So recently I have had dealing with some Optics manufactures and their warranty services. I felt like giving a review of those two HW members so as to help people make decisions as to what to spend their money on. The three companies are Alpen, Bushnell, and Nikon.
First up Nikon.
I have a pair of Nikon Monarchs that I have had for about 6 years. About 2 years after I bought them I bumped them and noticed that the prism got out of whack. I sent them into Nikon and had them back with 10 days fixed and ready to go. A few years later I dropped them and broke an eye cup. Sent them in and got those back in about 10 days all fixed up. During my 2011 late archery hunt I hit them again, not sure how, and broke the eye cup and knocked the prism out of whack. I sent them in to Nikon and had them back in 10 days or so. The eye cup had been fixed but not the prism. I called Nikon and asked them why they did not fix it. I also told them I was disappointed because it cost me $20 to send them and now I would have to spend that again to get them back to them. The service person told me that was not the case and told me she would be e-mailing me an overnight label and to send them back to them. I did what she asked and sent them out. Two days later I came home to a box on the door and a brand new upgraded model of Monarchs was inside. Everything that went wrong with these Binoculars was my own fault and Nikon never asked me questions they just fixed them and got me back out into the field. A+++
Now for Alpen.
I bought an Alpen spotting scope kit from sportsman’s about 7or8 years ago. It has been through hell. Not being a very high price item and not really the best spotter I didn’t expect much life. Last year I noticed that the lenses would not come clean and on further inspection I could see what looked like flecks of something inside the scope. I guessed this to be that the lens coating was coming off. The scope was unusable. Two weeks ago I took a quick glance at the warranty card that was in the box and just boxed it up and sent it out with a $10 check inside. I called a few days later to make sure it arrived and was told it had and the tech was looking it over. Due to the time and fact that I did not have the receipt I thought for sure they would want to charge me to repair or replace the scope. To my amazement I can home about two weeks later to find a box on my door. I opened the box and inside was a brand new scope. I was shocked. Taped inside was my check and it appeared that I forgot to fill out the amount part on my check. I called Alpen to see if they wanted me to get this check back to them and they told me no. I was informed that they did not charge for warranty issues. Now I understand that Alpen is not top of the line but I’ll tell you there service and commitment to stand by their product is about as good as you could ever ask for. A++
And last Bushnell.
I bought a pair of 10 power Bushnell H2O binoculars a few years back to keep in my truck. One day I took them out of the glove box and I could not get them to focus. I had a double vison problem bad! Based on the warranty card that was in the case I sent the binoculars to Bushnell along with a $10 return fee check. Two months went by and I finally had to call and find out what the heck was going on. I was told that a Tech was looking at them now and it should be about a week. Well after that week I got a letter in the mail telling me that my binoculars were broken and I would have to pay. I called and asked just what was going on. I was told the tech said the tube was damaged and that it voided the warranty. She then told me that it would cost more to fix them than they are worth but they would offer me a %30 discount on any Bushnell product I chose. Well those bino’s never let my truck or glove box they looked as good as the day I bought them. They cost me $100 new. So, I told the gal on the phone that I was not happy with the way this was going down and that after $20 to ship it and the $10 return fee I already had spent $30 and that I’m no math savant but it looks like I already spent that %30 discount. I then told her that could have just saved myself over two months of waiting but just going to the store and buying a new pair. So I had them just send me back my broken bino’s and was out $30. As I’m sure you can imagine I was a little pissed off. The bino’s show up a week later and I open them only to find that they have sent me the wrong pair! The pair I now have are 8 power and in bad shape. I called them immediately and spoke with a customer service rep who pretty much was calling me lier. Well, now I was mad so I asked to speak with a supervisor. When the supervisor came on I told her I did not appreciate her subordinate incubating that I was lying and that I was shocked at how bad their customer service was. She asked me to read her the serial number off the box and off the bino’s. Guess what! They didn’t match. There idiot Tech guy sent me the wrong pair. She was not apologetic as could be and told me they would send me a new pair right away. I got a brand new pair a week later. Am I happy to have a new pair of bino’s? yes. However, the only reason I have them is because they made a mistake and not because they stand by their product. I will never buy another Bushnell product as long as I live. F-----
So those are a few of my own experiences with some of the manufactures out there. Just thought some of you might like to know this before making a new purchase. I have heard Vortex is great and has a no fault policy. I called Leupold and it seems they only offer a manufactures warranty. These are things to keep in mind when spending money on glass.
