Suggestions for Coates heavy duty telescoping pole

[Guest]

Been installing these poles for new houses for this season. Bought them to go with the Coates WatersEdge suites. Love the houses but I am HATING these poles. My martins aren't even back yet and I am already dreading a whole season of struggling with these poles!!!

I don't trust that flimsy little thumbscrew device. The pole spins and slides down unless it is overtightened; which will soon strip the thing. I even drilled extra holes to put a long bolt through to secure the pole. But what a pain that is to try and line up. And that is without the house in place. I am really discouraged. Anyone else have any suggestions to make these poles workable?

I have the Heath telescoping poles with my other housing. I find them very easy to work with. The locking pin is easy to manage single handed. I wish I had just used these instead. But I figured I should get the Coates pole with the Coates houses. What a mistake.

[John Miller]

Peggy

I used these poles at a golf course last year and really struggled with lining up the holes when raising/lowering. We're replacing them this year with a PMCA multi-purpose pole. If I had continued to use them, I would have painted on some prominent orientation marks. Several times we walked away from raising and found that we had turned the house the opposite way -- disaster if you don't correct.

These poles do seem sturdy, even with a slight wobble if the thumbscrew is loose.

John Miller

[Guest]

Thanks John. I was afraid these poles were a waste of money. I appreciate your suggestion but just don't care for the pulley or winch systems. I am going to have to go ahead and replace these lousy Coates poles before my martins get here. I hope I can at least use the base pole as the anchor so I don't have to dig two more holes and set concrete.

I wish the PMCA store had a place for buyers to rate the products. I would give these poles a really bad review to warn others away.

[Guest]

I'm seventy years young and can single handedly up and down the Coates poles with a sixteen room house, owl guards and four gourds added. It is my understanding that the thumb screw is only temporary holding devise enabling us, to stop and get another hold, on the pole and loosen it, for another distance, of up lifting or down positioning. It takes me about four lifts, so to speak, to up a section, of that pole or other telescoping poles, in my care.

Once the pole is up above the through bolt hole the thumb screw nicely holds the pole while you insert the through bolt. There are no holes to line up. The entire section is above the through bolt. When through bolt is in place the thumb screw enables the upper section to rest on the pole. Now you have no concern of the pole moving far or hopefully fast as it rests on the through bolt.

If there were holes to line up placing a mark (+) on the poles when they are extended and lined up will enable you to find the holes easily any time after the first alignment. The first time might be a hoot without help.

Some easy reasoning indicates the going up the top section should go up first. The reverse is true to lower the pole. In the down mode the middle pole should be downed first.

I find the thumb screw a bit more onery than another pole I have. That having been said the absolutely secure bolt stopped or blocked section is the most safe and secure arrangement, of the two poles.

[Guest]

Peggy,

I have a MSS house and a Heath pole with a custom gourd rack. The MSS is by far easier to raise/lower. The heath is ok, it only has four SGs on it....... just don't drop the pin when your raising it back up... been there, done that . Just make sure you put some marks on it to keep it aligned.
The only other pole I've used is a Perky Pet aluminum. Made a gourd rack for it also. It seems ok, but it's at my moms house so I've only raised/lowered a couple of times.

Chuck

[roblrich]

Chuck, how do you make your gourd racks, how many gourds they hold, and do you have a photo handy? I have been trying to figure out how to make a couple. But then, I am from Kentucky, and it may take me forever to figure that out.

Wow, a shot at Kentucky and not Texas. I'm getting soft.

[Tim Mangan-Kansas]

Been installing these poles for new houses for this season. Bought them to go with the Coates WatersEdge suites. Love the houses but I am HATING these poles. My martins aren't even back yet and I am already dreading a whole season of struggling with these poles!!!

I don't trust that flimsy little thumbscrew device. The pole spins and slides down unless it is overtightened; which will soon strip the thing. I even drilled extra holes to put a long bolt through to secure the pole. But what a pain that is to try and line up. And that is without the house in place. I am really discouraged. Anyone else have any suggestions to make these poles workable?

I have the Heath telescoping poles with my other housing. I find them very easy to work with. The locking pin is easy to manage single handed. I wish I had just used these instead. But I figured I should get the Coates pole with the Coates houses. What a mistake.

[Tim Mangan-Kansas]

Peggy, I am a newbie trying for my second year to get martin's. Last Spring, I put up an S&K plastic house with their triangular telescopic pole. In conversing with a couple of successful landlords, I felt it prudent to get rid of the plastic house. This past winter, I removed the plastic S&K house and replaced it with six gourds, using the same pole. I also purchased and installed a Coate's Water edge house with thier pole, which is the pole you are having problems with. The only problem I am having with the Coate's pole is getting it lined up at the same position each time I raise it. I have painted an X where the poles join together, which does keep it aligned correctly.
The point I would like to make is, two weeks ago, we had 50 to 60 MPH straight line winds. The S&K pole with the gourds bent in half at the ground. The Coate's pole withstood the wind without any damage. When, and if, you replace your pole, make sure you get one strong enough to withstand high winds.

[Guest]

Thanks to all who replied. I did go ahead and mark the poles so I can line up the holes for the through bolts more easily. Still have the problem of the thumbscrew slipping while I am trying to keep things in place and get the through bolt in place. The poles are nice and sturdy, but difficult to handle. I will see if the martins like this new housing this year. If they like it I will think about a different pole system for next year. Maybe upgrade to the multi-purpose pole?

[Matt F.]

Peggy,
I'm running a Nature House MPQ pole. This pole has the quick release clamps and is very easy to raise and lower - no cumbersome pins or bolts to deal with. The clamps allow adjusting and locking the pole at any height.
The quick release or "quick-lock" clamps allow you to eaily raise and lower the pole, by lifting locking handle to loosen clamping members.

This pole, like the heavy duty Coates pole, is made from heavy-gauge galvanized steel, and is pretty much bullet proof.
It is by far the easiest, and sturdiest telescoping pole I've used.

[Guest]

I finally got another Nature House MSS8. It also has the quick release on it, which my old one doesn't. Maybe.... just maybe, my wife will check the gourds. I did notice after I added two SGs, that it was a tad heavier, definately change the lanyard next year!!!

Chuck

[Ron Shaffer]

Peggy,
A good solution to your problem would be a wire locking pin. I'm talking about the type where the wire attached to the pin allows you to loop it over on the other side of the pole. Just do a google search and it should show up.
Of course, you will have to drill a hole through both poles....maybe even enlarge the hole for the thumbscrew a tad.

[Ron Shaffer]

...sorry, See you've already tried that...should have read your last paragraph

[Guest]

I too have been having problems. But not the same as you.

For me its easy to handle. I can raise and lower my 8 Suite house without any problem. I follow directions and use the thumbscrews to hold the pole while I raise and lower the house.

I did mark each section of pole with black magic marker to aide in lining it up correctly. I did not want to inadvertently spin the house out of it's orientation. That would have been a disaster!

The problems I did have were with how I tightened the screws as I raised the pole. When I dug the hole and placed the base part in cement I made sure it was aligned perfectly straight up from all sides. I checked again when it was dry - still straight up on all sides.

Then I added each section according to directions, finally topping it off with the Suite house part. I raised each part and locked it into place. Standing back about 20 yards I surveyed my PM home. It was tilted.

How could that happen? I thought. I checked everything. I went back and looked it all over. Seems the tilt started with the base sleeve. When I put the pole inside the sleeve and tightened, it caused it to tilt ever so slightly. Up at the top of the pole that tilt was magnified. So I had to take it all apart and try again.

I had to add a few washers to prevent the pipe from getting squeezed when I tightened the bolt to hold the pole in place. That helped to stabilize the upper pole from tilting.

I put it all back together and checked again. It still tilted. This time it was because I used the bolts in the same direction going up the pole. So I took it apart once more and alternated the direction of the bolts. That helped and the pole was more or less straight last season. Oh - I didn't get any PM's last year. It was my first year and I think my house went up a bit late. I did get a bluebird in it later on so I let it stay.

This year I faced another problem when I put it together. We had a couple of windstorms last year and the house got rocked a bit late in the season. When I checked it this year the part where the house attaches to the pole appeared to be wobbly. I put it up and sure enough, the house could wobble back and forth. So I lowered it back down.

I'm going to take it off and wrap the inside pipe with something - does anyone have any ideas? I need to make sure that when I put it back up it will not wobble.

Now, would I get the Coates Telescoping Pole again? Not sure. I did get the so called Heavy Duty one. But I didn't expect it to tilt because of the way I tightened the bolts. It does enable me to raise and lower the house by myself - that's a BIG PLUS. But the tilt factor and the Wobble factor. Those are fairly strong negatives.

Ken N.

[Al Denton]

Ken, I've had some experience with Coates poles. How much play do you have between sleeve(or ground socket) and second pole?...how much between second and third?

[Guest]

Thanks forum for the comments on our Coates Heavy Duty Pole. We have made this pole to withstand severe wind conditions. When installed it should not tilt or wobble. Please call me directly at 1-800-869-2828 if you have any questions or concerns. Good luck to everyone this season. Jeremy Waters, Owner Coates Manufacturing, Inc

[Guest]

I have been having the same problem with tilt you described. And have had to keep experimenting and tweaking to get things level. I also have the heavy duty poles. They have been a disaster. I am so sorry I wasted the money on these poles. My martins aren't even back yet and I am just dreading having to struggle with these poles. I am probably going to have to go ahead and replace them before the season starts. I notice the post from Coates manufacturing but I have already made all the modifications possible to get these poorly designed poles to work. The problem of slipping through the thumbscrews while you are raising and lowering is the worst. I nearly got brained yesterday when the house crashed down on my head after slipping through the thumbscrews while I was trying to get the throughbolt in place. AARRGH!!!!! And that is with the house empty. I hate to think what it will be like when it is full of baby martins!!!

So far I love the design, affordability and workmanship of the Coates WatersEdge houses. I am eager to see if my martins accept this housing this year. But I absolutely hate the Coates poles. I would not recommend them to anyone.

[e p jones]

We have had great success with both Heavy Duty and Standard Duty Coates poles.

For both poles, using leather gloves when raising or lowering, particularly a "wet" pole, helps quite a but; it also allows making the thumbscrew tighter and avoids any finger pinching!
Another option is to have a small pair of pliers in your pocket to make tightening even more secure--however, don't over-tighten and distort the pole.

On the Heavy Duty pole, ensure both your "elevation" and "rotation" marks are clearly visible (permanent marker) to do initial line-up.
Raising the top section first will allow simply placing the safety pin mostly into the thru-hole; this will then allow you to SAFELY tighten your first thumb screw; then complete the safety pin.
Similarly, do the bottom section of the pole.