Tent Poles

[elastic]

We need a new tent pole for our 16' pavilion. Does anyone have any suggestions what to look for and where to look? The total height will be around 12', but this will be cut into two sections. We would also welcome suggestions as to where to get a metal sleeve for joining the two! Thanks all!

[bart]

Hi.
Contact "Links in Time". www.facebook.com/linksintime or via email: enquiries@linksintime.co.uk.
I know he's main activity is maille tailoring, but he also get access to tents, bits and pieces of armour and stuff..
Ta.

[Annie the Arrow]

Give Alison a ring she will get you one http://www.periodtents.co.uk/

[Mark Griffin]

find tree, shave to required length. Go scrapyard, find sleeve. or look up local ferrous metal suppliers, metal shops.

Remember to cut the pole on a diagonal....

[John Waller]

.

Remember to cut the pole on a diagonal....

Why?

[medievalpirate]

You could try a decent timber merchant, take the broken bit with you. Talk to the Iron Dwarf, for the sleeve, once you know what you need, he's on here, or book of farce.......

[Tod]

It depends on what you need to make but B and Q do lengths of round pine, this is the same as Past Tents use (or used to). They also do bannister poles if you don't mind a flat down one side. You can get the tube part from Ebay or as written above the local scrap yard.

[Mark Griffin]

Mark Griffin wrote:
.

Remember to cut the pole on a diagonal....

Why?

or it will swivel in the wind like a rotary washing line.

[John Waller]

Mark Griffin wrote:
.

Remember to cut the pole on a diagonal....

Why?

or it will swivel in the wind like a rotary washing line.

I guess so. I only asked as we have just bought an old bell tent with such a pole.

[tentyman]

How did you get on with this?? Would like to know.

[guthrie]

Mark Griffin wrote:
.

Remember to cut the pole on a diagonal....

Why?

or it will swivel in the wind like a rotary washing line.

But don't do as a cheap east european tent manufacturer did to a tent someone else had, this summer. The poles broke, because they'd cut them on the diagonal but held them together with pegs through the cut sections. Two pegs through thinned down bits of wood meant weak points that broke when the wind got up and the tent started flexing.
Of course I'm not sure what the historical method would have been.

[de Coverley]

Bearing in mind the smaller population and the larger number of growing forests I suspect that the historically accurate method would be to go to the local woods and chose and fell a suitable sapling or small tree. Walk inside the woods and the trees will be taller and straighter as they grow upwards to the sun through the leaf canopy. The resultant tent pole would be as long as you could find it and as straight as you could find it.