Bought a $75 used tent that ripped on the first night

Picked up a North Face stormbreak from a guy on Craigslist. Looked fine in his backyard setup but the fly seam let go at 2am during a light rain in the Sierra foothills. Spent the rest of the night huddled in my truck. Should have pitched it in my own yard first and sprayed it down with a hose. Has anyone else had luck with seam sealers on that model or is it just junk at this point?

2 comments

2 Comments

king.lisa1mo agoMost Upvoted

Changed my mind about trusting used gear without testing first.

xena_rivera631mo ago

Laughed out loud at "should have pitched it in my own yard first" because yeah that is literally the universal rule for used gear that everyone ignores until they get burned. I bought a "gently used" tent once that looked mint in the guy's living room then basically turned into a waterfall at the first real rain. Seam sealer might help if the fabric isn't totally shot but honestly seam failures on the fly are usually a sign the material is toast from UV damage or whatever the last owner did to it. You can try the Gear Aid seam sealer stuff but don't expect miracles. Honestly for $75 you got a lesson in why Craigslist tents are always a gamble and now you have a backup emergency shelter for your truck if nothing else.