Vortex 1 - Leupold 0

[Pinewood]

Well, we are currently mid hunting season here. It's crunch time, go time, game time any time but not hunting time. And, I have no Binoculars. My Leupold Cascades have crapped out on me on their second year of work. The diopter has broken and looking through them is oddly reminiscent of chasing 12 cans of Lucky with a mug of Wiser's. I've called Leupold in Oregon, they directed me to the Korth group in Alberta. I've been told it could take a while to get them back(with no time given). Apparently there are a lot of people waiting in line to get their Leupold stuff fixed.

My Vortex scope is sitting there on it's own now, with no optical friend. It's holding strong, and the nice part is, if it goes for a shit I can get it replaced a lot faster than "I really have no idea how long it will take."

[.264winmag]

Have a set of cascades also, still functioning ok after years but they are slapped out and floppy. Buddy had a set of Mojaves that stb. Maybe the gold ring model is better, but them two are junk...

[monasheemountainman]

Ya cascades are crapcades, you can't get the bottom of the line model and then say the whole brand is shit lol

[todbartell]

vortex bashers in 3 2 1 and go

[dougan]

In a pinch I just bought cabelas intensity hd10x42 cause they were 240$ . They are outstanding for the price. Only bought them cause my leupold gold rings pissed their pants for the fourth time in two years . I will Never buy that crap again and I was a die hard leupold fan at one point.

[Blainer]

Ya cascades are crapcades, you can't get the bottom of the line model and then say the whole brand is shit lolwell said, you get what you pay for in glass

[Pinewood]

well said, you get what you pay for in glass

I disagree with this statement. I paid roughly 350$ US for those Binos. They may be shitty in comparison to 1000$ Binos but that is not an excuse for them to break. That is like buying a 30000$ truck rather than a 50000$ truck and then saying "right on, it broke like it was supposed to". An item with a lower price point is not built to break, it is just built with less high quality components. And, as far as getting what I paid for, I will. I will now get it twice and possibly more times. It's just a pain in the ass. I will add, when they are working properly they are very good Binoculars and I have no complaints about the optical quality.

[.264winmag]

I bet I paid closer to $500 for my green ring leupolds, might be pinnacles? Can't remember for sure, but I'd say they are a $300 set at best. Spending that much for Chinese glass might as well go vortex for over the counter warranty jmo and experience. I never felt hampered while hunting with them until I upgraded, not always an option though.

[SaintSix]

Dropped my rifle and landed straight on the scope earlier this year. just sent it out vortex Canada in Ontario, and talk to them today. they said it'll be around a 3 week turnaround. that's pretty good in my book and only cost to me is shipping. So I'm a fan, being that it was my fault.

[Whonnock Boy]

Vortex do suck, both scopes and binos. :) I've read more problems with the vortex line than Leupold by far. With that said, the newer lines of Leupold binos do not seem to be all that great. It's hard to beat their scopes though.


vortex bashers in 3 2 1 and go

[todbartell]

I bet I paid closer to $500 for my green ring leupolds, might be pinnacles? Can't remember for sure, but I'd say they are a $300 set at best. Spending that much for Chinese glass might as well go vortex for over the counter warranty jmo and experience. I never felt hampered while hunting with them until I upgraded, not always an option though.

vortex warranty is not over the counter, never has been


Vortex do suck, both scopes and binos. :) I've read more problems with the vortex line than Leupold by far. With that said, the newer lines of Leupold binos do not seem to be all that great. It's hard to beat their scopes though.

I've shot lots of rounds through many Vortex scopes on many different rifles. Crossfires, Diamondbacks, Vipers, Razors...no issues yet. BCBrad has put thousands of rounds through his PST vortex twisting turrets and its never failed yet. Spent hundreds of hours in the field with Viper & Razor binos. So far they're awesome. They aren't perfect, nothing is, but they surely don't suck :)

[Lastcar]

The problem with these threads are the small sample sizes. Which is not to diminish one person's experience. I would feel as strongly about a company or product if I was the guy with the lemon scope or crappy warranty service.

And yes, lots of guys have similar experiences on here.

I'd be very curious though to know that stats on units sold vs returned for warranty. I can't imagine it is as bad as it seems.

Quality is whole other topic...which I am not touching. :)

[.264winmag]

Oh yeah I forgot about that only vortex scope I bought had to send away for replacement. My bad, work to hard all week I guess. Well, luckily I'm done with cheep glass...

[emerson]

The problem with these threads are the small sample sizes. Which is not to diminish one person's experience. I would feel as strongly about a company or product if I was the guy with the lemon scope or crappy warranty service.

And yes, lots of guys have similar experiences on here.

I'd be very curious though to know that stats on units sold vs returned for warranty. I can't imagine it is as bad as it seems.

Quality is whole other topic...which I am not touching. :)
Yes. Just reflecting I have the same experience as the op, just reverse the brands.