Welcome back!

In November 2005 I purchased a pair of Swarovski 10x42 EL binoculars from The London Camera Exchange shop in Guildford, for the then princely sum of £899. These bins have served me well, with almost daily use in all types of weather, testing their durability to the maximum - salt water spray, deluges of rain, 38C temperatures, dust, dirt, slight knocks... and apart from the armour coating that had started to bubble and come away from the body, nothing to be alarmed about. Then, in the summer of 2022, I noticed that I had a problem when close focusing - the outer focusing wheel would lose grip and it would take me an age to regain a middle-ground distance of focus - plus, over the next few weeks this outer focusing wheel became loose. I resorted to the use of tape to keep it all in place, but realised that I had to do something about it in the long run. For a while I did consider buying a new pair - after all, they were then 17-years old - but they were still optically superb. It seemed a waste of £2000+ if all that was needed was a straightforward (I hoped) repair. I dithered, putting off sorting them out as I was still using them every day, and using them without a problem as long as I didn't close focus. But I finally cracked, taking them into the London (Strand) branch of The London Camera Exchange who agreed to act as handlers, sending them back to Swarovski in Austria. That was in mid-November. Only six weeks later I received a call from the shop, informing me that they were ready for collection! The price? Absolutely nothing, all done under guarantee. And those kind people from Swarovski also re-armoured the body, replaced the lens caps (top and bottom) and furnished me with a new strap, the old one having been in a right sorry state. Again, free of charge. The service has been superb, from the helpful and keen LCE staff, the professionalism and generosity from Swarovski and the short timescale in which the job was completed (which also included the Christmas holidays). They look, and feel, as good as new. Apart from the serial number, the only way that I can tell that they are my original binoculars is by the silver colouring showing along the edges of the black metal body caused by 19 years of wear and tear. The scars of birding. I did splash out on a new case for them - after all, these should see me out now! 

So, armed with an almost new pair of binoculars, I stepped out into this shiny new year full of hope. Has that optimism been rewarded? The answer to that is for the next post...