Has your tent shock cord lost its strength? If it hasn’t happened yet, it will eventually. And your tent will suddenly become much harder to pitch. Luckily, you can fix it pretty easily. Today I am fixing the poles of my 3-man tent. Follow along and see how to do it!

Taking Stock

Note the shock cord running through the hub.

Before you start, take a moment to figure out how the manufacturer routed the cords originally. Some tents use separate poles, and the cord simply runs from end to end of each pole. But some tents join multiple poles together with hubs. Make sure you understand how the shock cord is routed before you undo anything. To fix your tent shock cord properly you’ll need to duplicate the routing.

Three cords run through this hub. The blue and green lines show cords that pass all the way through. The orange line terminates at the hub.

Don’t cut the old cords if you can possibly help it. Leave them in place for now.

Tools and Materials

Before you take anything apart, round up your tools and materials. You need something to cut the shock cord, like scissors or a knife. You might need pliers to grip the pole ends. If you singe the cut ends of the new cord with a lighter they’ll have a fancy, finished look. But you are the only person who will see it. So follow your heart on that. You also need a clothespin. A helper would be nice, but you can do it by yourself without much problem.

The only material you need is replacement shock cord. It comes in two diameters: 3/32″ (about 2.5 mm) and 1/8″ (about 3 mm). Most backpacking tents use 3/32″, while most family camping tents use 1/8″. You can measure yours if you aren’t sure.

For the first step you’ll need a tape measure, and a nice large open workspace really helps. Unfold the tent poles and put them together. You might find this difficult if the shock cord is really in bad shape, but persevere. Once the poles are together, measure their length. Add at least three feet (one meter) to allow for something to grab onto. Now you know how much cord you need.

You can get 1/8″ shock cord at REI and many other outfitters. The 3/32″ is harder to find, I had to get mine online.

Doing the Deed

Start by selecting one cord to replace. Unscrew one end of the pole, like this.

Remove the end from the loop of cord. If the cord is still springy, use a clothespin to keep it from springing back up out of sight.

Loop the new cord through the loop in the old cord like this.

Now go to the other end of the pole and unscrew it’s end. Start pulling the old shock cord out of that end.

You might need to help push the knot through the skinny parts of the poles, and at the junctions in the hub, if applicable. Keep pulling until the new cord emerges.

Undo the knot joining the old and new elastic. Discard the old stuff. Now you need to tie a loop in the end of the new shock cord so you can attach the end. To start, tie an overhand knot a few inches from the end of the cord. Keep it loose for now.

Loop the end back through the overhand knot, like so.

Now tighten the overhand knot by pulling on either side of it, like this.

The knot looks like this when it’s done.

Hook the end back on and screw it into the pole.

Now come around to the other end of the pole. Pull the shock cord just snug, and grab it there. Pull it another 4″-6″ (10-15 cm), and clamp the clothespin around the cord just where it emerges from the tent pole. That keeps it from slipping back.

Now cut the cord about 2″ (5 cm) past where you grabbed it. Tie another loop knot, just as you did on the first end. Hook the pole end into the loop. Then release the clothespin, and screw the pole end back into the pole.

If the hub on your poles has an odd number of poles, you may have a clip rather than a screw-in end. It will look like this.

I would advise pulling the cord through the hub side in that case. Then you tie your loop, re-attach the clip, finagle that back into the hub, and do the knot tying at the open end where it’s easier. But do whatever you want, I guess.

Lather, Rinse, Repeat

Once you replace a line, test it and see how well it stays together and how easily it folds up. You may need to fiddle with the tension a bit to get it to your liking.

Then move onto the next pole or section, and carry on until you’re done.

As you’ve seen, it’s pretty easy to fix your tent shock cord. If you’d like to read about other camping gear repair, check this out. Enjoy, and see you next week!