Outdoor gear fails in ways that do not show in a photograph of it packed away, and one question finds most of them.
The questions
"Was it ever packed away wet?" Mould does not come out of fabric. This is the question that decides a tent, and it is the one nobody thinks to ask. Non-answer: "It's been kept fine."
"Can you pitch it, light it, or turn it on camera?" A tent standing, a stove lit, a reel turning. If a seller will not or cannot, treat the item as untested.
"How old is it, and how has it been stored?" Coatings, elastic and foam age whether or not the item was used. A loft is the worst place in an Indian house.
"Can you lay the parts out and count them?" Poles, pegs, guy lines, inner, fly, footprint, stuff sacks, spares.
"Any mould, holes, or repairs?" Shown rather than described.
"Does the stove come with fuel?" It cannot — fuel does not post. Know that before you bid. Delivering outdoor gear.
For optics: "Any haze or fungus, and is the focus smooth?"
What protection covers
Missing pieces described as present, undisclosed damage, mould not mentioned, a different model: seven days from delivery.
Questions people ask
Is a second-hand tent a good buy?
Often an excellent one, if it was stored dry.
Does a leaking seam matter?
It is fixable and it is a discount. It should have been declared.
How do I know a sleeping bag still lofts?
Ask whether it was stored compressed. That is what kills loft.
More: buying outdoor gear, storing it.