[mufcglen]

Snapped another section on my 16-17 month old xtreme today and more than happy with the life I’ve had out of it and the last few months replaced 1-2 sections with slx just to keep me plodding since fitting phantom clamps so I could gauge them for a few months and I can say the slx sections haven’t worn that new taped deep poles have away at all so today I’ve ordered a new xtreme and I already have a spare set of new phantom clamps but thinking as soon as I get my xtreme cutting the smart clamps off and fitting the phantom clamps to rapidly slow any wear down but feel abit confused buying a brand new £600 pole and cutting the clamps off😂😂🙈

[wayne m]

Should have just brought the phantom hi-mod and be done with it 👌🏻

[Alex Gardiner]

Should have just brought the phantom hi-mod and be done with it 👌🏻

I agree!

If you're going to cut off brand new clamp sets.....

[mufcglen]

The xtremes actually cheaper and also the phantoms have a smaller thinner top section.
I must be the first mad man to buy a new pole and cut bits off it😂😂
Hopefully it will last even longer than the last one if the phantom clamps don’t wear half as bad as the smart clamps.

[dazmond]

what im doing at the moment is using my cobbled together xtreme 25(made up of 3 different versions!)just for the harder f/s/g jobs and pockets of awkward angle window work and using my SLX/xtreme hybrid for the rest....

[mufcglen]

To be honest pal that’s what I’ve been doing last few months while I been testing out these phantom clamps using the xtreme pole with 2 replacement slx sections but after I snapped a 3rd today I thought I’ve had my money’s worth out of it and buying another slx section would have meant 3 out the 5 sections are slx I may have just gotten an new slx😂
Been a great pole and I have my slx39 for the few bigger windows I have, that’s just a wobbly brick though but absolutely solid😁

[Dave Willis]

Crackers! Sounds like the Xtreme is not for you. Buy an SLX and leave the clamps alone!


Why Dazmond who earns £80 an hour is cobbling together bits of poles beats me!

[mufcglen]

Why’s it not for me pal, I’ve had this pole since March 2018 replacing a couple of sections along the way mainly after the 12-13 month mark, I think for an extreme that’s being used everyday earning good money that’s good going and I genuinely strip and retape monthly but clean it weekly so don’t abuse it.
I’m happy with how long it’s lasted with how much I’ve earnt  to previous years using slx poles and my body feeling much less tired and a dicky shoulder injury gone within months of using it so definitely money well spent, my only issue would be the clamps though and how rough they get internally over time rubbing on the pole sections, I’d love gardiner to have something similar to the rubber phantom inserts that are really soft so barely wear the pole section, sort that out and they’ll have the best pole on the market for sure and like I said earlier I don’t like the phantom poles top section that’s way too thin for my liking and I’ve heard from a few users they’re first to snap.
Will be a good proper test now if I fit these clamps to this new pole and do a 12 month test for wear.

[Alex Gardiner]

Why’s it not for me pal, I’ve had this pole since March 2018 replacing a couple of sections along the way mainly after the 12-13 month mark, I think for an extreme that’s being used everyday earning good money that’s good going and I genuinely strip and retape monthly but clean it weekly so don’t abuse it.
I’m happy with how long it’s lasted with his much I’ve aren’t to previous years using slx poles and my body feeling much less tired and a dicky shoulder injury gone within months of using it so definitely money well spent, my only issue would be the clamps though and how rough they get internally over time rubbing on the pole sections, I’d love gardiner to have something similar to the rubber phantom inserts that are really soft so barely wear the pole section, sort that out and they’ll have the best pole on the market for sure aslike I said earlier I don’t like the phantom poles top section that’s way too thin for my liking and I’ve heard from a few users they’re first to snap.

We have every major pole on the market on tough long term test - and based on the results we are getting, we are currently still very happy with the way our clamps and poles perform and last, so no plans to change to rubber inserts.

Obviously different poles and systems can better suit different users so opinions can vary 

[mufcglen]

Did you have some similar clamps lined up a while ago Alex with that cner company from China?
I seen a post on here or Facebook with someone saying you refused them as they had the cner logo on them.
Hand on heart from my experience though I can definately say the phantom clamps wear less on the pole section for sure, the actual clamp lever system I do prefer the gardiner clamp with the little shins and springs and they feel slightly better too in use but that soft rubber insert is a game changer for wcw.
I’ve always been one of those window cleaners who take something from here and something from there to make in my opinion the best of everything.
Are the phantom clamps patented and you can’t copy the idea, I’d love to see something new from gardiner along this idea, trust me it’s not a gimmick as I first thought when they came out!!!

[dazmond]

Crackers! Sounds like the Xtreme is not for you. Buy an SLX and leave the clamps alone!


Why Dazmond who earns £80 an hour is cobbling together bits of poles beats me!

a few months ago i decided to revisit my pole "graveyard"....... ......ive managed to make 3  25ft poles out of different sections from various xtremes and SLXs that i had lying around rather than just buying another pole.......

also i was a bit miffed to snap 2 sections in quick succession on an xtreme 25 (that was less than 12 months old at the time)......

plenty of life left out of these few poles before i buy another one.....

[Tristan R Clean]

I am a long term Gardiner pole owner. Owned the first carbon ones with the metal bike seat post clamps. I have had the super lite modular. Have had all the xtreme versions 1,2,3 The poles were a game changer. As with all trades other competitors have caught up.
I currently use a 47ft xtreme version 3 . This is my second one of this version. I seem to get about 2 years out of one. I love the poles weight and ease of use. But for the price I would like to see a bit longer longevity. I am off to the show tmrw to have a good look at the phantom high modulus.
Maybe I will convert🤔
Tris

[dazmond]

I am a long term Gardiner pole owner. Owned the first carbon ones with the metal bike seat post clamps. I have had the super lite modular. Have had all the xtreme versions 1,2,3 The poles were a game changer. As with all trades other competitors have caught up.
I currently use a 47ft xtreme version 3 . This is my second one of this version. I seem to get about 2 years out of one. I love the poles weight and ease of use. But for the price I would like to see a bit longer longevity. I am off to the show tmrw to have a good look at the phantom high modulus.
Maybe I will convert🤔
Tris

i have an xtreme 47 with the old style clamps that i bought in the sale over 5 years ago now and its still in great condition(but mine only gets used around 10 times a month)....

do you use your 47 footers a lot?

[Alex Gardiner]

Did you have some similar clamps lined up a while ago Alex with that cner company from China?
I seen a post on here or Facebook with someone saying you refused them as they had the cner logo on them.
Hand on heart from my experience though I can definately say the phantom clamps wear less on the pole section for sure, the actual clamp lever system I do prefer the gardiner clamp with the little shins and springs and they feel slightly better too in use but that soft rubber insert is a game changer for wcw.
I’ve always been one of those window cleaners who take something from here and something from there to make in my opinion the best of everything.
Are the phantom clamps patented and you can’t copy the idea, I’d love to see something new from gardiner along this idea, trust me it’s not a gimmick as I first thought when they came out!!!

From my experience, a lot of what you read on Facebook about our firm has to be discounted as not accurate

We did have some communication with CNER a while back - but this was only when enforcing our Clamp Patent with them and other associated companies so that our Smart Clamp Patents were no longer being infringed - hence a rapid redesign of several pole companies’ clamps soon after release.

Whilst they send us many manufacturing inquiries, we make our clamps and poles with our own partner factories so do not need any general manufacturing assistance. We have never used CNER to manufacture any products and have never pursued any manufacturing options or inquiries with them - quite the opposite. Someone did infiltrate our factory and take photos to try and pass themselves off as our 'manufacturer' a while back - Since then no visitors are permitted into our factory.

Whilst some aspects of the Phantom soft insert construction have had a Patent applied for the overall concept is in use with several other clamp designs around the world so not sure whether this Patent will actually be granted or not. We have tested all of the clamps designs from around the world that use soft inserts and the results have been interesting for us.

You're not the only that likes these inserts though and as it is a fairly new concept it will be interesting to see how they all perform in the market long term. Anyway it is great for the window cleaner that there are so many options available these days.

It would have been interesting when you fitted brand new clamps to an older Xtreme how you would have found it if you had fitted brand new Smart Clamp assemblies. Fitting completely new clamps will always refresh the whole feel of a pole - regardless of the clamp type fitted - unless the pole sections have completely had it of course!

[mufcglen]

I am a long term Gardiner pole owner. Owned the first carbon ones with the metal bike seat post clamps. I have had the super lite modular. Have had all the xtreme versions 1,2,3 The poles were a game changer. As with all trades other competitors have caught up.
I currently use a 47ft xtreme version 3 . This is my second one of this version. I seem to get about 2 years out of one. I love the poles weight and ease of use. But for the price I would like to see a bit longer longevity. I am off to the show tmrw to have a good look at the phantom high modulus.
Maybe I will convert🤔
Tris

From what I been told by users of both hi mod poles pal is same opinion as me regarding clamps but gardiner poles last longer and stronger!
Personally I think £600ish for a pole to use for say for example 12 months min and how much you earn surely its money well spent, I would say after using an xtreme last year my daily work rate went up around £30-£50 a day just because my dicky shoulder got better and better and I wasn’t as worn out using a lighter pole through the day, now add that up over a week, over a month and over a year surely its paid for itself in no time being double the price of an slx, yes slx last a lot longer and invincible but for me my body comes first in this job now as I get older.
I’d rather wear a pole than wear a bone out, we’d all love the poles to last longer I agree but I think it’s always gonna be a balance between making a light pole and a reliable pole!

[mufcglen]

Did you have some similar clamps lined up a while ago Alex with that cner company from China?
I seen a post on here or Facebook with someone saying you refused them as they had the cner logo on them.
Hand on heart from my experience though I can definately say the phantom clamps wear less on the pole section for sure, the actual clamp lever system I do prefer the gardiner clamp with the little shins and springs and they feel slightly better too in use but that soft rubber insert is a game changer for wcw.
I’ve always been one of those window cleaners who take something from here and something from there to make in my opinion the best of everything.
Are the phantom clamps patented and you can’t copy the idea, I’d love to see something new from gardiner along this idea, trust me it’s not a gimmick as I first thought when they came out!!!

From my experience, a lot of what you read on Facebook about our firm has to be discounted as not accurate

We did have some communication with CNER a while back - but this was only when enforcing our Clamp Patent with them and other associated companies so that our Smart Clamp Patents were no longer being infringed - hence a rapid redesign of several pole companies’ clamps soon after release.

Whilst they send us many manufacturing inquiries, we make our clamps and poles with our own partner factories so do not need any general manufacturing assistance. We have never used CNER to manufacture any products and have never pursued any manufacturing options or inquiries with them - quite the opposite. Someone did infiltrate our factory and take photos to try and pass themselves off as our 'manufacturer' a while back - Since then no visitors are permitted into our factory.

Whilst some aspects of the Phantom soft insert construction have had a Patent applied for the overall concept is in use with several other clamp designs around the world so not sure whether this Patent will actually be granted or not. We have tested all of the clamps designs from around the world that use soft inserts and the results have been interesting for us.

You're not the only that likes these inserts though and as it is a fairly new concept it will be interesting to see how they all perform in the market long term. Anyway it is great for the window cleaner that there are so many options available these days.

It would have been interesting when you fitted brand new clamps to an older Xtreme how you would have found it if you had fitted brand new Smart Clamp assemblies. Fitting completely new clamps will always refresh the whole feel of a pole - regardless of the clamp type fitted - unless the pole sections have completely had it of course!

Thanks for replying again Alex, industrial espionage eh, you should be flattered some people are going to those lengths to see the factory pal, I’ve always wanted to see inside your factory too if I ever get to take the kids camping down your end😟
Your still the pole leader in the market pal and I know it seems mad that I’m gonna cut and replace the clamps but I had to have another xtreme as I love the whole gardiner set up in general, was my first ever pole starting out and I’ve worked my way up from a clx to an xtreme!
Will be interesting to try the ultimate flocked brush too I’ve ordered with the pole as I’ve been a devout supreme user since they’ve come out 👍

[Ooooooog]

How much money should a pole make?
If it makes 50k, just buy a new one innit.

[NWH]

If you look after them they do last a long time but I find that the clamps do need to be adjusted often or they do spin working at an angle,I’ve had a few of them now and this most recent 1 I have to adjust more often than previous poles that are the same.
If you use a brush any heavier than an extreme they need adjusting daily sometimes half a turn,saying that they are a great pole and I’d recommend them.

[JackieW]

Some 'extreme' long sentences in this thread.

[robbo333]

Rather than getting a new Xtreme and replacing the clamps straight away, why not, get some good use out of the pole and the clamps, then if you get wear problems, cut 2 inches off the section and replace with the same clamps? If you are going to replace the clamps, you may as well do it when the pole is worn, rather than when it's new! That's just crazy! Sounds like the guy who broke up a boat to build a raft!

Or

When my Xtreme started spinning (top 2 sections only) I used 2 part Araldite, which took me about 40 mins to do and left it over the weekend to cure. I think I did it 2 years ago and still going strong.

Or

For me, it's only the top 2 sections that wear (obviously the most used), so just replace those sections at 100 quid each.

It's the tools that we use.

I have an electrician friend with some seriously good tools. However, when he works on large building sites in London he buys the cheapest drills and tools he can get. I asked him why and he said everything on site gets knicked or goes 'walkies'! He just factors the price of the tools into the job.

Some tools don't last forever...that's life!