Can you trade them in on 8 footers?

When I used to use wooden poles, I had them in rows and about 2 feet apart in the rows. I used a sledge hammer to pound them in about 2 feet. Twine was run between the tops.

I never tried a teepee formation. There are a lot of "bean teepee" articles on the Internet and some people do not drive the poles into the ground very far. Perhaps one foot would do as the tops are tied together for extra strength in case it gets windy.

My trellises are six feet high. Most pole beans climb much higher than that so the vines end up making tangled masses along the tops of the trellises. - Dick

Yes - you need longer poles for starters and more of them. If you use 8 foot poles you just push them a foot into the ground. I just shove them in, no hole digging. Put 8 or 9 poles in a circle with about 6 - 8 inches between the poles. You can push them in vertically if they are quite bendy, like bamboo, or leaning slightly inwards if they are stiffer. Your talk of sharpening makes me wonder if maybe your poles are too fat? They should be thin enough just to push into the ground. Tie them together about 6 inches below the tops. Do it before you sow the seeds. The tension in the poles from tying them at the tops helps hold the wigwam up. The video talks about runners but any pole beans will be the same.

Here is a link that might be useful: A wigwam for runner beans.

When I put my post in I use a piece of PVC of the correct size and install a hose adapter on one end. Then I attach a garden hose and jet me a hole of the desired depth.

Luther