Hi,
I have been wondering who has tighter control over their Chinese manufacturer
with the better quality control and overall build quality...Vortex or Zen-Ray?
From what I can gather, my guess is Vortex, as it seems Zen-Ray had and in some cases, continues to have build quality issues.
Vortex has many models, Zen Ray, a few. So there's bound to be more sample variation in Vortex, and they have better built models and lesser built models. With the Prime ED, ZR is also trying to become a two-tier company. If you spend $600 on a bin rather than $200 or $300, you expect better quality, but whether or not you get it remains to be seen. I'll let you know after I win the give-away contest!
I had two 7x36 ED2s, the first had a "sticky" focuser, that is, there were spots in the rotation where the focuser was harder to turn,and it also had the "veiling glare" probelm. ZR replaced it with a second sample. That sample had a smoother focuser but the diopter eventually discombobulated, and I couldn't focus the right barrel, but the glare problem was much improved.
Only tried one Vortex, the 8x42 Fury. I liked it despite it being a closed bridge roof, which are usually hard for me to handle, but the barrels were so fat that there was enough "real estate" to grab. I still don't know why they discontinued this model. It had good optics for an affordable price. From what I've read, Vortex, like ZR, is good when it comes to repairs, although in ZR's case, they send you a new unit. From the above tale of a scope drop, apparently Vortex does the same thing.
It seems with Chinese-made bins, quality control can still be an issue. Once they have that licked, I think they will be in a position to compete head-to-head with Japanese optics (which these days, probably contain parts made in China and/or the Pacific Rim).
I wonder what happens to those defective or broken Chinese-made bins and scopes? Do they get repaired, kept or parts, or get dumped?
The question with the "Lifetime Warranty" is will either company be around as long as you live? With Swaro, Zeiss, Nikon and Leica, you pay through the proboscis for their bins, but the companies have a long history, so I'm more confident they will be around.
Before when Vortex and ZR were making cheaper bins, this wasn't an issue, because if they disappeared tomorrow, well, you're out $200 or $300 if your bins break and can't be replaced (more of an issue with pricier scopes), but now that ZR is getting into the mid-priced range with the Prime ED and Vortex is getting into the second-tier range with its $1,200 Vortex Razor HD, you want those companies to be around to honor their warranty.
I also wonder as the price climbs on ChinBins will companies that sell them be able to maintain that lifetime warranty? Easy to replace a $200-$300 bin with a new sample, but not as easy with a $1,2000 bin.
The thing about "Lifetime Warranties" for all companies is that you may well outlive your bins if you're not an old fart. By the time your bin fails. the company may no longer stock parts for it, because they discontinued that model (like the 8x42 Fury), and you will end up getting the closest thing to it, which may or may not suit you. Then again, it could be better than what you had.
So "lifetime" really applies to the life the model, not you. Even Swaro is only stocking parts for 10 years now, so really old Swaros that they used to fix may be replaced with newer models.
Brock