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What could have caused this damage? (1 Viewer)

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kankushok

Active member
I purchased a first generation vortex razor from adorama listed as EX condition. I noticed the focusing knob was a bit sloppy, so I had a look inside as I would any optic I purchase. It appears the right side focusing housing seems to have suffered quite some trauma! It seems a strange place to have a failure. I wonder what could have caused this. I'm afraid all those shards are going to cause problems in the future. I'm a bit bummed, it seems that I've not had an easy time finding a pair of binoculars that meets my minimum standards. :-C

I'm going to contact adorama and see what they have to say. I've also contacted Vortex, because I have heard great things about their customer service, and wanted to find out how responsive they really are.
 

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First guess is that the previous owner's small tool skills were not what he thought they were. Or maybe the damage slipped through factory qc and the bins are now on the grey market. But the why is irrelevant. The bins should go back and you should get a complete refund including shipping. That kind of damage should have been disclosed.
 
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kankushok said:
I purchased a first generation vortex razor from adorama listed as EX condition. I noticed the focusing knob was a bit sloppy, so I had a look inside as I would any optic I purchase. It appears the right side focusing housing seems to have suffered quite some trauma! It seems a strange place to have a failure. I wonder what could have caused this. I'm afraid all those shards are going to cause problems in the future. I'm a bit bummed, it seems that I've not had an easy time finding a pair of binoculars that meets my minimum standards. :-C

I'm going to contact adorama and see what they have to say. I've also contacted Vortex, because I have heard great things about their customer service, and wanted to find out how responsive they really are.
Click to expand...

Looks like they might have been used by Pete Dunne for a javelin toss test! Apparently, whatever employee listed them in excellent condition didn't look inside the binoculars. I'd send the photos to Adorama and ask them for a replacement at no extra charge as compensation for their mistake.
 
I'm actually quite intrigued now after examining the damage more closely. I don't see any larger debris in the rest of the binocular, so it must have gone into the focusing shaft. However, the focus turns smoothly once it gets started, so it seems unlikely to have significant debris lodged in there. The slop could be attributable to the loss of the threads though. It also seems like a really strange area to get damaged. The force looks like it pushed material in, which had to occur from within the binocular. Not sure how that force could be generated externally.

It would seem a strange place to damage during a repair. There's no screws that are needed in that area or anything to pull apart. I'm also wondering why anybody would try to take apart binoculars when they have a lifetime warranty. I doubt the average person would have the argon on hand to refill after they finished...
 
kankushok said:
I purchased a first generation vortex razor from adorama listed as EX condition. I noticed the focusing knob was a bit sloppy, so I had a look inside as I would any optic I purchase. It appears the right side focusing housing seems to have suffered quite some trauma! It seems a strange place to have a failure. I wonder what could have caused this. I'm afraid all those shards are going to cause problems in the future. I'm a bit bummed, it seems that I've not had an easy time finding a pair of binoculars that meets my minimum standards. :-C

I'm going to contact adorama and see what they have to say. I've also contacted Vortex, because I have heard great things about their customer service, and wanted to find out how responsive they really are.
Click to expand...

If you still need help with this you are most welcome to email me directly: [email protected]
 
Hi Helen,

Thanks for checking in. I've sent an email to adorama service, but have not yet received a response. I will forward the email to you.
 
Given that there is cracking instead of tearing,
something might have been off in the casting process.
Very hard to detect per unit, only etching samples
shows it. No real toolmarks..if a tool broke through,
it should have cut, not cracked.
 
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NDhunter said:
Helen:

That looks like a manufacturing defect from the start, and you were selling this one as used? What is up with that?

Vortex has a very good warranty, and they would have replaced this binocular without question.

Jerry
Click to expand...

Adorama has stepped up to resolve the issue. I can understand how the issue slipped through the cracks, although the loose focusing knob should have been noted in the original listing. I assume that they just checked for any scratches and marks on the optics and didn't look too closely at the internal structure.

I'm currently working with Vortex warranty and they have been great so far as well.
 
Just wanted to give an update:

I got a replacement from Vortex. While the replacement doesn't have the same play in the focus knob, it isn't really ideal either. The focus knob seems a little out of round (the rubber doesn't fall flat all the way around) and the tension changes quite a bit through the range. I'm not sure if I want to be without binoculars again, so I just might keep it anyway as is. Vortex did provide replacement objective covers without prompting though. Kudos for that, but I wish they would have done a better job checking the replacement pair.
 
unusual damage could have been a manufacturing defect that slipped the quality control. However, those instruments are assembled by human hands and it would be hard to imagine someone grabbing and assembling a defective part.
More likely, it is possible that your original binoculars were damaged by excessive force applied to the focusing mechanism after it had reached the end of the focusing range.
Funny, i still shake every pair of binoculars and listen for rattling parts the first time i grab them, before i look through them.
Your new focuser will settle and break in. Some "initial sticktion" will remain, but the focus feel will improve with time.
 
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