Earlier I saw a thread on shortening Leki poles but my wife's Scott poles are simply too long and need to be shortened. Anyone have any info on how to do this without butchering the pole and grip? I can't see any obvious way to remove the grip. Thanks, skidoc

If they are aluminum, try spraying windex or similar glass cleaner into the grip bottom. If you have a general metal or woodworking vise, crank it down 'til it catches the bottom edge of the grip and pull on the pole. Sometimes the windex works well enough, you can twist the grip off. Give the cleaner a few seconds to seep in. I suppose you could try liquid dishsoap, though diluting it would work better.

John J, thanks for the info, I'll get on it and try it out! skidoc

Hi SkiDoc--

To get the grips off, try to find something solid with a notch that fits the pole shaft. A good, strong door will do it--stand on the side of the doorway where it opens AWAY from you, close the door gently on the pole shaft with the grip on the other side, and pull hard. It will come off.

To cut the pole, a small pipe/tubing cutter is ideal, although you could do it with a hacksaw. File or sand the edges smooth, shove the grip back on, and you're set.

I suggest shortening it in small increments. You can always make it shorter, but if you go too far, you can't make it longer!

Best regards,
Bob Barnes

I usually do exactly what Bob suggests to get them off but first I put them in a crock pot of boiling water for a while. This breaks down any glue that may have been used and expands the rubber grip for a looser fit. Less muscle involved this way. I also use a little contact cement when I put them back on just to be sure. It holds them on and breaks down easy with the hot water again.

Hey All the best way to remove pole grips is to submerge the grip in boiling water for about 10 seconds to heat & expand the grip, then pull against something solid like a good door & they will come off easily, then do as bob b says & like home depot says measure twice cut once, reverse this process to reinstall, doing this puts less wear & tear on the poles & grips.
good luck bteddy

The only thing I would add to this is to first remove the screw from the top of the grip that goes into a plug inside the pole, otherwise you might pull it right through the top of the grip if the plug is tighter than the grip. That's if there even is a screw. Then deal with the plug once the grip is off. Refer to the Leki thread for this.
DH

Depends on the type of pole, aluminum or composite.

Aluminum- simply stand at an open door, raise the grip well above the top of the door, with the pole lightly touching the door itself. Sharply pull down on the shaft, and voila', the grip is off. As DH has suggested, remove the screw holding the strap on. This is only applicable witht the WC poles.
As far as cutting it, I would strongly suggest using the tubing cutter (ace hardware, $2-3) It will save you must grief about getting the grip back on easily.

Composite- some grips can be removed as above, but some need to be heated. A heat gun (gently) or hot water will do.

Cutting- wrap duct tape around it at the cutting point. Gently, in a revolving stroke, use a hack saw to score the cut through the tape. Once the initial scoring is complete, continue revolving the shaft as the cut deepens. Do not try to cut all the way through in one spot before turning. It will cause splintering of the composite material. By the way- that's why the tape is applied- to reduce the splintering.

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[ January 19, 2003, 03:41 PM: Message edited by: vail snopro ]

Thanks to all of you for the helpful info! I must admit my first attempts with the windex failed but I'll try again with the hot water and door technique. skidoc

My husband has a new pair of Scott poles. We were trying to twist the grips off and it turns out there's a notch inside so they don't twist. Just pulling straight (one of us holding the grip and the other holding the pole) until it got past that notch did the trick. Then they twisted right off.

If I were you I'd hold the grip end and let your husband get stuck with the sharp tip.

Success! Hot water for ten minutes, wedge in the door and voila! Thankyou again for the valuable advice. Saved me time, money and damage to my condo or my hands! skidoc

I was really surprised that my search for 'shorten poles' in the gear section yielded such a wealth of information. I had been unhappy with the length of my poles (54" and I am 6'3"), especially on steeper terrain and off-piste so rather than buying a new pair I decided I would shorten my current poles. I though I should see if epicski has some information on the subject before I possibly render my poles useless, and voila! I first tried to pull the handles out using a vise just to make sure that it was indeed as difficult as people here implied it was. Then I heated them up (didn't try the Windex approach, since it seems that it would take a while before it makes its way into the handle) in boiling water for around a minute, and then easily slid them out on the door. After sawing off ~2 inches, I had problems putting the handles back on, but a little more reheating expanded them, and it was easy to put them back on. No need for glue or cement, since as soon as they cooled off I was unable to pull them out by hand, which should be strong enough. The whole process took less than 30 mins including waiting for water to boil. THanks for all the information.