I love my SQUIRREL PROOF pole. The extender was necessary because I needed to thwart squirrels, but have the base a little deeper in the ground for stability. Keep in mind (I was going to say "Bear with me") the pole and extension are not Black Bear proof. I've had to replace the base pole 2 times because I forgot to take off the feeders and Mr. Bear (About 300 lbs or so) pushed it over and bent it. I am a little more conscientious now, and I wanted the pole a little more secure. I screwed it into the ground about an extra 12 inches. That inadvertently negated the squirrel proof nature as the squirrel could jump to the top of the deflector and shimmy up the rest. I wanted to keep the pole deeper in the ground, so the extension brought the pole and deflector back to squirrel proof status. What's great about this product? If I break something, they have parts and reasonable prices. The parts unscrew easily, and if you can weld, repairable even after a bear attack. My neighbor has a Squirrel Proof pole, and they like it and recommended it to me. They warned me about Black Bears, so my error. This whole pole is very sturdy, and according to Yelp reviews left by visiting birds, is excellent for feeders.
