"How Do They Compare to Competition Weave Poles?"

Competition weaves have bases, and they are most often made of steel. 

Competition bases are not "adjustable", but fixed.  For AKC, you will encounter 6-12 weave poles.  As soon as you reach the "second" level (called "Open") in agility, there will often be 12...so it is a good idea to start practicing early.

"If I purchase the Weaves with the pvc base, will the base move or roll when the dog weaves?"

The base itself is supported from rolling with cross-sections of support feet.  Because the fittings are not glued (to allow for the weave-a-matic method of training) sometimes some of the poles themselves will move out of their position after the dog runs through them, and you will have to straighten them back up to where you want them.  (but they won't fall down).  You can help to alleviate the slipping poles by pounding them in tighter. and then once your dog learns the weaves, glue the fittings so the poles are straight up and down.   But you will find that the poles slip much less than some of the more official and expensive weave-a-matic bases (they have a tendency to do worse, and just fall down).

"Is the distance between poles always the same, regardless of dog size?"

Yes, the pole distance is always the same, regardless of what size dog uses them.  The distance between poles can range from 19" to 22", so we chose 20", a distance common in trials.

"Which Weave Pole Set should I get?"

If you really want to be conservative, get the Stick-in-the-Ground Weave Pole Set. They push into the ground. (but not so good if you typically have rocky hard-packed ground).  

If you want to be able to move your weave poles around better (for mowing, changing the course set-up, etc.), you will do better getting our Weave Set with PVC Base.  This set also allows for the weave-a-matic method of training, or you can buy optional guide wires.

We also sell a Channel Weave Set, which is similar in concept to the above set, in that the poles are separated so the dog doesn't have to fully weave in the beginning stages of the training.  It is a growingly popular method.

Our third kind of set is theCompetition Weaves with Steel Base, much better for the fast dogs, big dogs, and serious dogs. For training, you can use either the wire guide method, or the channel method with these. 

An additional set we have is a 3-pole pvc set, which allows for convenient indoor training (takes up less space), specifically for reinforcing the "entrance" part of training (the dog having to always enter on the right side of the first pole, no matter what angle he is coming at them from)

        All these weave poles are listed here.

"What kind of spikes are used on the stick-in-ground poles?"

Our spikes are thicker pointed spikes made of hard plastic.  (not the thin metal nails typically used).  They grab the ground better (a nice feature) which is good for soil that is a little soft.

"Do I need the wire guides?"

There are good trainers on both sides of the issue, some saying that the weave-a-matic (slanted pole) method is the best, others that the wires are.  (not to mention a couple other methods!) Still others, such as myself, used more than one method to train their dog!  I would suggest reading some good training articles on this website: www.dogpatch.org/agility that might help.  I personally like the wires, and found they were helpful in training my dog who was trained on the weave-a-matic method, but later started to pop out of the poles, to better understand the whole concept of weaving.  

"What thickness are your poles?"

1" outer diameter, 3/4" inner diameter.  Our wire guides clip on all our weave pole sets.