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Message: <blockquote data-quote="brocknroller" data-source="post: 1723411" data-attributes="member: 665">Okay, I will concede that perhaps "arrogance" was too strong a word, but it certainly stirred the pot and made for some good discussion! <img src="data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7" class="smilie smilie--sprite smilie--sprite1" alt=":)" title="Smile    :)" loading="lazy" data-shortname=":)" /> I'll amend that to "indifference" since the "sticky" focusers apparently have been going on randomly since the Trinnie BAs.That's too bad, because when Alex mentioned that Leica had switched metals, I thought that perhaps they did so starting with the latter day BNs (Leica has made changes to models without fanfare like adding the scratch resistant coatings to the latter day BAs). If that had been the case, the solution might have been as simple as going back to stainless steel. The issue to figure out is why are some Leica focusers smooth and others "sticky" out of the box. Anyone who has been reading bin forums for a while knows that this is not "an example of one," I've read dozens of comments about this issue from Leica owners for years now. A poster mentioned different focusing techniques being a solution (how the user applied pressure to the focuser). While it's certainly true that each bin requires the user to make some adjustments, I don't think that a focuser in a bin at the premium price point should be so finicky as to require the user to adapt a particular technique to turn it smoothly. I've had to do that with the ZR 7x36 ED2 (two fingers on one hand to push and two fingers on the other hand to pull) to get it to move the way I want it to. But for $375, I'm willing to make that adjustment. For $2,099, I'm not. I think Ron hit the proverbial nail on the head when he wrote:"Flaws are all the more hateful when the binocular costs a lot and expectations are high." That would make a good quote for your signature, Ron! Or as I put it, paraphrasing my Uncle Carl, "extraordinary prices require extraordinary features." In a moment of temporary insanity, I hit the $1,000 mark a few years back when I bought a demo LX L. I expected the optics to be as good as the original LX, but with the bin being lighter weight. The optics weren't as good as the Venturer LX, IMO, the armoring scuffed easily, and they didn't get rid of the dreaded "rolling ball". I was profoundly disappointed at having spent that much money for what I thought would be binonirvana. It also shook my confidence in Nikon. My experience with Nikon optics up to that point been very good except for the "rolling ball" in the full sized LX line. I thought Nikon could do better than the LX L, and they have done better with the EDG, though that model too had a "bug" to work out. Apparently less people see "rolling ball" than those of us who do. If that weren't the case, the Premier/LX L would be history, and the SV EL wouldn't haven't gotten all those pre-orders even during a recession. But the loose focuser cap on the EDG was a non-starter for many buyers, and Nikon responded by fixing the flaw. According to Alex, Leica reportedly added lubrication to Ultravids sent in for repair, and to the Ultravid HD models, in the form of a synthetic washer, but some folks still seem to find the focus to be on the sticky side. So Leica is trying to respond to the issue, but with mixed results. It seems apparent that a focuser redesign is in order for the next generation of Leicas so that the focusers will not only be consistent at different temperatures but consistent with different buyers. However, not being a "hungry" company like Zen Ray, and perhaps having fallen into complacency after being firmly established as one of the "Big Three," I'm not so certain that Leica will redesign the focuser, but may continue to do "fixes" on a case by case basis as it has been doing for dissatisfied customers. Time will tell...</blockquote>

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