James Baroud tent failure?

theron

Member
I am so sorry to hear that. Honestly this hook situation caught everyone off guard. We had the same thing happen to us. 2 in a row. Ill bet we both had this happen at the same time. The best way to resolve the issue at this time is have them send you a replacement set of hooks, not a ladder. They have the correct fiber reinforced hooks now. All new tents moving forward have the Aluminum hooks. It's really nice. Unfortunately to adapt this new style to existing tents requires some retrofitting. That said, the replacement fiber hooks work just fine.

View attachment 272422


I'm less worried about the hooks than I am with James Baroud USA's customer service. I think them getting to put their hands up in the air and pass it off to HQ down in South America isn't right and sets a bad precedent if/when more customers start having issues in the coming years.

But I do know that James Baroud USA / OK 4WD is listening and I'm sure in the least they will improve their customer service relations because of this. Instead of denying my claim and blaming me they should have told me to visit a dealer to inspect it....which would easily prove I'm not at fault. But instead I had to press the issue to get results, which isn't good or fair for anyone.
 

Overland Hadley

on a journey
I agree that the cracked gel coat looks to be from torsional stress. But even then it should covered under warranty, as it is a design flaw that it is happening.
 

The Rover Shop

Explorer
I recently purchased the bundutec tent... While I don't have any serious operations on it I chose it over the baroud, autohome and maggiolina versions..
 

bat

Explorer
By looking at the picture with the tent open the hinge section to me looks a little weak for strength. It looks like the roof is flexing right at the point where the 2 center roof supports stop with hinges on each side.
 

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Could be. We'll get to the bottom of what caused the problem. In learning how to properly collapse these tents I've not experience any issues like this, ever, and I deploy and collapse grand raids at least once a day. Any fiberglass production item can have issues.
 

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By looking at the picture with the tent open the hinge section to me looks a little weak for strength. It looks like the roof is flexing right at the point where the 2 center roof supports stop with hinges on each side.

Nah, the lids do not flex there when closing. Look at the image sequence on how to close these units I posted the link to a few posts back. However one could push that front arch in at that point if one tried to push down on that point. If the user does not follow the proper stowing steps for these tents I could see that happening. If you make the lid so thick that it's overly stiff there the weight becomes an issue. If thats what happened then stiffening there should be improved.
 

theron

Member
Nah, the lids do not flex there when closing. Look at the image sequence on how to close these units I posted the link to a few posts back. However one could push that front arch in at that point if one tried to push down on that point. If the user does not follow the proper stowing steps for these tents I could see that happening. If you make the lid so thick that it's overly stiff there the weight becomes an issue. If thats what happened then stiffening there should be improved.

I've been following the factory closing procedures that I was given at James Baround USA / OK4WD when I bought my tent, which is closing the front corners one at a time using the pull strap and pushing inward. Pushing in the middle of a tent would be nearly impossible with the tent installed on the roof of a tall rig. Just wasn't sure if your comment was in general or somehow suggesting I have not been properly using my tent ya know
 
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Not trying to do that at all. It doesn't matter even if you had pushed down there as finding out the what caused this to happen is more important. Let's say you had pushed down in that spot and doing so was known to case the gel coat to shatter like that, you should have been forewarned or at least a disclaimer put in the manual. Just trying to figure out what could have caused the issue as I sell a lot f these tents and need to see how al this flushes out to avoid any future issues.
 

theron

Member
Not trying to do that at all. It doesn't matter even if you had pushed down there as finding out the what caused this to happen is more important. Let's say you had pushed down in that spot and doing so was known to case the gel coat to shatter like that, you should have been forewarned or at least a disclaimer put in the manual. Just trying to figure out what could have caused the issue as I sell a lot f these tents and need to see how al this flushes out to avoid any future issues.

Right on, def will you keep ya posted

But what does need to change is OK4WD has to setup some sort of warranty system, they can't simply put it on the customer and say it's a problem for HQ down in South America....that's defeating the whole point of them being "James Baroud USA" so that you can actually get support. I mean look at their website, they brand everything with a huge 5 year warranty sticker. Just really disappointed in them.
 

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As with all products, warranty claims must be researched and a solid determination as to what exactly caused the issue is important. Due to the high cost of shipping these items around, surly you can understand that. I can tell you that both James Baroud and OK4WD are very solid companies and will always do the right thing. If we've never seen an issue like this before then it will come under great scrutiny to determine the actual cause.

Trust me when I tell you that as a manufacture, all of us are very aware of our products shortcomings and potential for warranty repair issues, and set warranty parameters accordingly. This product would not have a 5 Year Warranty if there was potential for anything like this to happen. The fact that it did is why it came under scrutiny in the first place. We've put hundreds of these units on the street in North America without any issues what so ever. So a report like this is unusual to say the least.

Just be patient and let them work it out.
 

tgreening

Expedition Leader
As with all products, warranty claims must be researched and a solid determination as to what exactly caused the issue is important. Due to the high cost of shipping these items around, surly you can understand that. I can tell you that both James Baroud and OK4WD are very solid companies and will always do the right thing. If we've never seen an issue like this before then it will come under great scrutiny to determine the actual cause.

Trust me when I tell you that as a manufacture, all of us are very aware of our products shortcomings and potential for warranty repair issues, and set warranty parameters accordingly. This product would not have a 5 Year Warranty if there was potential for anything like this to happen. The fact that it did is why it came under scrutiny in the first place. We've put hundreds of these units on the street in North America without any issues what so ever. So a report like this is unusual to say the least.

Just be patient and let them work it out.



I dont have a dog in this fight, not even a puppy, but as a consumer I will say Bunk when it comes to "letting them work it out". Take care of the customer, eat some if you have to, and work out the problem on your time and dime, not his. There is no doubt a company will end up getting the shaft sometimes but for every undeserving turd they take care of there will be a dozen more impressed with the service and willing to sign on.


I bought a soft top from Bestop years ago that had one tooth fall out of a zipper. Didnt affect a dang thing. I went back to the store I bought it and asked if it was something that could be fixed and they called Bestop to ask. I'd had this top for months at this point. They sent me a whole new top no questions asked. I've been a solid Bestop customer ever since and have told that story to anyone willing to listen.

I just bought a softopper, mainly because Bestop didnt have the color I wanted, and after two weeks called them back about some defects on the outside flap of the front window. I was concerned about weather damage to the affected areas and asked what could be done about it. They determined it was probably my fault (it probably was) and very politely told me how to make sure it didnt happen again, and promptly sent me a new window. That wasnt what I expected or was asking for, but it certainly took care of my concerns on future weather damage.

The point is these companys took care of me without question for issues that in at least one case was most likely not their fault, and bought themselves a customer for life, and I've no doubt at least a few more willing to give them a shot.

How you treat a customer after the sale counts for way way more than just about all but the most egregious quality issues, and people respond to that.
 
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theron

Member
As with all products, warranty claims must be researched and a solid determination as to what exactly caused the issue is important. Due to the high cost of shipping these items around, surly you can understand that. I can tell you that both James Baroud and OK4WD are very solid companies and will always do the right thing. If we've never seen an issue like this before then it will come under great scrutiny to determine the actual cause.

Trust me when I tell you that as a manufacture, all of us are very aware of our products shortcomings and potential for warranty repair issues, and set warranty parameters accordingly. This product would not have a 5 Year Warranty if there was potential for anything like this to happen. The fact that it did is why it came under scrutiny in the first place. We've put hundreds of these units on the street in North America without any issues what so ever. So a report like this is unusual to say the least.

Just be patient and let them work it out.


I submitted the photos to James Baroud and weeks later they denied my claim and were not interested in seeing the tent in person. That's the simple facts of my story. It was only after I started publishing more info online did they change their tune and were interested in inspecting the tent in person....with strings attached...now that is bad customer service. It's great that there haven't been other issues like mine yet but the fact is that it's happening to me. What's the point of a warranty if a company is going to instantly blame the consumer and not gather more information. It's very clear this is not from misuse. James Baroud again should have told me to visit a dealer and they would take care of me, instead they chose a different path.

How companies handle strange situations its how they will build a reputation and so far James Baroud USA is off to a bad start. I'm sure in the end it will be resolved but it should have been with open arms from the start.
 
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I couldn't agree more. That's how we handle things and is a standard credo for us. That said, in the case of a Pop-Up tent there is a substantial cost involved in shipping the thing back and forth. So it changes the no-questions-asked dynamic for some suppliers.
 

dcoy

Adventurer
To say that James Baroud tents are "off the list" and ranking Autohome as top of the list is a huge mistake. Autohome has experienced far more severe failures than this issue with the JB ladder hooks. I won't go into the problems AH has experienced in the past, but they are substantially more severe.

If that's the case, it's very unfortunate that James Baroud dropped the ball on this one. Between the capricious nature of internet based product reviews (there's very little margin for error) and a premium priced product (not sure if it's a premium product), the consumer has to have faith that they're not shelling out $3000 for a piece of junk.
 

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Oh it's a premium product alright. And in no way did they "drop the ball" on this one. Claiming or insinuating otherwise is simply misinformation. Schutt Industries certainly would not co-brand with them if they were anything but world-class. James Baroud tents are in fact the very best product of their type hands down. That said, no one is perfect 100% of the time. And there is always 2 sides to every story.

In todays wired age, it is not in the best interests of any product manufacturer or distributor to try and stand their ground when a warranty claim is not warranted. Offering a no-questions-asked warranty will always win over customers. And the preverbal deck is completely stacked in favor of the customer anyway. No customer wants to hear that their claim has been denied. And it's usually the case when these things happen that slander is the natural reflex reaction as a means to get even, which is so very easy to get away on the internet. Rude language, threats, rants, outright sander. It's very unfair. Be that as it may, life's unfair sometimes.

I've been denied warranty claims over the years from Apple to GoPro to Canon. And I didn't like it one little bit. But that didn't mean I switched over to a Windows platform or went to Sony action cams or flipped to Nikon. And I certainly did not go out and start defaming those companies publicly because of the actions they took. But hey, thats just me.
 
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