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Bausch and Lomb Elite -Vickers (1 Viewer)

Joelle

New member
I would be happy to know iof anybody else has had problems trying to get their Bausch and Lomb binoculars repaired. The only agent in England seems to be Vickers and I find them very poor to deal with. When I was in England last year I sent them fir repair - they were out of line and they had them for a very long time - I eventually got them back after several desperate phone calls - but they were awful and have got progressively worse. I have sent them again - and althought they are supposed to have a life time guarantee - they have sent a bill/estimate. Several dealers have told me they avoid Bausch and Lamb because of the repair problem. Has anynody else found this and if so - what do they advise? Thank you
Jo
 
Even in the USA, Bushnell/Bausch & Lomb repairs are problematic. The world headquarters is near where I live and I know many people, including myself, who have experience with the repair lab there. To summarize many individual stories, the only "repairs" that I know of that have been done well are those instances in which the unit has simply been replaced with a new one (a regular practice with the less expensive models). In instances of actual repair work (on Elite or Custom models), the binocular comes back looking like it has been repaired--rubber armor and fittings not quite back in place or secured well, wrench marks on lock rings, fingerprints/dust on internal lens elements, focus wheels with more play in them. It's the work you might expect from a sloppy corner shop, not a manufacturer's "repair lab." Availability of replacement parts is assured for only 3-5 years. My interpretation is that because Bushnell has its binos made in Japan and elsewhere by other corporations, there is really no connection between their manufacturing and repair efforts. In contrast, although I have seen horror stories posted over the internet, my personal experience with Zeiss, Leica, and Nikon has been that the binoculars come back looking like new, having been repaired and reassembled as cleanly as when they were manufactured.

My advice would be to go back to the repair facility and complain until they either fix the problem to your satisfaction or replace your unit with a new one. Best wishes.
 
Hi Joelle, I have had a pair of Bushnell Natureview 8x30 binoculars for a number of years. In January the focus wheel kept turning without any affect so I took them to the place where I bought them. They were not able to fix them because they said that the manufacturers would not provide any spare parts, so they sent them to Vickers for repair. They were told by Vickers to expect the repair to take 20-25 days. After nearly 70 days and several phone calls they were returned, 'repaired' at no charge, apparently under guarantee. As Alexis indicates, it was obvious they had been 'looked at' as they were a bit grubby and sticky to the touch. Unfortunately, within a week the focus wheel problem had occurred again and so they have been sent back to Vickers again. I decided to by another pair of binculars, Leica this time, and just keep the Bushnells for the kitchen window sill. My wife also has a pair of Bushnell Natureviews and has had no problems, yet! The suppliers I use are 'Focus Optics' near Coventry and they have been excellent at all times.
 
For what it's worth, I had to send my old binos to B&L for repair and they did a good job although very slow. The binos came back looking clean, working well and properly reassembled. When I bought my new binos I bought Elites partly because of the availability of service (which is done in Toronto).
The dealer that I bought from carries most brands and only had criticism for Opticon because of service issues, in fact, he no longer carries them.
 
snowyowl said:
For what it's worth, I had to send my old binos to B&L for repair and they did a good job although very slow. The binos came back looking clean, working well and properly reassembled. When I bought my new binos I bought Elites partly because of the availability of service (which is done in Toronto).
The dealer that I bought from carries most brands and only had criticism for Opticon because of service issues, in fact, he no longer carries them.

Dan

how odd, in-focus told me Opticron were the easiest to deal with! I presume its the lack of presence over there.
 
pduxon said:
Dan

how odd, in-focus told me Opticron were the easiest to deal with! I presume its the lack of presence over there.
I suspect that you're right. It's probably the reverse of why I had reasonably good luck with B&L, they have a good presence in Toronto and seem to have a major market share.
 
d.steeley said:
Hi Joelle, I have had a pair of Bushnell Natureview 8x30 binoculars for a number of years. In January the focus wheel kept turning without any affect so I took them to the place where I bought them. They were not able to fix them because they said that the manufacturers would not provide any spare parts, so they sent them to Vickers for repair. They were told by Vickers to expect the repair to take 20-25 days. After nearly 70 days and several phone calls they were returned, 'repaired' at no charge, apparently under guarantee. As Alexis indicates, it was obvious they had been 'looked at' as they were a bit grubby and sticky to the touch. Unfortunately, within a week the focus wheel problem had occurred again and so they have been sent back to Vickers again. I decided to by another pair of binculars, Leica this time, and just keep the Bushnells for the kitchen window sill. My wife also has a pair of Bushnell Natureviews and has had no problems, yet! The suppliers I use are 'Focus Optics' near Coventry and they have been excellent at all times.
Just to follow up my previous post. Vickers eventually returned my binoculars to Focus Optics who checked them over and found that the fault had not been fixed at all. The manager phoned Vickers and threatened to withdraw their products from his shop if the problem was not resolved quickly. Vickers then sent a brand new pair as replacements, which I have just collected. My thanks go to Focus Optics for their excellent service.
 
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