Several years ago, an "in" at Leupo was good-as-gold for discounts and favors around here. Anymore, nobody seems to care. The tide has turned, even in Leupo's home turf. Many of us would love to buy local-ish, but they are focused on a different customer.
I gave the dude canned questions, that got sent to the technical experts at Leupo, and the replies got relayed back to me. Based on the answers, I know the questions aren't reaching the correct ears... or worse :grin: They won't talk real design or construction. They did leak the zero retention spec, which isn't something that I'd brag about for any scope let alone one that sells for $1k+.
We're fixin' to get a good tour of the place. I've never been past the lobby, but have returned more than a few Leupos for upgrades and repairs that I'm sick of the place. There's one person there that I go to directly if I need something fixed. He's been a great resource and I've gotten more than fair treatment from him and his boss. They tend to treat the locals a bit better :grin: I did buy a rifle from the boss, so that might have helped.
I knew one of the mechanical designers but lost touch with him. We talked scope designs at length when he first got the job. But later he told me that the old man still runs the show at Leupo and they, "don't give a fuck" what .mil or hard-use customers want. He had prototypes for us, but he wasn't as excited to work there as he thought he would be.
Hey, I saw that the last CEO of Leupo has moved-on in the world and works for a candle company now! The new CEO worked in the skating and running shoe business, but at least he's an avid hunter.