PSA: My tent stakes went from solid to bent in one season after switching to titanium

Swapped to those lightweight titanium stakes last spring for a trip in the Smokies and after just 8 nights they bent like butter on the first rocky site, has anyone else noticed aluminum holds up way better for the weight?

3 comments

3 Comments

ryan_gibson842h ago

Honestly I used to think titanium was the ultimate material for everything outdoors, but seeing your experience and mila's point about aluminum lasting way longer makes me rethink that. I've been lucky with my aluminum stakes so far but I was about to drop cash on titanium ones thinking they'd be an upgrade, now I'll just stick with what works. The weight difference is like a few grams per stake anyway, not worth the hassle of bent stakes every time you camp on rocky ground.

mila_flores83d ago

Wait, seriously - just 8 nights and they bent like that? That's wild to me because I always figured titanium was supposed to be this super strong material, but I guess not when you hit a rocky spot. I've got aluminum stakes that are still straight after like 20+ nights in mixed dirt and rocks. So what's the point of titanium if it can't even handle a little tough ground? Makes you wonder if the weight savings is even worth it when you're dealing with bent stakes every trip.

evan_wilson182d ago

Figured this was the case. It's like how people buy superlight backpacking chairs and they break after a few trips, same thing with titanium vs aluminum, sometimes the lighter stuff just can't take the abuse.

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