The reason he used threaded rod was to keep them from moving around as the threads fit into the flashing and keep them from falling out. Something else you might use that are made for cooking but might be a little heavier are skeweers like they use to serve grilled shrimp in resturants. They are chrome plated and about the right length. You could take a file and file a groove in them so as to set on the flashing and not move around.