Leupold custom shop restructured?

[matthias]

Went to look at services offered by the leupold custom shop and they are not accepting any work until the restructure is over.

I signed up for a notification that is posted on the site , but wondering if anyone has heard of a time frame?

Curious , Matthias

 

[Rsadams]

Probably covid related... Most companies are trying out how to get their workers back but without infecting the whole building.. Putting up shielding between work stations etc.... This stuffs going to be around a long time and only one sick employee is all it takes to shut your doors for another few months... It's going to continue to be a struggle for awhile... Either close down or get ready to over haul your business.... Let's just hope that a cure is found in the next year or so....

 

[F Class John]

I know the 'restructuring' of the custom shop started long before CV-19. Last I heard it was gonna be quite a while before it's back although I think I was told it would be back, eventually.

 

[Tcross]

I called Leupold a few weeks back about a Scope I had in for repair. ( They are still doing warranty repairs.) I asksed about when the custom shop was to reopen, since it has been closed from last summer/ fall for restructuring (not Covid). The fella that I spoke to was from the custom shop and had been moved over to the other division. He had no idea when the custom shop was to reopen and at that time there was no scheduled date. For what it's worth.

 

[sqrlgtr]

Just sent in a 40x for repairs.This is the first time I've ever had to send one in and I'm hoping for the best,have heard nothing but good things about there repair shop...Time will tell...Maybe they will get her dun with all the extras from the custom shop helping out .I hope they get the custom shop back up for the ones needing there service.Leupold is one of the best USA company's left.....

 

[Tcross]

My Scope was in for warranty repair and took 7 weeks. I'm o.k. with that, no cost to me except getting it there. They emailed me to let me know how long it would take. And it was through all this Carona stuff, so all is good.

 

[BenPerfected]

If you want/expect really good scope service, you will likely have to upgrade.
Ben

 

[rogina]

Went to look at services offered by the leupold custom shop and they are not accepting any work until the restructure is over.

I signed up for a notification that is posted on the site , but wondering if anyone has heard of a time frame?

Curious , Matthias

I called them last Nov to have a new retical put in and they told me the shop would be done in Jan. They didn't tell me which year. The cost was going to be over $200.

 

[rogina]

I called them last Nov to have a new retical put in and they told me the shop would be done in Jan. They didn't tell me which year. The cost was going to be over $200.

Leupold scopes have a lifetime warranty but they don't have the parts to fix them. Whose fault is that?

 

[Rsadams]

I learned a long time ago about lifetime warranty's on products with what used to be one of the finest pool cue manufacturers in the world.... I paid alot back in the early 1990s for one of their sticks and years later called about having some shaft work done.... Was told they sold out and don't work on the cues before that.... Needless to say when I bought another cue it wasn't from them.... Lifetime doesn't meen a thing anymore... But it looks good on paper... For what it would cost me to ship and have the old cue fixed I could buy a newer model from their competition for a few dollars more and did and like it even more... It also has a lifetime warranty , we will see....

 

[Huntslow]

I have no idea if this is Leupold's problem but many long time lifetime warranty companies are now struggling. If you sell even 2,000 scopes a year there 140,000+ out there still in warranty. It would be VERY expensive to repair a 50 or even 25 year old scope so you send out a new one. How many new scopes must be sold to keep the company profitable? I have no idea what is going on with Leupold and I am a great fan and user of their products. I hope this is just "one of those things" and that they bring back the custom shop and keep their traditions going.

 

[Rsadams]

I have no idea if this is Leupold's problem but many long time lifetime warranty companies are now struggling. If you sell even 2,000 scopes a year there 140,000+ out there still in warranty. It would be VERY expensive to repair a 50 or even 25 year old scope so you send out a new one. How many new scopes must be sold to keep the company profitable? I have no idea what is going on with Leupold and I am a great fan and user of their products. I hope this is just "one of those things" and that they bring back the custom shop and keep their traditions going.

I think you have nailed it right there.... Instead of a lifetime warranty maybe just something long like a 10 year warranty.... Honestly by that time most people will move on to a newer model of anything as things get better and would eliminate the long term effects of having to have parts etc from way in the past... People will upgrade as technology gets better and modern manufacturing brings prices down....

 

[qldreloader]

^ That would make a lot more sense. Here in Australia or consumer laws require that goods be "reasonably" durable and "fit for purpose". That means that if a manufacturer offers 12 months warranty for example but the product would "reasonably" be expected to work for 5 years given its price then the manufacturer's warranty is not relevant. The issue of course is what is "reasonable" and that would require legal action to enforce. The point is that products do have a lifespan and for many products that isn't going to be the lifetime of the owner. Another problem was pointed out by Rsadams - the lifetime of the manufacturer/company itself. I often wonder how many owners of some of the current cheaper "lifetime warranty" scopes (I won't name brands here but we know who they are) will be disappointed when their scopes fail and the company lo longer exists. The third issue for me is that for a company to give a lifetime warranty means they need to build the cost of that warranty into their products so we end up paying a lot for the warranty and perhaps not so much for the actual product. A 10 year warranty would allow manufacturers to build a quality product they would expect to last at least 10 years and not have to add on big costs for the lifetime warranty. I bought a couple of older Vari-x scopes that had gone foggy many years ago here in Australia for very little money as the owners didn't want the hassle of shipping them back to the USA for repair (before Australia had our own Leupold Custom Shop). For the cost of postage I sent them back to Leupold who returned to me 2 x brand new Vxi scopes. Good for me but expensive for the company. I'd rather see reasonable warranties and help keep our shooting industries profitable and around for the long term.