ThinkingAfield.org

By Glen Wunderlich

Charter Member Professional Outdoor Media Association (POMA)

Years ago, I was looking to upgrade my glassing ability with a new binocular.  As an eyeglass wearer at the time, it needed to have sufficient eye relief to compensate for the extra distance between the optic and my eyes.  After a call to the media representative for Leupold, I settled on its Katmai line in 8×32 configuration.

No doubt, the Japanese-ground lenses were far superior to any binocular I had possessed at any time.  Small enough not to be a burden afield, it was my go-to glass afield.

Eventually, however, it had developed an issue with the ocular lens eyecups to the point they were stuck in one position for use with eyeglasses.  I put up with it until recently, when I discovered my distant vision no longer required the use of eyeglasses, which made the optic difficult to use.

With Leupold’s online presence, a form was filled out and submitted only a few weeks from opening day of this deer season.  Once the package was received by Leupold, a responding email indicated the firm would get to the issue sometime in the next five weeks.  Convinced the issue would not be resolved before hunting season, I accepted blame for not having begun the process earlier.

Surprisingly, email notification came of a shipment after a mere two-week wait!  On the shipping list was a new binocular:  Leupold’s BX-4 Pro Guide HD. After using the highly advanced optic, which has positive reviews online and on YouTube, I couldn’t be happier with Leupold’s commitment to customer service and its no-questions-asked lifetime guarantee.

A similar experience worth a shout-out comes from another fine American optics manufacturer:  Burris Optics of Greeley, Colorado.  After purchasing a used Burris binocular on Ebay, I had found that the middle hinge didn’t hold position very well.  Eventually, the issue got worse to the point the binocular couldn’t be used effectively.

Fortunately, through an online hunting forum, the matter came up with a Burris service technician, who invited me to send the binocular to his attention.  Once he surveyed the issue, he wanted to know what power binocular I would like as a replacement.  Wow!  The company simply didn’t want that older technology out there for fear of bad press, no matter whether it could be repaired.  Burris promptly delivered a new, highly upgraded binocular to my doorstep.

Hunters typically spend their money on firearms and scopes and often overlook the advantage of a good binocular.  In fact, many of us hunt without the advantage of quick-deploying binoculars – and, that’s a big mistake.  Although inexpensive Chinese glass is better than nothing – it is still superior to technology we had decades ago.

Conversely, I’ve never met an outdoors aficionado who’s plunked down some hard-earned cash on good glass, who was sorry afterward; doing so makes us better hunters.  What’s even better is the option to support these American companies that mean what they say when it comes to lifetime guarantees.