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Zeiss and the US Market (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter helenol
- Start date
"With regard to Zeiss, I recently had to return two ClassiC 10x40s in a row to Cabella's because of misalignment right out of the box. Thinking quality control of high-end binocs might be limited to Zeiss, I then had to return an Ultravid 10x42BL to one dealer because of bad eyecups, and a Red 8x32BN to another because of very bad misalignment. It's hard to believe that roof prisms are making it to the street misaligned, but there it is. The only solid performer that I've found is Swarovski. They always satisfy, and customer service is superb."
Sounds like you either have terrible luck or you're extremely picky. I've owned several Leica, Zeiss, Pentax and Nikon Venturer/LX's, and have only ever had to return one for any type of problem. That one being the last pair of Nikon's, which were repaired under warranty and returned in about two weeks.
This is an interesting thread. The thing I find most interesting is that no local dealers carry the Zeiss 10x40 ClassiC's, but I see more of them in the field than anything else (top end stuff, not the local ----Mart $19.99 special). I imagine it has something to do with Zeiss' reputation and the fact Cabelas sells them for $699.99.
Sounds like you either have terrible luck or you're extremely picky. I've owned several Leica, Zeiss, Pentax and Nikon Venturer/LX's, and have only ever had to return one for any type of problem. That one being the last pair of Nikon's, which were repaired under warranty and returned in about two weeks.
This is an interesting thread. The thing I find most interesting is that no local dealers carry the Zeiss 10x40 ClassiC's, but I see more of them in the field than anything else (top end stuff, not the local ----Mart $19.99 special). I imagine it has something to do with Zeiss' reputation and the fact Cabelas sells them for $699.99.
chartwell99
Well-known member
Curtis Croulet said:
The rubber armor did, remarkably, smell like new tires when new (unlike the wonderful - but no one but me seems to like - hard rubber of the 8 x 32/7x42/10/40 etc Classics) but it disappears after 2 - 3 months (I know - a long time - but worth it).
Curtis Croulet
Well-known member
Rich N said:
I haven't had the privilege of smelling an AP refractor.
Steve Napier
Well-known member
Astro-Physics! Now theres a Telescope maker.
I here there is a 5 year waiting list for some of their models!
It would be worth the wait.
Steve.
I here there is a 5 year waiting list for some of their models!
It would be worth the wait.
Steve.
Steve Napier said:
Astro-Physics is moving into a new facility. They say they will be able to increase their output. It would be good to see the waiting period reduced. I know they won't let the quality of their products slip.
AP mentions their new facility on their website.
http://www.astro-physics.com/
Used APs come up now and then on Ebay and other sites.
Rich
Last edited:
Bill Atwood said:
There still seems to be a lot of confusion out there regarding the Zeiss Victory bins. Here is my attempt (2nd) to clear it up: Zeiss brought out their first Victory model but it did not receive good reviews. Main complaints were the smell of the armouring, less than perfect resolution, and the placement of the strap lugs. In response to these complaints, Zeiss then reworked the bin and brought out the Victory II which then received rave reviews from Alula (the best, in my opinion, set of reviews) and Better View Desired. I own a pair of 10x42 Victory IIs and firmly believe that they are optically ahead of swaros or Leicas. Also, despite sticking my nose against my car tires and then the bins, I have failed to detect any car tire smell. The strap lugs have also been relocated.
I think that what happened here was that the Victory IIs still suffer from the bad reviews that the original bins received, This is a pity since I consider them by far the best on the market (though I have not seen the FLs yet).
Grousemore
Senior Member
hg1 said:
The only confusion remaining is that you mean 10x40 Victory 11s, not 10x42.
Other than that, I agree with your opinion of their optical merits.
elkcub
Silicon Valley, California
Buster said:
Buster,
Actually, I didn't mean to depricate Zeiss, since I love point 'n shoot cameras with Zeiss T lenses. They make quality stuff.
Although I have three Swaro SLC binocs, my first pick was Cabela's ClassiC 10x40 for a hi-power. (The Swaro 10x42 was really preferred, but a price difference of $400 wasn't justified — I thought.) I had used a 10x40 back in the mid-90s, but not the P* model. Anyway, the optics were very much to my satisfaction, but I was astounded that two pair in a row gave me splitting headaches within a few minutes. I'm talking about all-night nail drivers. Cabela's was great, but I couldn't go through that a third time. I got green just thinking Zeiss 10x40s.
Maybe it was my bad luck, maybe not. Cabela's has now questioned the entire shipment. The important point is that poor quality control can ruin the reputation of any high-end product very easily. I can't help thinking, also, that this same model sold for $995 in 1995. Can an improved model really be marketed today for $699 without cutting corners?
elkcub
Grousemore said:
In my experience In Focus and Ace Cameras advise customers against the Zeiss Victory 8x40.
Here in the UK there is AFAIK no distinction made between the I and the II. What's more a Zeiss engineer visited In Focus to update the old strap lugs to new ones so inspection of the lugs does not say anything about the optics i.e. old or new.
The 8x40 Victory was innovative but never took off.
Rave vs good
Maybe I was a little flippant in my use of the term "rave". However, Alula reviewed the Victory IIs in Jan, 2004 and the review by-and-large was very positive (they reviewed the Victory Is about 3 years ago and the review was not so good). Anyway, in the latest review which compares the Zeiss with Leicas, Swaro, and the rest of the pack, the Zeiss Victory IIs scored about the highest numerical score and exceeded their competitors in a number of categories. This review has just been published on the web at Alula's site.
pduxon said:
Maybe I was a little flippant in my use of the term "rave". However, Alula reviewed the Victory IIs in Jan, 2004 and the review by-and-large was very positive (they reviewed the Victory Is about 3 years ago and the review was not so good). Anyway, in the latest review which compares the Zeiss with Leicas, Swaro, and the rest of the pack, the Zeiss Victory IIs scored about the highest numerical score and exceeded their competitors in a number of categories. This review has just been published on the web at Alula's site.
