Repair & Maintenance
Replacing the shock cord in tent poles
When the shock cord inside the tent pole has gone slack or snapped, the pole falls apart. Here is how to replace the cord — a 30-minute job at home.
Inside a tent pole runs a shock cord through all the sections. It holds them together and lets you set up the pole as a single piece. After many years of use the cord goes slack — or it snaps — and then the pole falls apart.
The repair is simple to do at home.
Materials
- New tent shock cord — buy it at a tent shop or order it from the manufacturer. The standard thickness is 3 mm; check what the manufacturer uses.
- Scissors
- Lighter or match — to melt the end of the new cord so it does not fray
How to do it
- Take the pole fully apart — separate all the sections until you reach the cord at both ends
- Untie the old cord and remove it. Measure its length — you need it as a reference for the new cord.
- Cut the new cord to the same length as the old one (or, if the old one was slack: about 20% shorter than the tent pole’s total length)
- Melt both ends of the new cord with a lighter — this stops the fibres from fraying during use
- Tie one end of the new cord to the end section
- Thread on the pole sections one by one — mind the order
- Stretch the cord and tie it to the last end section
- Help the knot down into the pole tube so it does not stick out
How long the cord should be
For a 4-section pole (typically 90 cm when collapsed, ~3.5 m when extended):
- Total pole length: 350 cm
- Cord length: 70–80% = 245–280 cm
The cord should be taut when the pole is assembled — not slack. That is what holds the sections together and makes assembly quick.
Tips
- Check all the poles while you are at it — if one has gone slack the others are often in the same state
- Test the pole after the repair by collapsing it and opening it up a few times
- Tape over the knot with a little electrical tape if you want extra security — not necessary, but some people go in for it
Shock cord on a trip
If the cord snaps mid-trip and you have no spare parts:
- Tape the sections together temporarily with duct tape
- Use string or paracord as a primitive replacement — not ideal, but it will hold for one night
- See also Shock cord in a tent pole — on a trip for more detailed field fixes
Tekst: Snuitide (2022), bearbeidet 2026.