new TG xpole weird grip issue

EtherealAnnie started this discussion · 12/26/2014

So I just upgraded my pole to TG xpole from chrome and I have a weird grip issue. I noticed that when holding it with my hands its grippy but then it gets weirdly slick and my hand slides down but this does not happen when I grip it with any other parts of my body. Knee/elbow/armpit grips are solid and do not slip. I cleaned the pole down dozens of time with alcohol and it gets better for a few minutes but then it comes back. Today while practicing I inverted into gemini then as I was moving into side V my hands were slipping but my knee didn't move at all. Imagine me trying to get down and not fall with my knee stuck and my hands slipping, it was very strange. I'm wondering if the pole is this way because it is new. Have any of you with a TG xpole experienced this, and how long did it take to go away? I feel like I can't trust the pole.

24 replies

CD Hussey fka Jivete · 12/26/2014
I had a similar problem with tg. It would just suddenly get slick. Like there was condensation on it. No advice, but wanted to share. Tg and I don't seem to get along. Hopefully you have better results.
EtherealAnnie · 12/26/2014
Did you have the slick issue all over your body or just your hands?
Veena · 12/26/2014
I have heard of others having the same issue with hands and TG. I don't have sweaty hands normally and I don't have issue with my TG, however, in Vegas I would sometimes have a slip grip issue when it was very hot and I would sweat. I think Brass and stainless is better for sweaty hands. Try using mighty grip on the hands maybe?
CD Hussey fka Jivete · 12/26/2014
I think it was just my hands, and they're definitely sweaty. I have a brass pole at home, and then recently bought a ss lil mynx. I love both, and I definitely prefer ss over chrome so I think you're onto something!
PolarGirl · 12/27/2014
For me it was mostly hands but occasionally body. I do know what you mean though about the awkwardness of body sticking but hands not. The body grip was almost TOO much most of the time and moves that didn't bother me on brass at my studio, very basic things like Gemini, just killed me on the TG. It hurt me so bad that I found myself doing strength and flexibility work every day instead of wanting to dance or work on tricks. I realized there was no point in having a home pole if I wasn't going to utilize it. So I bit the bullet and bought a new one. I can't wait to try out my new home brass pole. My main issue with the TG was how temperamental it seemed to be: one day great grip, next day felt like a rain slick; and even minute by minute it seemed to change. One particular day I could not grip the pole for the life of me even with tons of dry hands and the next thing I knew, my hands were suddenly so grippy that I tore off a callous and couldn't pole for over a week. Usually though, my grip would be fine and then suddenly I'd slip hard. It makes it very hard to feel confident in trying new hand-dominant moves. Moves like butterfly, handsprings, etc are so hit or miss for me. Even basic spins like reverse grab. Sometimes I'd just drop to the bottom of the pole like bam! But then some days I could use that same pole with no grip aid (extremely rare for me on any pole) and be fine. Maybe this is just the nature of poling, I don't know. Maybe this is just me having personal problems and blaming it on the pole finish. But I eventually got so frustrated with the TG that pole was seeming a lot less fun and kind of like to chore. I'd stare at the pole and just not want to get on it. If it causes you as many problems as it caused me, I definitely think you should sell and "upgrade" - whatever keeps you from giving up on pole!!!!
PolarGirl · 12/27/2014
PS - Mighty Grip did not work for me. I use Dry Hands. But the most effective thing was wiping the pole frequently - like basically between every move - with 90% isopropyl alcohol, undiluted. It's not a perfect solution, but I really found that it was the pole itself that needed treatment, and not actually my hands. After a good alcohol wipe, it usually felt grippy again. Applying the Dry Hands directly to the pole was also helpful when trying hands only tricks like handsprings, but then I'd have to wipe the pole again pretty quickly and of course just wipe the product all off. I never could freestyle on my TG with this scenario. I agree with the above comment that it seriously felt like it had condensation in it most of the time. Hope this is at least somewhat helpful...I really hope you find something that works for you!
EtherealAnnie · 12/27/2014
Your comments are very helpful. Thank you. I guess I just need to do something about my sweaty hands. The pole is great everywhere else and I realize I don't really sweat too much on my body. Maybe I'll get some tite grip and tite grip gloves. I just see it as another challenge to beat!
PolarGirl · 12/27/2014
Yes, definitely try Tite Grip first and experiment with grip aids. Tite Grip doesn't work for me but everyone is different. My hands are so sweaty that I tried Dry Body, a very strong antiperspirant that Mighty Grip now sells. I really liked it but it's super pricey so I'm trying Dryclor. Both products are powerful antiperspirants that you apply before bed and they work to suppress your sweat glands while they are least active (while you sleep). So far I have found it very very helpful, especially giving me confident dismounts. Often I can get into a move but when I'm in the air in a new move I get nervous I guess and my hands sweat, making it hard to make a graceful exit. I was apprehensive to try these as I'm more of a "natural" product type, but I love pole and so far they have really really REALLY helped. If all else fails, I definitely recommend these. Dirty Girl Poletice is another antiperspirant that claims to be more "natural". I ordered some but have not tried it yet for pole. My hands are a bad case and I need the powerful stuff, I think. But I will definitely give this a try for home practice days. I have the Mighty Grip gloves but did not find them very helpful. I honestly feel more comfortable making actual hand contact. It feels more secure, even with my terrible case of hand sweat. The non-tack gloves did not give enough grip, are kinda slippy material, and they make your hands even sweatier on the inside so you can even sweat through. They're not terrible, but I got on better without them. The tacky gloves stick like flypaper but then I have a hard time pulling my hand away, which is no good either! What comforts me is that my favorite instructor said she went through my level of classes wearing gloves (and she says she found them problematic and would sweat through them also) because of grip confidence issues. And now she's amazing and doing much more difficult work without gloves or much grip aid at all... I have definitely noticed now that my hand sweatiness is by far at it's worst when I'm in the studio learning something new. Then I can go home and work on something until I'm more psychologically comfortable with it, and when I try it again in the studio it gets better...and just keeps getting better as you mind and body acclimate to being in the new position. I hope eventually my brain stops freaking out at every new thing as I become more acclimated to pole in general - that is to say contorting my body into all kinds of crazy shapes around a vertical pole high in the air! It's pretty natural for your brain to freak out at that a little, until you get really truly used to it.
PoleRules · 12/27/2014
I have recently discovered an interesting product for sweaty hands that actually is a hair-styling product.M I found it a Shopper's Drug Mart, by a company called Got2b, it's called POWDER'ful, and it's a silica based gritty powder that your supposed to rub into your roots for instant volume, or you can rub between your palms then apply to your roots. I found this out quite by accident, having used the product and then using my pole (I have the studioveena-powder coated pole). I must say, I now buy the product, at around $5-6 just as a grip-aid. I tend to suffer from sweaty hands (and body too), and have foupnd the product even works great applied to knee and elbow pits-though watch out because it can actually give you too much grip on thinner skin. I have seen this type of instant hair-volumizing product by other companies, but got2b is by far the cheapest. Let me know if anyone decides to try it, or a similar product:)
Ava Madison · 12/27/2014
Exact same problem here; I have no issues with brass or chrome but experience the same random slipping (sudden and only in the hands) with my TG. I tried everything I could think of with no fix and the issue makes it completely unsafe for me to do moves such as Ayesha's etc so my TG has officially become my pole silks pole. From speaking with many individuals who own TG poles it seems that climate is the link; warmer climates are not experiencing this TG slip issue and more so, I have a friend living in a warmer climate who brought her TG (which she has owned for quite some time and loves) to a similar climate as mine and for the first time began experiencing the random hand slip issue. That's the info I've gathered... some food for thought anyway. Sorry you are having this issue and if you find anything out I'd be interested to hear ;)
EtherealAnnie · 12/27/2014
The environment aspect is definitely a factor. I think is a combo of environment and sweaty hands. I've been doing RG spins on it right after I got it and I didn't slip but yesterday it was cold and it felt like there was some moisture in the air which was different from the other days. That combined with a warm sweaty hand equaled condensation and slippage. I was using my space heater but I guess it didn't really make it warm enough in the room. I wonder if a warm dehumidifier would make a difference with a hand antiperspirant product.
pr1nc3ss · 12/31/2014
I have this issue too recently since my pole room is small I will turn my space heater on 30mins before I pole.
Autumn Sky · 12/31/2014
I use a space heater as well to heat my pole room. I did find last winter that when I used it to heat my pole room, my TG pole would "sweat". Now I take down my pole after each use and store it in a part of the house that is consistently warm. I do not put it back up until my pole room is warmed up. Extra work, but I have not had any problems this winter....side note on the sweaty hands, I have this issue as well. Different things work for different people, but Dirty Girl Poltice was a game changer for me.
PolarGirl · 12/31/2014
I got my brass pole in the mail after selling my TG to a friend. Grip problems now happily GONE! I don't even need any grip aid on the brass. What was with the TG anyway? I mean seriously: WTF was that!?
CD Hussey fka Jivete · 12/31/2014
It is weird that's it's so horrible for some people. It was unusable for me.
EtherealAnnie · 12/31/2014
@PolarGirl: I just ordered tite grip and new gloves. If that doesn't work I will probably have to sell it for a brass pole as well. I hope I won't have to tho. The pole sweating is annoying.
AllysonKendal · 12/31/2014
Its so strange. I've never had a real issue with my TG here in the north east. That room gets very cold, so I do use a space heater before I pole (or its too cold to wear shorts!)... But once the pole is warm it's great. I've had slippery days, but I think those are unavoidable regardless of finish. Today in pole class there were 3 of us crowded around the one TG because the chrome was so slick. I guess there is no perfect finish for everyone... I really like the peppermint sloughing lotion for grip... But I'll use dry hands too it just leaves me feeling chalky dry and gross.
EtherealAnnie · 12/31/2014
My hands get moist in minutes after using dry hands or mighty grip. I have less grip using them which is weird. My hands in general are moist/clammy. After every move I have to wipe my hands on my shorts otherwise I can't do anything. Its worse with TG than I experienced with chrome. It's so frustrating sometimes.
AllysonKendal · 12/31/2014
That is strange about the grip aid. Have you looked into the peppermint sloughing lotion? I really like it. Also the mighty grip gloves are good. I got them because I was pretty fearful of cup grip. Using then helped me get over that fear. One or two times and I havent really used them much since then. Oh actually I put them on for some iguana practice the other day. Maybe if you use them to fight through the next month or so it will be better? Also I do feel like a broken in pole does feel grippier. I can't say why, and maybe it doesn't make sense, but I do feel like in general my pole is less slippery then when I got it.
EtherealAnnie · 12/31/2014
I have the tacky mighty grip gloves. It's like fly paper on the TG lol. Do you typically have dry or moist hands? I looked up that lotion and it's meant for dry skin/callus. I don't know if that would work for me. I don't want to make the problem worse. I don't have dry hands or calluses on my palms. I typically don't even have to use lotion. My skin is never really dry
AllysonKendal · 12/31/2014
I do have drier hands I think... But the lotion isn't really treating my dry skin, it like leaves a weird sticky film that's grippy. My classmate also goes in and takes classes at B&P in the city and a bunch of people started using it there so she brought some to class and I ended up liking it and getting my own. But again, it's so different for everyone. But a small bottle was like 3$. Yes, the gloves stick like glue. Thats why I don't use them too much. But for things like shoulder mounts and dismounts it allows me to focus on my core and less on the fear of slipping. Once muscle memory takes over they aren't needed anymore. Thankfully.
Cuwoody · 1/1/2015
Same problem here with TG. It can be very grippy and all of a sudden get slick, mainly on my hands. I don't have a lot of issues with my body. I have found dry hands works well and mighty grip gloves are awesome on it. FYI, if you don't mind a two-toned pole you can just switch out the center pieces with chrome and not replace all of it. It is significantly cheaper than buying a new pole.
EtherealAnnie · 1/20/2015
Just to update. I got a brass pole and the grip slip problem is gone. It's actually nonexistent. It's awesome! Im so in love with it I had to share. 😍
PolarGirl · 1/20/2015
Me too!!! I love my brass! And the friend I sold it to loves her new (used) TG. She came to my place to pole play and couldn't even lower herself on the brass, she just stuck to it. But for me the brass is perfect. I don't even use grip aid.