First let me say that pole pruning is not an easy task and the longer the extension, the more challenging it gets.

I've had several of the 12 ft. extendable 'Pruning Hook' with the pull rope and a foot or so long saw blade. The pruner rope has good leverage for smaller branches).

The only ones I'll never buy again are those that have plastic pruning hooks, they crack or break after some time, and the plastic hook is so much thicker than steel and aren't as easy to get into tight places.

Other than that, pruning trees with a pole saw can take some physical strength and even then, it can be difficult to get the saw or hook exactly where you want it to go.

Mines a Fiskars, not real high end but works for me.

The blade is held on by two thumb screws so you can remove it and use the pruning hook only for light trimming.

The hook works well for branches up to an inch or so. Anything bigger than that I use the saw blade instead (inch branches are generally stiff enough they can be sawed clean near the trunk).

edit: The above has fiberglass poles and don't seem flimsy at all.

Based on how hard I have to pull the cord on my Jameson, I really doubt how effective the mechanism of that Gemplers is going to be for anything bigger than 1/2" or so...I'm not surprised you returned it. There's a reason most designs use a rope. Jameson seems like the industry leader but the Fiskars that Bill has looks fine.

I barely have the upper body strength to use my Jameson in a 10'+10' configuration. In retrospect I should have bought a 10' and an 8'. I'm stronger than I look, thank goodness, but have a thin frame for a guy. Even holding just the 10' above my head can be quite an upper body workout after making more than a couple cuts. It's made of fiberglass and not superficially heavy, however, delicately positioning it in a tree canopy takes a lot of exhausting fine motor control.

(FWIW, my worse 'wear and tear' injury in my entire life, was due to holding a chainsaw above my head to make a cut about 5 years ago. I sprained or somehow over exerted my left shoulder. It took 2 years to fully heel! I got a referral for physical therapy but never had time to do it. I now do some flys with dumbells to try to keep my shoulders strong enough to avoid that happening again. So far so good. But I know many adults in the 50s with far more issues than I have, like a former runner who's had to have both knees replaced!)

Just another comment.

The double pulley system on the Fiskars is something to be noted.

It increases the leverage you have on the pruning knife when you pull the rope.

Some pole saws only have one wheel and less pulling power.

Of course, a one-inch branch of Oak will be A LOT harder to cut with the knife than a similar sized branch of soft maple.

I bought this at the Washington fair in Puyallup years ago.

https://www.barnel.com/about.php

I would like to mention what others have mentioned about using a saw above your head. It takes a lot of body strength and coordination to lift the saw up above your head. Once you get it up there the tricky part is aiming it and getting it into the right spot. While this seems simple remember you are standing in an open area with no support, you have your arms as high above your head hold a 15' to 20' pole with a weight on the end. Depending on your flexibility you may have difficulty seeing the end of the pole. Depending on your health you it may cause you to loose your balance causing falls.

HOWEVER: I find it is great getting into dense vegetation; evergreen trees, bushes and the like. I have found it is an excellent way to cut in the canopy of of down trees to clear the area to start cutting the large limbs..

My advice would be to skip the cheap home center/telescoping pruners and purchase a commercial grade pole saw/pruner, ie( Jameson, Marvin and Notch Equipment.)

The locking part of the pole is under much stress and a failure point on telescoping pole saws.

A decent Jameson kit here at Home Depot $150

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Jameson-13-in-PRO-Pole-Saw-and-12-ft-Pruning-Saw-Kit-PSTP12-K1/323074850

For more reach you can purchase extension poles for $38 ea.

If you still prefer cheap, the Fiskars 14ft is on clearance here for $33:

https://www.lowes.com/pd/Fiskars-Power-Lever-14-ft-Fiberglass-Pole-Pruner/5005455815

Best to straddle the pole and get directly under branch you want to remove. the pole will be easier to lift if you have it facing straight up. Once it is in position on branch you can move back a step or two to prevent cut from falling on you.

Regards,

Will

I like to last slide on the Fiskars link you posted Will.

Most cheap, breakage prone manufacturers of CHEAP equipment, don't have a warranty like Fiskars. Why would they? They'd go out of business.

In fact, I've never had any Fiskars pole saw fail at the locking mechanism or anywhere else for that matter.

And it does depend on how much you use your saw. If I was in it commercially with regular, heavy-duty use, I might want to pay more for a better saw and tell others to do that too, but as a homeowner with occasional use and sometimes heavy use around the yard, a saw, like Fiskars will last most people longer than they will ever need it to.