Brand New Victory Issue? (1 Viewer)

[Smoothoperator]

So I just got a brand new pair of 10x42 Victory SF’s yesterday and I love them. The optical quality really is amazing. The one thing I have noticed is an ever so slight grittiness in the focus wheel. It is not constant throughout the whole focus spectrum but when I get to about center focus, I seem to notice it most. I don’t remember this on the demo pair I tried. So I guess my question is, does the grittiness go away with use? For the cost of glass like this, I’d expect perfection or damn close and I don’t know if this will end up driving me crazy.

 

[Troubador]

So I just got a brand new pair of 10x42 Victory SF’s yesterday and I love them. The optical quality really is amazing. The one thing I have noticed is an ever so slight grittiness in the focus wheel. It is not constant throughout the whole focus spectrum but when I get to about center focus, I seem to notice it most. I don’t remember this on the demo pair I tried. So I guess my question is, does the grittiness go away with use? For the cost of glass like this, I’d expect perfection or damn close and I don’t know if this will end up driving me crazy.

This is not right. All the SFs I have tried and owned have had exquisite focus actions. I recommend you return it to the dealer as faulty and ask for a replacement.

Lee

 

[CSG]

Unacceptable. My pair of SF 8x32s had a quarter inch of free play in either direction. Other issues as well. Returned same day.

 

[recon493]

My pair of 10x32's are perfect in every way. The thing that impressed me the most is the perfectly smooth and tight focus action.

 

[Troubador]

My pair of 10x32's are perfect in every way. The thing that impressed me the most is the perfectly smooth and tight focus action.

Yes my experience of 2 SF 42s and 2 SF32s and many demo models was the same as yours.

Lee

 

[Paultricounty]

So I just got a brand new pair of 10x42 Victory SF’s yesterday and I love them. The optical quality really is amazing. The one thing I have noticed is an ever so slight grittiness in the focus wheel. It is not constant throughout the whole focus spectrum but when I get to about center focus, I seem to notice it most. I don’t remember this on the demo pair I tried. So I guess my question is, does the grittiness go away with use? For the cost of glass like this, I’d expect perfection or damn close and I don’t know if this will end up driving me crazy.

I had two bother were perfect smooth and one of the many things that are so nice on the SF line. I think it’s one of the two best focusers on any binoculars. I’d use it a few days and if not completely gone, return for an exchange. I had a little bit of stiction ( a word used here) on a pair of Swarovski 12x50EL’s and it did work it’s way out. Good luck, let us know how it works out. You should be 100% satisfied amd don’t accept anything less at these prices. It’s literally a part of what your paying for.

Did you SF have that white powdery stuff on it when you took out of box?

Paul

 

[Smoothoperator]

Yes my experience of 2 SF 42s and 2 SF32s and many demo models was the same as yours.

Lee

Same with the ones I used prior to purchasing these.

 

[Smoothoperator]

I had two bother were perfect smooth and one of the many things that are so nice on the SF line. I think it’s one of the two best focusers on any binoculars. I’d use it a few days and if not completely gone, return for an exchange. I had a little bit of stiction ( a word used here) on a pair of Swarovski 12x50EL’s and it did work it’s way out. Good luck, let us know how it works out. You should be 100% satisfied amd don’t accept anything less at these prices. It’s literally a part of what your paying for.

Did you SF have that white powdery stuff on it when you took out of box?

Paul

I don’t recall any white powdery substance when I took them out of the box. Any idea what that is? And I’ll check out some of the threads that talk about stiction too.

 

[Bentley03]

So I just got a brand new pair of 10x42 Victory SF’s yesterday and I love them. The optical quality really is amazing. The one thing I have noticed is an ever so slight grittiness in the focus wheel. It is not constant throughout the whole focus spectrum but when I get to about center focus, I seem to notice it most. I don’t remember this on the demo pair I tried. So I guess my question is, does the grittiness go away with use? For the cost of glass like this, I’d expect perfection or damn close and I don’t know if this will end up driving me crazy.

Return them without hesitation, Victory SF focus wheels are (or should be) absolute perfection. In 2021 I tested 8 different instruments (4 different magnification combinations) and the focus wheel on each and every one was perfectly smooth in both directions from stop to stop. I used the Victory SF focus mechanism as a reference when trying to pick out a good pair of bins of a different brand.

 

[CSG]

I love all the defensive posts when someone complains about a problem with a new pair of binoculars. Yes, we know most people get good samples but some don't. People posting how theirs are perfect doesn't contribute anything to the conversation or the problem Smoothoperater is posting about. The powder (I saw it on my faulty pair of SFs is a protectant and wipes off easily. To me, that was of no concern. I'm a Zeiss fanboy but the pair of SFs I received were built so poorly that I was literally stunned with how bad the focus wheel and diopter adjustment was. It was cheap Chinese level quality on those two functions.

 

[Troubador]

I love all the defensive posts when someone complains about a problem with a new pair of binoculars. Yes, we know most people get good samples but some don't. People posting how theirs are perfect doesn't contribute anything to the conversation or the problem Smoothoperater is posting about. The powder (I saw it on my faulty pair of SFs is a protectant and wipes off easily. To me, that was of no concern. I'm a Zeiss fanboy but the pair of SFs I received were built so poorly that I was literally stunned with how bad the focus wheel and diopter adjustment was. It was cheap Chinese level quality on those two functions.

CSG its not a case of being defensive. The experience of an owner with a bino that has worked without problems is as valid as someone's who has had a bad experience. What it does do is contribute to the validity of your second sentence and also supports people who have had a bad experience by confirming that the problem they have is not what they should expect of that model and so they should return it to the dealer as a faulty product.

Lee

 

[CSG]

You're the moderator so what you say goes.

 

[Patudo]

The one thing I have noticed is an ever so slight grittiness in the focus wheel.

Reading comments like this does make me wonder how many users would actually discern the "ever so slight grittiness"? Discussions re the stiffness of the Swarovski Habicht focus wheel have yielded a range of opinions from those who think it's too stiff to those who find it perfectly fine. The way some individuals wax lyrical about focus feel at times makes one think there must be a remarkably high percentage of commentators here who have the sensitivity of touch of concert pianists or heart surgeons...

 

[GrampaTom]

CSG, one of the worries some of us have discussed is fact that Birdforum, Bino subsection is one of a very few worldwide resources to discuss binocular performance. Folks do a Google search, discover BF come here and read….. well lots of opinions, sometimes fact/experienced based, sometimes not. If the historical record is mostly of problems, perceived shortcomings, (dare I mention glare), only those reports of stuff an individual poster wasn’t happy with, then a negative impression is what is mostly to be found here. Not cool. Not helpful. The good comments that accompany reports of disappointment, would seem as Lee said above, be helpful to balance things out.

 

[PYRTLE]

You're the moderator so what you say goes.

That is unfair, regardless of position it is someone's opinion formed from experience. I have been fortunate with no problems whatsoever with a pair of FLs and black SFs. What I do agree with is if they are unsatisfactory in any way when first used they should be immediately returned. Otherwise you could try rotating the focus wheel back and forth a few times each day to see if the sticktion frees up. You should have a few days, dependant on the type of purchase, to contact the seller about an exchange if it does not go away.

 

[Troubador]

You're the moderator so what you say goes.

LOL. When I am speaking as a moderator I sign off like this:

Lee
MODERATOR

 

[CSG]

LOL. When I am speaking as a moderator I sign off like this:

Lee
MODERATOR

Not meant as a dig or to be offensive Lee. I've been a member here coming up on 16 years now. My point is that I wasn't going to argue with you that I read that every time someone posts about an issue with a binocular, especially an alpha class binocular, others chime in to say theirs are faultless. We already know most of them are as the hundreds and hundreds of topics attesting to that fact are in the Bird Forum database. Like I said, I'm a Zeiss fanboy and have four pairs of excellent binoculars of theirs. They are my first choice in binoculars. When I complained about the SFs I received, I already knew most people's samples were superlative. Mine weren't, not even close. I realized that even had I gotten a perfect example between the only slightly better optics and the front hinge that gets in the way of my hands, they weren't for me as was the case with the Leica 7x42 UV+ and 7x35 Retros. They were perfect but simply didn't have compatible ergos for me.

 

[Paultricounty]

I love all the defensive posts when someone complains about a problem with a new pair of binoculars. Yes, we know most people get good samples but some don't. People posting how theirs are perfect doesn't contribute anything to the conversation or the problem Smoothoperater is posting about. The powder (I saw it on my faulty pair of SFs is a protectant and wipes off easily. To me, that was of no concern. I'm a Zeiss fanboy but the pair of SFs I received were built so poorly that I was literally stunned with how bad the focus wheel and diopter adjustment was. It was cheap Chinese level quality on those two functions.

I love it when someone gets a bad set of binoculars and gets everybody all pumped up. It makes for more stimulating conversation on occasion.

The fact that you and possibly a handful of people out of hundreds or thousands who received and enjoy one the top three best built binoculars in world today is more a disappoint for you than a testament to the quality of these fine binoculars. And don’t you have one of those cheap Chinese Terras.

Maybe you should have tried another one and realized how good they are, then send them back because they didn’t fit you ergonomically. But trash whole line of this binoculars it’s not fair to the people who found them to be an extraordinary binocular.

 

[CSG]

Paul, reading comprehension is not your strong suit. Welcome to ignore.

 

[Smoothoperator]

Okay guys, I took them out on a snowshoe trip today and here’s my .02 after using them constantly for the last 8 hours… the clarity of these really are phenomenal and the FOV is awesome. The focus wheel is definitely inconsistent and has not seemed to improve with use. This is noticeable enough that the focus wheel on my Japan made Vortex Razor HD 12x50’s was smoother than this. I also have a pair of Maven B5 15x56’s with a smoother focus. The other thing I noticed is the diopter seems odd. It goes more to one side than it does the other. I’ll post pictures shortly.