Broken Binoculars.

[Dan Salter]

I couldnt find a bins forum so i have put this in here?

My Bushnell Trophy 10x42 bins ( waterproof, camo, nitrogen filled) have gone wrong =(

I dont recall dropping them or anything but the right eye is totally off....and using them with one eye closed is giving me headaches.

You know how you normally focus the left eye with right closed.....using the main focus ring...then close left eye and focus right eye with the little wheel around the eyepiece?....well the right side just isnt going anywhere near in focus...

I bought them a year or two ago from a US online shop which i cant remember so no chance of any warranty stuff which i dont mind as they were at a bargain price...but what can i do?
Are there people in the UK/ Kent who can repair and service waterproof or gas filled bins? ( i cant see any way into them?) and what sort of money am i looking at to fix this focusing/double vision type thing?

I plan to upgrade to more expensive bins this year but i planned on keeping these as a car/glove box pair so i would like to get them fixed ( plus i just feel all wrong without a working pair of bins with me).

they were about £200 ( i got them for around £120) so cant spend a fortune getting them fixed.

Any ideas folks?

Dan

[kml]

I searched the web but couldn`t find anything in your area.It might be worth asking your local camera shop.I did find a company called action optics who are based in Southampton, they do a postal service for repairs and there prices looked quite reasonable.Looking on another site some people have had a few problems with repairs carried out by Bushnell under the warranty ie they sent off their bino`s and were faced with a high bill.Sorry I can`t help you further, there maybe someone with local knowledge who could advise you better.

[galanthus]

I had the bushnell birdlife ones, they were really great, however, I slid down log steps with them while leaping around after a treecreeper and cracked the right lens. This was at least 3 years ago, but I remember the repair estimations being ridiculously high, local repair peeps were charging the earth and online companies were slamming me on postage at the time.

I got a natureview pair from my bloke for christmas after this instead of going for a repair. Maybe you'll be lucky.

[LoveT]

I got a natureview pair from my bloke for christmas after this instead of going for a repair. Maybe you'll be lucky.

Your bloke going to buy Dan a new pair of binoculars too? That's very generous

Seriously tho - I've not had this happen to me thankfully, but I would have said that the cost of repairing would be quite prohibitive, and probably goes up in proportion to the value of the binoculars in question. They'd rather you buy a new pair than get them replaced it seems to be the way of the world, and in line with our throw away society unfortunately

Thea

[galanthus]

Originally Posted by LoveT

Your bloke going to buy Dan a new pair of binoculars too? That's very generous


Thea

No, he's busy saving for a contribution to the 400mm 5.6 IS whenever it's invented, obviously he doesn't know this yet

[wildmanofthewoods]

i recently bought a pair of bushnell bins, armoured. i dropped them on my living room carpet, doh! theres a small fixed washer between the eyepieces and the main body, this seems to be very brittle as it broke. now my bins' will not focus using the focusing ring, thus rendering them useless. i'm considering a do it yourself repair after reading the above comments. i've only had them a couple of months & cash is scarce at the moment. the above thread and replys have helped its amazing what you find out on here. thanks, al.

[galanthus]

Originally Posted by wildmanofthewoods

i recently bought a pair of bushnell bins, armoured. i dropped them on my living room carpet, doh! theres a small fixed washer between the eyepieces and the main body, this seems to be very brittle as it broke. now my bins' will not focus using the focusing ring, thus rendering them useless. i'm considering a do it yourself repair after reading the above comments. i've only had them a couple of months & cash is scarce at the moment. the above thread and replys have helped its amazing what you find out on here. thanks, al.

If they're 'armoured' wouldn't this mean you could return them and insist that they're hardly 'armoured' after a drop onto a soft carpet Worth a try I'd say

[Dan Salter]

Hmmm , yes thanks guys...(gals?)

I had not ever intended on sending them to bushnell for repair or back to the place i bought them as they are both in the states...

I guess i should contact the postal repair peeps and get some rough prices to see if its financially worth doing or they are written off....would be a shame though as they have been great (until now...obviously) and would like to hang onto them as a spare pair of for friends to use on birding/wildlife trips.

Now how can i raise the £900 ish pounds for some Ultravids in green or some swarovski's?...

[galanthus]

Originally Posted by Dan Salter

Hmmm , yes thanks guys...(gals?)



Now how can i raise the £900 ish pounds for some Ultravids in green or some swarovski's?...

Ummmm........... prostitution ?

[galanthus]

Was I allowed to say that oops