# Hunter wellies - poor quality?



## lhotse (21 October 2008)

I had my previous pair of Hunters for 4 years, worn every day and when they finally got a hole in april, I duly paid out my hard earned cash for a new pair. I've been wearing Hunters for the last 20 years and have always found them to be very hardwearing. Imagine my dismay to find that my new ones have worn out in only 6 months, they are cracking around the ankle and the soles are now devoid of any grip and have holes forming. Compared to my old ones, the rubber is a lot thinner and they no longer have 'made in scotland' stamped on the front.
Is this the beginning of the end


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## rebeccaandgrace (21 October 2008)

i noticed the difference to mine the same size as the last pair are get this too small!!!!!!! but now i cant take them back as only relised after i had wore them, they look different to how odd maybe they are getting imogrents to make them or somthing


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## hotellie (21 October 2008)

yep had hunters and they lasted for years...my mum had a pair for 15 years!!!! 
i got a pair last year and they are very cracked round the ankles and they are completely worn through on the bottom...not happy


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## Minnies_Mum (21 October 2008)

I've had mine for 8/9 years and they are still OK, despite the battering they get!  My sister got some a few years ago and they are not the same quality at all.  I will be very sad when mine break as I now I won't be able to replace them


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## lhotse (21 October 2008)

They were taken over a while back so I now think the business has gone 'abroad'. I wrote them an email and recieved a reply from someone with a foreign name so I don't think we'll be getting the old quality back. They were not very helpful to say the least.


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## Chex (21 October 2008)

Mine started leaking after a few months, but at least they have a year guarantee so getting a free replacement


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## lhotse (21 October 2008)

[ QUOTE ]
maybe they are getting imogrents to make them or somthing 

[/ QUOTE ]
That's the best description I've ever heard


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## Murphy3 (21 October 2008)

Interested to hear this as I was thinking of buying a pair - will stick with Muckboots I think.


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## perfect11s (21 October 2008)

Made in China perhaps ????like everything else


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## rebeccaandgrace (21 October 2008)

lol well its cheaper to employ them! so prob bad workmanship if the people have moved away they prob sold the buisness in freezing cold rainy scotland and went off to sunny land and sold it to some imogrents that like to make money


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## lhotse (21 October 2008)

I think it's such a shame that a product that has been at the head of the game for so long has taken such a downturn in quality, they price has not degraded though, £50 a pair. Take a hike


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## littlemisslauren (21 October 2008)

i just bought a pair of hunter balmoral ( i think) wellies, so far they seem fab


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## hadfos (21 October 2008)

Personally i think they are crap....nearly £50 for a pair of wellies yet ya still need 10 pairs of socks to keep ya feet warm??Surely they could have thought of some sort of thermal lining for that price??Plus last pair i had fell to bits.....Muck boots for me these days..sooooo warm


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## laz (21 October 2008)

Quality is rubbish now i have had 2 pairs that have split, i got a replacement pair then they split. I treated everyone in my family a pair for xmas my dad's split and my b/f 's split and they were just over a year old.  I expect to get longer than a year out of them when you pay £60 a pair.


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## Zebedee (21 October 2008)

I had the same thing happen but as Hunters are guaranteed for a year I took mine back and got a refund. I'm now wearing Aigle wellies instead and I reckon they're well worth the extra


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## MissSBird (22 October 2008)

Yes hunter moved their factories somewhere east. I think it was China but not certain.

And the quality has just shot downhill since then.

The classics/galloways arn't too bad but the originals are worthless now.

Try Toggi's, they're the same price, last longer and come with neoprene lining!


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## a1b2c3 (22 October 2008)

i bought a pair of black ones about two years ago, and they are still going strong


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## svincent (22 October 2008)

My feed merchant is selling Young Hunters in a wide range of colours (light blue, yellow, fuschia pink, etc) for only £15 a pair.   Doesn't seem a lot given their previous pricing history.


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## Minnies_Mum (22 October 2008)

On the subject of quality wellies, a friend of mine is wearing Le Chameau wellies for our farm placement at the moment.  I was eyeing them up, thinking how nice they looked with their neoprene lining.


I've just googled them..... they are £220 a pair!


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## MurphysMinder (22 October 2008)

Yep, Hunters are now made abroad unfortunately.  The quality has reduced considerably nowadays.  The shop I work in sells them and we have had to replace quite a few pairs.  We now only get them in if people specifically ask for them, and point out they are not the same as the "old" Hunter.  Incidentally, if a boot starts leaking within a short time of you buying it then you are within your rights to take it back to the shop you bought it from.


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## Faro (22 October 2008)

I'd heard a while back that Hunter had been taken over by someone else, and had heard quite a few comments on the deterioration in quality.  My old pair is about 6 years old now and have been absolutely fantastic, but are just starting to come to the end of their days (I think I was fortunate enough to get one of the last pairs before the take-over).  When the time comes to replace them (which in all honestly I think will be during this winter) I have already decided, going by previous comments, that I will probably just opt for a cheap pair - or stick with the Muck Boots which I also have.


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## Angua2 (22 October 2008)

My mothers hunters have finally died after about 25 years... the rubber on the ankle perished and split and my pair died after 18 years but only because I managed to put a hole in the foot.  I was looking to get another pair but after the comments here will stick to the cheap and cheerful pair old work issue pair.


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## Kenzo (22 October 2008)

Totally agree, Hunters used to be the best wellies about when it came to country sports/riding/mucking out, you paid for the comfort, quality and of course knowing they'd last you years, I've had 2 pairs in the last couple of years and both of them leaked in less than 6 months, faded and basically I didnt bother wearing them any more and chose to wear my old joddy boots for stable duties!

I'd rather pay £15 for a cheap pair or wellies that will last me a couple of months than £45.00-£50 on a pair of hunters!

Boo hoo to Hunter Wellies,definately a thumbs down.


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## sarahs (22 October 2008)

As people have stated they have obviously been sold, which is such a shame. I have a pair that  are a couple of years old but hardly wear them as I prefer my Dubarrys. 
I think they mainly produce hunters now for fashion ( thank you very much Kate Moss !) I dont think they realise people still wear them on yards and farms, they just think that people walk up and down the kings road in them !


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## BackInBlack (22 October 2008)

yeah, same thing happened to me with my hunters - old ones excellent, new ones crap! didn't realise they had a years guarantee... got some muckboots now, they've been great so far, nice and warm and they don't come off when you get stuck in the big muddy puddles!


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## Zayna (22 October 2008)

I've had Hunters, Loveson, Derby House Thermal longboots, cheap and cheerful, you name it. Hunters are cold and wear out too quick, Loveson too uncomfortable and can't get my jeans in, DH Thermal let water in round the ankle and have now split all round the bottom, so I've bought a pair of Ariat Mudbuster wellies.

So far so good. They are unbelievably comfortable and warm. And I can tuck my jeans in. Hope they last the duration because I tell you, it's like wearing warm comfy slippers...


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## lachlanandmarcus (22 October 2008)

Yep mine split within 5 months, both boots, in several places. Didnt take them back but will never buy them again. shame as they fitted really well.

Spent £20 on some harry hall rubber boots from equestrian clearance, so far so good!


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## superstar565 (22 October 2008)

ah i have the answer!!
the original hunter company made the boots and they were too good quality for their own good as once people had bought a pair they didnt need another pair.
This meant that their income was not good and so they started to make all those different colours (like fushia pink and all wacky ones).
then they finally admited defeat and sold up
it's such a shame but i luckily bought a pair just before the handover!


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## Kenzo (22 October 2008)

Really, thats interesting, well done Sherlock!


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## baileymoo (22 October 2008)

Im new here but felt the need to comment 
	
	
		
		
	


	




Me and a friend bought hunters, and since wearing them have had no end of blisters.
The back of my ankle swelled up so much i couldnt wear shoes for days, and still have a bit of pain now. Anyone else find they are too tight at the back?
But yeah i sent them back, complained and sent doctors reports, and they offered to send me a free new pair.
No thanks.


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## MurphysMinder (22 October 2008)

My daughter had a new pair and they rubbed her.  The seam down the back of the boot had worn and that was causing the problem, my old original Hunters don't have this seam.  She returned them and got a replacement, but they seem to be leaking already.  I am still wearing the same old faithfuls, she is heading for a 3rd pair, though think will stick to muckboots this time.


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## Horsetan (5 January 2009)

Further to this thread, production of Hunter wellies now takes place mainly in China. 

Serbia and Brazil also do some production as well, apparently.

Whilst the Chinese - to give them their due - are very good at imitating things, they are not very good at durability, and have no interest in that particular quality. However, the low production cost (compared to the original factory in Dumfries, Scotland) means that Hunter can protect their profit margins. This is even more valid now Hunter have become a global "designer" label.

I made a point of acquiring, where possible, only the Hunters made in Scotland, i.e. up to the end of 2006. This is obviously not possible for some of the new colours. I also make a point of never paying retail price, because Hunters are no longer worth that. £40 per pair is the absolute limit now.

You can spot the China-made Hunters via certain clues: first, the boot size is marked in red ink inside on the insoles, and secondly one boot (can't remember whether it's left or right, but I think it's the left one) has a very "square" front at the top, suggesting that the last on which it was assembled was misaligned or damaged in some way.

If you wear the current production Hunters on a daily basis, for yard work, etc. then my view is don't expect them to last more than about a year. Staff at the livery yard I go to have managed to kill their China-made Hunters in 6 months flat. Since this is within the guarantee period, this would ultimately cost Hunter's current owners a lot of money in the long run if the guarantees were all taken up. I would urge anyone in this situation to enforce the guarantee - hurting their profits is the only way to make Hunter sit up and take notice.

For really tough traditional wellies, I would wear Le Chameau - particularly the neoprene-lined Vierzonord model, which I use in winter. Very little else comes close in strength nowadays. Unfortunately they run at about £115 per pair, but they are an investment.


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