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Redfield high magnification blurriness?

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gremlin View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote gremlin Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Topic: Redfield high magnification blurriness?
    Posted: February/16/2004 at 15:10

I've got a focus problem with a scope that I was hoping someone might be able to provide some insight on.

I have a U.S. made Redfield Illuminator 3x9 scope mounted on a Remington 700BDL 30-06. I bought the scope new at least a decade ago and have loved it's wide angle/tv screen style viewer. It's always been bright and has certainly seemed rugged.

When I went to the range last weekend, I noticed a new development. When adjusting the variable to magnifications above 5x, the image goes out of focus along with the reticle.

I hadn't shot the rifle in over a year and took it to the 50 yard range to make sure it was still zeroed. Everything was fine at low power, but as I zoomed up the scale the image went out of focus. I figured I had a parallax issue because of the short distance, backed off the zoom, fired four rounds, checked the location of the shots, and moved down to the 100 yard range.

Same problem.

I went down to the 200 yard range. Same problem.

I tried backing off the locking nut on the eyepiece and screwing the eyepiece both in and out. I was thinking that perhaps the ocular lens and the reticle were somehow out of synch/focus/whatever and that this adjustment might bring it back in line.

The image began to get clearer at higher powers of magnification, but never quite made it into focus, the more I turned the eyepiece clockwise. I eventually ran out of thread to turn the eyepiece further. I had backed the locking nut down as far as it would go against the selector ring and the eyepiece was as far down as it would go.

Again, the image was clearer than before but it was still out of focus at higher magnifications.

I believe that Redfield went out of business and sold the brand name to Meade a couple years ago. It's now part of the same company that produces Simmons and Weaver. I placed a couple calls for their service team at 800-285-6289, but haven't gotten a call back yet.

Can any of you provide me with some ideas on what to try to either clear up the problem or to find a Redfield authorized repair center?

Thanks a million!

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Chris Farris View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Chris Farris Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: February/16/2004 at 16:06
Sounds like it died .  Unfortunately so did the warranty when they went under back in '98.  ABO co. in Florida will fix it for a small fee.  Contact them at
305-860-4858

 

That is a nice scope (as I am sure you know) and worthy of fixin'.  We don't see those very often as people tend to hang on to them, but we do have a few nice old Redfields on the http://www.samplelist.com/ site right now.

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gremlin View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote gremlin Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: February/16/2004 at 18:38

Thanks for the ABO USA Inc. lead.  I figured that Redfield's warranty had croaked when they went under, but after reviewing the ABO website and repair policy, maybe I can get the Illuminator fixed for something less than what it costs to replace it.

 

I'm going to box it up and send it out tomorrow--I'll post here what comes of the situation.

 

Thanks again...

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popgun View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote popgun Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: February/27/2004 at 16:55
Get a confirmation on the cost of the repair in writing from them. In the past they have taken advantage of customers with extra fees tacked on without checking with the owner of the scope. English is not spoken well there by the folks that answer the phones. You might want to seek another source of repair. Their work is so so with some jobs completed with success and others returned as fixed with the same problems.
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gremlin View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote gremlin Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: May/29/2004 at 22:53

To finish the story, I received my repaired 3X9X40 Illuminator back from ABO this week.  It took quite a while, but I couldn't be happier with the finished product.  It was returned in a well packaged container bearing a 30 day no questions asked warranty letter.  I zeroed the scope on my Remington 30-06 700BDL with light handloads Friday and took it back out today to a better range with heavier loads and the zero held, the magnification worked flawlessly, and the optics seem even brighter and sharper than before it went in for service--there's no telling how long whatever went wrong had been 'going' wrong.

 

On top of everything else, they returned the scope with a "Redfield" labeled flip-up cap for the objective lens (it looks like a re-labeled Butler Creek, but it looks even better with the "Redfield" on the end), an ABO USA Repair Report sighting the repair descriptions, and a couple of photo copied pages out of an early 90's Redfield catalog describing the Illuminator, it's features, and the 3x9x40's specifications.  All at no extra-charge.

 

To get a USA made widefield Illuminator repaired to premium condition, shipped (with $400 insurance, no less), a flip-up Redfield objective cap, and out-of-print catalog pages for $30 seems like one heckuva bargain to me.

 

It took 90 days to get it turned around, but in the process they claim to have cleaned, aligned, filled with nitrogen, and resealed the scope, reset the Objective/Reticle Parallax, Optical Center, and Point of Aim, adjusted the Windage and Elevation movements, repositioned and tightened the Reticle cell, and replaced the Pivot Screw Ring.

 

Maybe anyone could've done that for the money, maybe anyone could've done that quicker, maybe anyone could've supplied the extras.  All I know is that I couldn't and it would've cost at least another $200 more than what I spent to replace it with a comparable quality new scope.

 

And a new scope wouldn't have had that wide, TV screen opening that I watched my first big buck go down in...  there's something to be said for a new scope, but there's a whole lot more to be said for an old, quality made scope that you've hunted with for a dozen years. 

 

Thanks for the tip, Chris, on ABO.  My personal experience has taught me that good things are worth waiting for.  Great things are worth telling people about after the wait.

 

--gremlin

Take the long way home...

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ranburr View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote ranburr Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: May/29/2004 at 23:22

Mike Sexton, (918)445-2286, in Tulsa, OK also does excellent Redfield work and usually has a very fast turn around time and reasonable prices.  This is who Matt Dukes at Redfield/Weaver/Simmons recommends. 

 

ranburr    

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