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hi

i have ordered a outwell hartford xxl 2009 model tent with canopy which i have got for 389.99 for tent and 74.00 for canopy, i did originally order the 2008 but they sold out and offered me a 2009 with discount and the canopy at the same price which i think is a good deal ???????? also i have spent quite some time looking into this tent and found a lot of very good reviews but have just found some bad ones about back door leaking and elastic in poles snapping and weak poles which has me a little worried now, are these earlier model defects or current or am i just being a prat lol as im really excited about getting my tent and cant believe i have to wait till first week in feb :(

also does anyone know if there is any difference between the 2008 and 2009 model as i cant seem to find any info that is listed for the 2009 that was listed for the 2008 as looking to get the footprint and carpet

all help/advice very welcome

Quote: Originally posted by alibali65 on 20/1/2009

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As far as I can see there is no difference between the 08 & 09 Hartford XL which we have.  I wouldn't worry about stuff snapping etc We have not had any problems since we bought our xl last year. Although to be fair I bought some spares in case they did break which probaly gurantees they won't. Enjoy the tent

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hi

i havent as yet put my hartford xxl up due to the weather but i did find a video which you can download on the www.outwell.com website that you can watch the tent being erected if that helps

I have been dissapointed with this tent.

Yes it is big and the layout is fantastic but i have had 4 pole breakages so far in 4 outings. Twice the poles snapped and ripped the tent and we had to do running repairs. I am now looking to change to a steel pole design as there is something wrong with these poles.

sorry for gatecrashing - but this tension problem seems to be a trend with the larger outwells! we have a thread all about the maryland with the same problem, read through, but its quite lengthy!

it is starting to really annoy some of us owners, and a lot of us have already got replacements. seems that outwell really cant be bothered with any substantial standards anymore!

their customer service is horrendous, you cant actually contact them!

sorry to put a downer on things !

Quote: Originally posted by dadsbeaniemad on 15/2/2009

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mullog
do a search for other posts on here.
I seem to recall posts about this last August September time.
Our Hartford L always seemed to 'sit' a bit wrong when pitched. I thin it's just the tent and not how we pitched.

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 We have had the tent for two seasons now and i can't seam to pitch it right , this hasn't affected our camping trips it is just abit annoying , with regards to peoples questions on the poles i have split one of the metal sleeves that the poles locate into but (one of the blue poles) it was my fault i never located the pole fully into the sleeve and the pole split the sleeve and broke the pole , i took it straight back to blacks who sent it to outwell and i got a full replacement blue pole within a week and i got my old blue pole back so now i have plenty of spares .

While i am logged on how often do you need to waterproof the tent