Replacement Shock Cord for Half Dome 2

[heyjudeseattle]

Hey Folks: It's time to replace my shock cord on the Half Dome 2. It's old, probably ten plus years, and it's not a Half Dome 2 Plus. Can anyone advise on the appropriate gauge for the shock cord? Thank you!

[REI-JohnJ]

@heyjudeseattle Thanks for reaching out!

The appropriate gauge of shock cord is 3mm for your tent. Here are a couple of threads that may be useful for you as you think about replacing your cord:

• REI Quarter Dome 2 replacement shock cord
• REI Half Dome 2 tent pole restring problem

Hopefully this helps, thanks!

[heyjudeseattle]

Thanks @REI-JohnJ  that's really helpful. (And it IS a Half Dome Plus 2). 

I'm using 1/8 shockcord. The poles are approximately 151" long (x2), so I purchased 29 feet, so I'd have plenty to spare in case of mistakes. Worse comes to worse, I'll make some extra tie downs.

[heyjudeseattle]

Update: 

As per the notes above, 1/8 shock cord was perfect. Instead of threading each pole individually as most online videos recommend, I did this instead:

1. Assemble pole so it's nearly rigid.
2. Remove the cap on one end.
3. Cut off the screw.
4. Join the line to the old shock cord with smallest, tighest knot you can manage. Guide that joined knot through the end of the pole.
5. Go to the other end of the pole, unscrew the cap and pull persistently. It'll catch up at the joints, but it worked with some modest cajolling.
6. Once the new end is out, tie it into the cap.
7. Go the other end, pull the new shock cord tight until it feels sufficiently rigid.
8. Secure with vise grips.
9. Tie off the new end. Cap the end. You're done.

Essentially, you're just using the old shock cord to thread the new cord. It took about ten minutes. I still labelled the sections, just in case it didn't work out. The only modestly tricky part was knot. A double fisherman's was too big, so I just kind of hacked up a sheet bend. These poles have ample diameter with the 1/8" shock cord, so that worked.  Good luck!