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Rant: A guy at the trailhead in Bend totally wrecked my trust in a piece of gear

I was packing up my car after a weekend trip, feeling good about my new $300 tent. This older guy walked over and said, 'You know that fly design is a real problem in sideways rain, right? Saw three of those collapse last season.' He was super nice about it, but he pointed out a specific seam that lets water pool. I've used that tent maybe five times now, always in good weather. Now I'm scared to take it out for my big trip to the Wallowas next month. Has anyone else had a random stranger point out a major flaw you totally missed?
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3 Comments
reeseperez
reeseperez2mo ago
Actually, that seam he mentioned is a known thing with that model. The company even put out a fix kit for it. Might be worth checking their website before the trip.
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bennett.mason
That's the worst kind of helpful, isn't it? My entire camping setup is based on blissful ignorance and not talking to anyone who looks like they know what they're doing. Now I'm side-eyeing my own tent, and I've never even been to Bend.
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benclark
benclark2mo agoTop Commenter
Honestly, I'd take that with a grain of salt. A lot of gear opinions are just that, opinions. Maybe those people set theirs up wrong?
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