A bit of experimentation today showed that an off-cut of gear cable makes a decent pole threader. I spent an entertaining afternoon sorting odd bits of Scout tent to try to make up some working ones. A couple are complete apart from working pole sets, so I wanted to use the pieces I had, including some complete lengths from a long-scrapped tent of a different size, to make some new poles.
A sharp bend in the cable off-cut, made with pliers, is enough to grip the pole elastic and pull it through.
