Meopta Meostar B1 10x42 Collimation Issues

[shannerdrake]

Hey all, I need some advice. I have a pair of the Meostar B1 HD binos made my Meopta for Cabelas. They are my first higher end binos.

At first I loved them, but this season they had issues with collimation and I was essentially left seeing double and unable to get them focused.

I take them to Cabelas for their “forever guarantee” and they tell me to send them to Meopta (trust me that Cabelas guarantee is worthless). $25 of shipping and 12 weeks later Meopta emails me and says it will be $273 to fix and the collimation issue was caused by a “drop or bump to the eyepiece.”

Frustration aside, is this a common problem? I have had much cheaper binos for years that have survived falls from tree stands and bouncing around in my truck for years and never had this issue. Now I have premium optics that have spent their entire life in a bino bivy and have never had a bad fall or bump that are worthless unless I spend $300 on them.

To be honest, I’m hesitant to invest good money after bad and spend more money on a bino that never should have broke with a company that’s not standing behind their product. I’m also concerned that whatever happened to these could just happen again. Trust me when I say they have not been used hard. I actually take one of my older binos when I think there is a chance they will get banged around.

Thoughts?

 

[MThuntr]

It's likely because of the Cabelas middleman game though I can't be for sure. Multiple brands make optics for Cabelas to sell as "their" product and I have learned once they stamp their name on it's no longer covered. You may have ended up with a lemon and that sucks. I'd say bite the bullet and spend the $273 otherwise you have an expensive paperweight. Sell them and buy something else if you don't like them.

I know the alpha glass companies don't always warranty their product for stuff that seems like neglect and this could be the same interpretation. I have a pair of Nikon HG Monarchs (the binos that are often compared to your Meostars) do the exact same thing. I couldn't remember dropping them but couldn't be for sure and told them up front that I very likely dropped them in my move to my new house. Luckily Nikon's warranty seems to be pretty good and within a week I had a new pair.

 

[schmalts]

Binoculars are a fairly fragile piece of equipment and trust me when I say all brands will need repairs. It doesn't take too hard of a hit to knock them out of alignment.

 

[Cornbread]

Make sure you thank Johnny Morris!

 

[shannerdrake]

Binoculars are a fairly fragile piece of equipment and trust me when I say all brands will need repairs. It doesn't take too hard of a hit to knock them out of alignment.

Thanks schmalts, that is actually really good feedback and good to know.

To provide an update, I worked with some really great people at Meopta and ultimately they are covering the repairs.

I think that speaks volumes about Meopta's warranty. Once everything is done, I plan to do a new post regarding my positive Meopta experience.