Problem with green coating of EL SV 8x32 (6 Viewers)

[bittern]

I bought my EL SV 8x32 new in May 2019 and I have just noticed that the green plastic coating has started to peel off just where my right thumb touches the barrel. Has anyone noticed the problem of the green material peeling off, either there or elsewhere on the binoculars.

These are the first alpha binoculars that I have owned and I am extremely disappointed as my previously owned binoculars of lesser repute have never had this sort of problem. Of course the optical performance of the Swarovski bins remains excellent.

Mike

 

[tehri]

Ooh what you say is reassuring !!! Yes it is indeed reassuring to learn that it is not only the NL's affected by this problem !!
Of course it's a bad joke that I couldn't resist, and I really share your disappointment. 😧
Maybe Swarovski should come to sell their binoculars without any more coating !!

 

[Stuarts vision]

I bought my EL SV 8x32 new in May 2019 and I have just noticed that the green plastic coating has started to peel off just where my right thumb touches the barrel. Has anyone noticed the problem of the green material peeling off, either there or elsewhere on the binoculars.

These are the first alpha binoculars that I have owned and I am extremely disappointed as my previously owned binoculars of lesser repute have never had this sort of problem. Of course the optical performance of the Swarovski bins remains excellent.

Mike

Can you post a pic please?

 

[Ignatius]

Maybe those aren't 'alphas' then after all?

 

[[email protected]]

Here is a previous thread where many people had the same problem.

EL 10x42 casing deterioration.

A couple of weeks ago I noticed when I was using my EL binoculars that the rubber casing on the left barrel felt loose beneath my fingers as if rubber had detached from the barrel. A few days later the rubber at that point developed splits. The binoculars are only a couple of years old and as...

www.birdforum.net

 

[Sc0tty]

…and another 12x50 Rubber Coating Breaking Up

 

[SGBirder]

I bought my EL SV 8x32 new in May 2019 and I have just noticed that the green plastic coating has started to peel off just where my right thumb touches the barrel. Has anyone noticed the problem of the green material peeling off, either there or elsewhere on the binoculars.

These are the first alpha binoculars that I have owned and I am extremely disappointed as my previously owned binoculars of lesser repute have never had this sort of problem. Of course the optical performance of the Swarovski bins remains excellent.

Mike

These are mine, the peeling of the armour accelerated recently after the material became tacky and brittle. This is after only 2+ years of light use.

My much cheaper Vortex binoculars (which are not known for great built quality) have been totally fine in this regard, not even a scuff mark.

 

[Stuarts vision]

These are mine, the peeling of the armour accelerated recently after the material became tacky and brittle. This is after only 2+ years of light use.

My much cheaper Vortex binoculars (which are not known for great built quality) have been totally fine in this regard, not even a scuff mark.

OMG, shame on ypu Swarovski.

Won't be buying the ATC scope now.

 

[[email protected]]

These are mine, the peeling of the armour accelerated recently after the material became tacky and brittle. This is after only 2+ years of light use.

My much cheaper Vortex binoculars (which are not known for great built quality) have been totally fine in this regard, not even a scuff mark.

It looks like the armour became brittle and lost its elasticity. It is different from the Canon armour that melts. It looks terrible!

 

[Stuarts vision]

It looks like the armour became brittle and lost its elasticity. It is different from the Canon armour that melts.

Looks like the Swarovski armour is not fit for purpose.

 

[tenex]

Or no longer? My 2018 SLCs are just fine. It could be useful to collect dates of manufacture from complaints posted here, and correlate them with announcement of the new eco-armor.

 

[[email protected]]

Or no longer? My 2018 SLCs are just fine. It could be useful to collect dates of manufacture from complaints posted here, and correlate them with announcement of the new eco-armor.

I think the SLC's had a different type of armour than the El and NL, especially the newer ones. It always appeared tougher to me. The newer NL really has a softer armour than the older EL and SLC. Maybe they had to make it softer and more flexible to conform to the weird contours of the NL wasp shaped barrels.

 

[Richard D]

I have just had exactly the same problem with my EL SV 8x32 binoculars bought new in 2019 in which the plasticised coating has started to peel off where my thumb is in contact with the barrel. I am not impressed as there bins have been looked after like a baby and at the same time my much older and cheaper Opticron DBA binoculars have no degradation at all after 10 or 12 years of heavy use.

I will be interested to see how the local Swarovski distributor reacts.

Mike

I think the SLC's had a different type of armour than the El and NL, especially the newer ones. It always appeared tougher to me. The newer NL really has a softer armour than the older EL and SLC. Maybe they had to make it softer and more flexible to conform to the weird contours of the NL wasp shaped barrels.

It was changed to a more environmentally friendly formula. Swarovski will re-armour them free of charge if you contact them. Whether it's still an issue or whether it was only with early batches no one knows.

 

[SGBirder]

It was changed to a more environmentally friendly formula. Swarovski will re-armour them free of charge if you contact them. Whether it's still an issue or whether it was only with early batches no one knows.

They've passed on the financial cost (shipping, loss of use) to the customer, and ignored the carbon footprint of the extra shipments needed over the useful life of the optic.

 

[Rotherbirder]

The original (non-SV) EL has reassuringly stable armour. Glad I didn't 'upgrade'!

RB

 

[SGBirder]

It was changed to a more environmentally friendly formula. Swarovski will re-armour them free of charge if you contact them. Whether it's still an issue or whether it was only with early batches no one knows.

Swarovski has confirmed that the rubber used is "sustainable material" which can degrade - though in my case not from extreme temps or frequent use beyond what is to be reasonably expected from a binoculars.

They will fix it free of charge, as they should under warranty (how about after the warranty?)
But the one-way shipping cost (which is non-trivial as this is a recurring issue every few years) will need to be borne by the customer, needlessly adding to the already high cost of ownership + the loss of use.

"Due to the used sustainable material, extreme temperatures and frequently use may cause the material to degrade in some cases.
Within the guarantee period, we are very accommodating and will replace the armouring free of charge.
We are constantly working on improvements and adaptations.
At the moment, however, this reinforcement is the best and most environmentally friendly.
We will forward your honest feedback to our responsible product managers.

...

Possible handling and custom fees has to be taken over from the customer.
This is not covered by warranty, we are sorry.
The return shipment will be organised and handled by us."

 

[Patudo]

Hurrah, let's hope lots of people read this and Swaro secondhand prices crash. I'd really like a 10x42 NL, exterior condition immaterial.

 

[[email protected]]

The original (non-SV) EL has reassuringly stable armour. Glad I didn't 'upgrade'!

RB

Nobody had any armour problems with the original EL(non-SV) armour? So you would be safe with one of those. I wonder if the deterioration of armour is due to UV and sun instead of chemicals.

 

[claves_10]

I got a second hand EL 8x32 production year 2008 and the armour is perfect, no damages what so ever. Haven´t used them that much and do not know the previous owner usage on them. My guess is that these binos hasn´t been used that much if it helps you. I would "assume" that they have not been exposed much to UV and sun.

 

[[email protected]]

I got a second hand EL 8x32 production year 2008 and the armour is perfect, no damages what so ever. Haven´t used them that much and do not know the previous owner usage on them. My guess is that these binos hasn´t been used that much if it helps you. I would "assume" that they have not been exposed much to UV and sun.

You can tell the non-SV EL's had a different kind of armour. It was much tougher in feel and appearance. The newer EL's and NL's have a much softer, cushier armour.