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Cabela's branded optics - a warranty warning! (4 Viewers)

A happy ending...

My Cabela's Euro HD returned from their trans-Atlantic voyage to the Czech Republic last week, fully repaired, with no bill!

I had been expecting to receive a bill at some point, but I guess the Meopta folks in the Czech factory didn't agree. Thanks Meopta!!

Which makes Meopta a Alpha Brand:t:

Jan
 
A happy ending...

My Cabela's Euro HD returned from their trans-Atlantic voyage to the Czech Republic last week, fully repaired, with no bill!

I had been expecting to receive a bill at some point, but I guess the Meopta folks in the Czech factory didn't agree. Thanks Meopta!!

Indeed, that's class!

--AP
 
Hi,

thanks for the feedback, yes, that's a Swaro style move at the right place which will help Meopta further gain reputation!

Joachim, who doesn't really need new bins... but a Meostar 7x42 would be nice...
 
I had read on another forum last week that a customer was recently informed Cabela's is now reversing course and honoring the original lifetime warranty on Cabela's branded optics and thus they got their Cabela's bino's replaced under warranty.

I placed an e-mail inquiry to Cabela's customer service asking for clarification if optics were once again being considered a lifetime warranty item and here is the reply I got:
"Yes, we can look into such products under the previous Lifetime Guarantee."

A bit vague, but looks promising anyway.
 
I would not recommend Cabela's binos anyway. I was given a Cabela's Intensity HD 15x56 and looking through them makes me cross-eyed and gives me a headache. They're even worse than my Maven B4 12x56s.
 
The Cabela's in Sidney Nebraska seems like such a long time ago, and it was.

Andy W.
This is where it started for me. Drove across the state and partially into the next one to get there. That was about 25 years ago. Spent the morning shopping, took a break for lunch, and continued shopping late into the afternoon. I purchased a pair of Cabela's branded high tech camo pants on that trip; they hemmed them to length right there in the store. Thought that was so cool! Also scored a huge deal on a camo GoreTex nylon shell out of the cave (armed with an inside tip on how to negotiate price relative to what tag was on the product). It was a sad day for me when the acquisition happened as I knew deep inside it was the end of something no less than wonderful.

Eitan, glad this cleared up (did I just pun?) for you favorably. Care to comment on how you are getting along with these today? I'm familiar with them from numerous visits to stores. They didn't work for me ergonomically but I know many keep them in high regard. I'm still baffled that the 8x42 HD never materialized, I highly anticipated that one.

CG
 
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'I must have walked by that area off the driveway a few hundred times. Then in the spring after my lawn mower had that Bino lunch, my wife remembers now ... they must have slipped out of her backpack when she got out of the car on that side of our driveway.'
Do you think it could be so for real?
 
Yes it really happened. You have to understand, it was a very different time ... in so many ways. Cabelas was the first largest ( at that time ) family oriented retailer that really went out of their way to satisfy their customers. So many times I would be told over the phone .... that sale price has expired but we will still give it to you at that price. It was not just their pride in offering quality reasonable merchandise at competitive prices, every time you talked directly to one of their customer service reps on the phone was like talking to your known next door neighbor. Every time I made a purchase over the phone I always came away with a positive feeling. From the fact they always went out of their way to find you the best price possible, to immediately switching you over to a product specialist to answer all your technical questions your catalog descriptions did not. Now again being reminded of that incident, being a regular customer of Cabelas the free binocular replacement does not seem to be that surprising. The fact how I walked over and probably on those dam binoculars all that time and still did not see them , thats what now seems not so for real.
 
Eitan, glad this cleared up (did I just pun?) for you favorably. Care to comment on how you are getting along with these today? I'm familiar with them from numerous visits to stores. They didn't work for me ergonomically but I know many keep them in high regard. I'm still baffled that the 8x42 HD never materialized, I highly anticipated that one.

CG

They returned in wonderful shape, perfectly aligned, and had all the wonderful optical qualities I remembered. However, while previously I had found an equilibrium doing the "balance the small eyecups on the upper ridge of the eye socket" dance, upon their return I found it more of a hassle and ended up selling them. Unfortunately for the little EuroHD, while they were on their trans-Atlantic voyage I had continued to buy and sell some binoculars and ended up with good deals on binoculars I loved more that didn't require such ergonomic compromises -- namely, the Leica UVHD 7x42 and the Nikon EDG 10x32.

Lovely as the view is through the EuroHD, they met the fate of most of my other binoculars in that I would nearly always prefer to use the Leica or the EDG. It's become clear that the Leica and EDG are all I really need for 90% of my birding uses, so I'm trying to be disciplined and clear out the clutter to raise money before I dabble with any further toys.

If the EuroHD had eyecups which fit me better, I likely would have kept them as a 3rd pair for backup / leave in the car usage, but at the time I decided the 8x42 Monarch HG made more sense to keep as for that role as it is barely heavier than the 8x32 Meopta but offers more versatility with its larger exit pupil. Even though I slightly preferred the view through the EuroHD (better contrast and a "deeper" 3D view, perhaps due to the warmer color cast and less flat FOV), the MHG is a very unfussy binocular that has better eyecups and excellent handling with superior low light capabilities. And I couldn't justify keeping two slightly redundant "backup" binoculars that are worth that much.

Now that more time has elapsed, I've decided to sell the MHG as well since again it always plays second fiddle to the Leica (when I want big exit pupil / wide FOV) or EDG (when I want more reach and a bit less weight). The only binocular I would really need to complement those two would be a less expensive, very small and light 8x30/32 for casual usage where I don't want to carry a larger, heavier binocular that had a $2K sticker price. And even though the 32mm Meostar/EuroHD is pretty compact, it's still over 600g which is considerably chunkier than the ~450g options like the Opticron Traveler ED (which is what I'm targeting now after trying and selling the Zeiss 8x25).

It is unfortunate (as I've lamented elsewhere) that binocular manufacturers go to the trouble of designing removable eyecup barrels but then don't create different sizes/shapes of eyecups to swap in. Zeiss seems to be the only maker to have done this and then it was a seeming one-off to address customer complaints about one specific model (the 8x42 Conquest HD). They could sell fatter / longer eyecups as an aftermarket accessory, seems like that would be a no brainer given the different sized faces / eye sockets of different people!
 
They could sell fatter / longer eyecups as an aftermarket accessory, seems like that would be a no brainer given the different sized faces / eye sockets of different people!
Concerning maximum length, they just need a few more research subjects (me, for example) to get it right. Very strange that they don't bother. (Fatter would need to be aftermarket)
 
I would like to add to this thread, last week I bought a Cabela's / Meopta B1 HD 15x56 on another forum.

The seller had them serviced by Meopta earlier this year (Febrary 2021), and I asked about the service. He said he contacted Meopta directly and they repaired them at no charge as Eitan experienced.

The ones I bought were made in 2014 and were returned with newer style, darker green armor than they originally wore.

My initial impressions are EXCELLENT.
 
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