I have a Leupold VX-I that has to be the hardest power selector to turn that I've ever seen. It literally hurts to turn it's so tight...

Are there any solutions to this or do I need to just send it back to Leupold for repair?

I have one of the rimfire models and it's the same. Looking at the customer feedback of this scope on Midway's site it appears to be a normal occurance.

I bought one that was exceptionally tight. I just left it be and it's loosened to the point that it's just right.


Travis

Literally, my wife can not change the power setting on this scope. If she hunts with the rifle it's on, I set it on 5 power and that will just have to do for her.

3 years or so, still tight as a condom over a softball bat...

I dunno how close you are to hunting season, but it sounds like a trip home is in order for that scope. From all reports, they'll make sure you're happy.

FC

If the scope has to go back, I'm not worried. I have a few sling shots around here somewhere I can use to pop a deer in the noggin' with.

try backing off the rear ring a little.

I've had quite a few do this, and it is not uncommon. Some have suggested that the culprit is typically the rear ring being too close. However, in each instance I've experienced, the selector rings were too tight right out of the box. I had a Vari-X III that was so tight, it dang near took a wrench to move. Leupold will tell you they should be a little firm, but that was ridiculous.

One thing I have noticed, Leupolds are typically stiffer than other manufacturers. If it bothers you too much, send it back to Leupold and they will correct it.

I only own two VX1's, and both had to be sent back to Loopy so they could loosen the ring. They were stiff right out of the box, and when it was cold...forget it.

Ive run into that on a vx II and III i sent one back they fixed it going to send the vx III back there is a screw that looks like a set screw on the knob i was told that if you messed with it you could damage the scope and it would void the warranty but i dont know if this is true im just going to it back

Send it back. I imagine you kept the box? It will be back in week or so, fixed.

It will likely be returned in the condition that it should have been in when you bought it.Leupold's customer service may be great,but their quality control for their new scopes is obviously lacking.

I've owned 2 Leupold scopes and both had this problem. I sent both of them back to have them looked at and they told me nothing was wrong with either of them. I loved the scopes but just coudn't get over this problem. I sold both of them and haven't owned a Leupold product since. I've read this is a common problem with a lot of Leupolds. My Swarovski and Zeiss scopes turn with ease.

I have a fairly (?) intelligent friend who sprayed his with WD40 to loosen the power ring up.

Good thing he knows how to make money selling insurance because he won't make it in scope repair.

I've had several Leupold variables and on all of them the power adjustment ring was tighter than most other brands, but they were not that bad. I actually prefer the tighter ring. I did have one 2-7 that was TOUGH to turn. It seems like it's more common with their 2-7 than any of the other scopes.

JCM

Every VX-I that I have owned and fondled has had the same problem. On one I owned, which happened to be a 2x7, it took so much force to turn the adjustment ring that I once tore the skin on my index finger. When I called Leupold they asked if the rings were too tight, and I had to break the news to them that the scope wasn't even mounted. I sent it back to them, they in turn sent another one to me and it was the same. I swapped it with a warning to the new owner and never considered another one. I've since looked at a number of them and though not many are as bad as the two I had, all were far tighter than I would consider to be acceptable.

The VX-II and above don't seem to have this problem.

[/quote]The VX-II and above don't seem to have this problem.
[/quote]

Mine where VX-II's.

I have a VX-III 2.5x8 with the same problem. I called Leupold and the tech said it was "bla bla bla" and just send it back to us and we'll fix it. Even confirmed it all with an email. So, they know the problem and admit it's there's and they'll fix it. Nice!

Fritz

So why don't they just check all of their scopes before shipping them,and eliminate the problem altogether?

I guess I should qualify my statement by saying the VX-II and above that I've looked at or used were never nearly as bad as any of the VX-I I've checked. The VX-III have a different adjusting ring that gives a lot more leverage, and though the ones I've owned were a bit tight, there were nothing even remotely close to the VX-I.

Good question. I would assume the folks making this call are the same ones that felt it was a good idea to totally dilute and degrade their brand by coming out with the Rifleman series.

I posted on another thread here about zeroing a rifle yesterday morning that has a Leupold VX-II, 3-9x40 scope on it. It was all I could do to move that godamned power ring.. How many guys must bitch about it, sending scopes back for the same reason, before Leupold get's the godamned message???? This isn't a new problem with Leupolds, it's been going on for years...

Send that sucker back! Tell them you need it ASAP and they will take care of you. If you overnight it they will overnight it back. I bet you can have it back in 1 week door to door if you overnight it.

PP,

Of course you're right about having it back in about two weeks.
My issue with Leupold on the hard to turn power rings is about having them take care of the problem before variable power scopes leave the plant. This is not a new problem, and I can't tell you the number of complaints about the difficulty turning that ring I've read in the past; not just here on 24 hour either.
Yesterday morning, the temperature was in the high 20's. I went to the range to zero the VX-II, 3-9x40 I have on a 257 Roberts rifle. I had the scope on 3x doing the boresighting before launching a bullet down range. I was seated at the bench behind the rifle, and reached up over the scope's ocular to crank up the power to 9x. I didn't have gloves on, and was unable to turn the ring. I had to stand up, and grab the ring with both hands to forcefully turn it up to 9x. That's BS. If this was a new problem, I'd take a different tack. It's not a new problem.
So, no more Leupolds for me, of any configuration, variable or fixed power, until that problem is resolved in production.
Zeiss, you have a new customer... I have two Zeiss Conquests and feel they are an outstanding scope considering the price for them.
Oh, and one more thing for Leupold. Not long ago, I wanted to buy two of the VX-3's they came out with. The first one I bought was a 1.5 to 5x. When I got it installed on a rifle and went to the range to sight it in, I had the same problem attempting to turn the windage and elevation knobs I had with the power ring yesterday. They were, and still are, VERY difficult to turn. So, I stopped my buying at one VX-3. I just don't need another difficult scope to contend with.
I'd welcome a Leupold representative here to advise all of us with these problems when Leupold plans of correcting them. I'm not the only guy with complaits about the windage and elevation knob difficulty.

I Had a VXII that had that issue. It was so tight I was worried that I might "torque" tube. I sent it back and leupold had it back to me PDQ and now the ring is just very very tight, which is not really perfect but a big improvement.

You surface a very good point here, one I've been thinking about as a result of the initial posting on this thread.
I'll say first off, Leupold has know about this problem since it first surfaced whenever that was, years ago. So, why haven't they corrected it? And, why didn't Leupold's QC people write it us as a gig, one that must be corrected prior to a specific lot of scopes leaves the plant?
Regarding to my first question about Leupold knowing about the problem; they keep myriads of data with respect to consumer compalints. Everone at Leupold must have heard about this problem at one time or another, especially those tracking customer complaits. It's just the way companies are. They keep track of what customers complain about, and that info is passed to the highest levels of Management in the company. I worked for an optics company for two years. My feelings are, that Leupold may have taken the approach that it is too costly to fix, and that it is cheaper for them to "fix" those returns than to fix the entire fleet in production. Of course, I do not know this for sure, but it is one of the possibilities.
Now, to bring this into focus a little better. noKnees, and many others, sent their scopes back to have the power ring lightened up, only to have their scopes returned with the same problem, only marginally better than when they sent them in. This begs the BIG question, why? I can only assume that Leupold's specification PROVIDES for the difficult power ring turning that we, as consumers, are experiencing. And, that would answer my second question above about why Leupold's QC guys checking scopes at the end of the production line accep difficult turning rings.. Because the Leupold Spec allows for that turning force. So, the QC guys hands are tied by the spec. This also answers why noKnees got his scope back with a power ring still difficult to turn. Because the repair guys in Leupold's service department are bound by the same spec as their production, and QC people. What I'm sure their warranty service people do when they get a "Power Ring Adjustment" job from a dissatisfied customer is to adjust the force to the MINUMUM end of the specification range, HOPING this will placate noKnees, and all the other guys returning scopes for the same problem.
Now, why doesn't Leupold want to fix the problem in production, where it should be fixed? Why does the scope design provide for difficult power ring adjustment? I do not know the answer to these questions, but will say that it no doubt has to do with MONEY. More money than Leupold is willing to invest in correcting the problem during production. Another possibility might be, that this difficult power ring adjustment "may" be masking a bigger problem within the scope that Leupold doesn't want to address.

In thinking about the Power Ring Adjustment problem, I personally feel that it's of such magnitude in terms of the number of scopes out in the field with the ring turning difficulty, that it is something that may be subject to a recall of all scopes with the problem, from a consumer protection point of view. Either that, or a campaign by Leupold sending teams out to various locations to do the fix. As I mentioned earlier however, it may not be possible for Leupold to correct the ring turning problem without introducing a bigger scope problem.. Been there, done that...............

Mine was a VXII as well.

my vx-ii 2-7 is there right now for a new o-ring setup, as long as it is there I decided it was a good time for a LR receticle to be added...

Guys send it back!! It should not be that tight. Leupold will fix it a send it back..

I know the VXII I bought a few months ago will get sent back after season. It's not too bad, with a pipe wrench

I had the same problem VX-ll on a 2x7. Yeah I sent it back, yes they made it some what better to turn. My question is why are they sending this garbage out the door.

I have always been a big Leupold fan. About 80% of my guns have Leupolds on them. While the other 20% are Kahles Swaro and Zeiss. I have never had a problem with them.
That 2x7 I sent back, was not the first Leupold I ever sent back. It was the forth. I know things happen from time to time. Things become in need of repair. I can deal with this, I have a problem when they send it out the door, NOT RIGHT. I don't think they would want it on their guns.
I'm in the market for a new scope, for my 300 Mag. I'm sure, it will not be a leuplod.

I think it is a conspiracy, headed up by prominent gun writers and internet operatives (you know who you are!), to bring back fixed power scopes by rendering all variables power-change-less.

That said, the VX-1 4-12x40 I recently purchased had the same problem. Doesn't bother me much because I set it at 6x most of the time anyway.... maybe the conspiracy has gotten to me? Where's that tinfoil hat....

Got my VX-II 2-7 back last night from Leupold, turns easier now. I had the LR recticle added ($70) as long as it was there will try it out next week. Used same box and returned my VX-II 3-9x33mm Ultra Light this time.

Oh...well then yeah, send it back...


Travis

Just picked up a lightly used VX-II 3-9x40 and this damn thing is very hard to turn. Have to really try, shouldn't be like that. Called Leupold and they said they're so busy it is a 4-5 week turn-around time. Website said they're extremely busy as well.

FWIW:
I have seen 3 like this.

Pulled 'em out of the "Farmer Tight" rings and the power ring turned fine.

Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm . . . . .

BMT