# Problem with Sure-Loc Sight



## LooMoo (Jan 30, 2007)

I have that same exact sight, and it has been giving me nothing but irritation. It hasn't even gotten soaked that I know of, but the knobs that move the sight up and down are always jammed stuck. On the complete opposite of the problem, my horizontal adjustment knobs do not stay in, no matter how much I jerry rig them. I'd like to replace the whole thing when I have the money. 

You'd think that a company selling such expensive products would work hard to take all the kinks out of the sights they sell for nearly 300 dollars!

(Tell Michelle that Lesli says hi, and GREAT job at SI!!!)


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## Xcreekarchery1 (Aug 7, 2007)

thats y i use shibuya, loo i kinda figured the carbon queen would ahve a carbon sight :mg: i had that problem with mine to so i sonld it


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## Jason22 (Aug 16, 2008)

I thought all high end sites would be 100% out of aluminum, plastic, carbon or stainless steel... sounds like that is not the case with this one.

There is no excuse for any high end archery component to have issues after being in the rain.


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## Seattlepop (Dec 8, 2003)

My Sure-Loc Supreme has been soaked a few times, including Co Springs 3 yrs ago. It worked flawlessly. I only shake/towel off the water, tho, and I suspect that taking a dryer to the sight may have been at least part of the problem. 

I will acknowledge that a few days after Co, the turning knobs seemed a little "scratchy", only way I can describe it. Turns out the little ball bearings inside the turning knob had a cover of rust. Rubbed it off, put a tiny drop of oil, cured the problem and it has been perfect since.


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## Landed in AZ (May 11, 2008)

Seattlepop said:


> My Sure-Loc Supreme has been soaked a few times, including Co Springs 3 yrs ago. It worked flawlessly. I only shake/towel off the water, tho, and I suspect that taking a dryer to the sight may have been at least part of the problem.
> 
> I will acknowledge that a few days after Co, the turning knobs seemed a little "scratchy", only way I can describe it. Turns out the little ball bearings inside the turning knob had a cover of rust. Rubbed it off, put a tiny drop of oil, cured the problem and it has been perfect since.


Steve Gibbs told me to be sure to use a hair dryer on the sight after shooting the in the rain. We did not have this problem with our sight at SI Cup, but our sight is a little older then theirs and it sounds like yours is too if it got soaked 3 years ago in Colorado. It is interesting that they will replace with the same stuff that causes the problem. Wonder if you can do that yourself with something else?


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## limbwalker (Sep 26, 2003)

Never had this problem at all. I've shot in plenty of moisture, but not torrential rains in a long while. Sorry you're having trouble. Hope you get it fixed to your satisfaction. I can't imagine shooting any other sight than a sure-loc, so I hope this doesn't run you off...

John.


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## LoveMyHoyt (Nov 29, 2008)

A couple years ago I had a problem with the elevation knobs on my SL - felt like they had sand in them, and figuring that we live in FL - that's a possibility. I don't remember getting wet - though with our humidity.....:mg: I put some cam-lube on it and haven't had a problem with it since.


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## 6X60 (Jan 5, 2009)

I own several Sure Loc Supremes and have been in the rain many times and without a problem. Never heard of one locking up before.

One thing that is not correct is that they don't need lubed. The detent balls on the windage and elevation knobs do need a drop of oil now and then, especially after being in the rain. They can be scratchy or even hard to move if you don't put a drop of oil there after getting wet. Don't lube anything else. You can find this info on the instruction page of their web site under care and maintenance.

Diane and the folks there have always been very helpful.


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## LoveMyHoyt (Nov 29, 2008)

6X60 said:


> One thing that is not correct is that they don't need lubed. The detent balls on the windage and elevation knobs do need a drop of oil now and then, especially after being in the rain. They can be scratchy or even hard to move if you don't put a drop of oil there after getting wet. Don't lube anything else. You can find this info on the instruction page of their web site under care and maintenance.



Yeah - I should have mentioned it - I only put the cam-lube under the knob.


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## Jim C (Oct 15, 2002)

sewing machine oil on the little detente ball is what is needed. They can rust and then you get what some have described. I have surelocs that are the first generation olympic (milled out extension) sights and never had a problem other than that. Some have had over 100K shots of them. I use them and the shibuyas. No real preference between the sureloc and the ultima. For target crossbow the cheaper sureloc with the loc down is the best sight-period.


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## DariusXV (Feb 18, 2009)

I have a Sure Loc QuestX.

Like most recurve archers, I try to keep my sight fixed as far forward as possible. This is where I ran afoul of my sight the first time. The threads on the knob stripped out within one month of shooting my recurve.

I called Sure Loc and was sent a replacement, pronto. 

I do like their customer service. I've never seen better.

I then tried a Shibuya...and have never had a problem since.

Honestly, now having a few sights in my inventory, I would rate the Sure Loc as my least favorite...and most prone to fail.

But, they have EXCELLENT customer service.

It just wasn't enough for me.


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## JDT_Dad (Nov 5, 2008)

My problem wasn't with a "scratchy" feeling while turning the knobs. They just wouldn't turn without excessive force. To move the elevation block any significant distance I had to take the sight off the bow, put the sight elevation block on something sturdy while pushing on the brass button and apply 25+ pounds of force to get it to move. Alternatively, I could turn the elevation knobs, put it was so hard to do, my wrists would get tired very quickly.

Sure-Loc has offered to replace the bushings, but since the replacements are the same material, I really don't have any confidence that this situation will not repeat itself. Great customer service will not help when you are at a tournament and can't change your elevation.

Does anybody use plastic baggies or some other means of protecting this sight in the rain? Outside of not shooting in the rain, does anybody have any ideas on how to prevent this from happening again?


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## Jim C (Oct 15, 2002)

One of the canton nationals rained do much that during the practice day, Karen Scavotto said to me--HEY JIM THERE IS A DUCK SWIMMING UNDER OUR TARGET. I have that same sureloc on my field bow still-never a problem. HALF THE Tournaments in OHIO in may and June are rain filled. Never a problem. What can I say, you had a bad experience. My two DT members were using surelocs-Dan and Sean-no problems on either pairs. And one of those sights went to Europe with Brandon Spray in 2000 (world juniors)


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## FS560 (May 22, 2002)

The original sureloc sights were the best because the bushings were not excessively tight. They were smooth in operation and nothing ever went wrong with them, not even bushings purportedly wearing out.

However, they had so many bonehead complaints about looseness just because it was possible to grab the scope in one hand and the vertical bar in the other hand and feel a slight amount of play.

This was normal smooth and efficient operation of the sight and only a bonehead rubber deer shooter or whatever would think there was a loss of accuracy.

That slight feeling of play cannot and will not cause any error in accuracy and only misguided would think so, but archery is loaded with these people.

So, sureloc tightened up the bushings and now the sights are too tight and the bushings purportedly wear out. Steve Gibbs was never really happy about this development.

My 3 year old supreme sights have been fixed. I disassembled them and reamed the bushings slightly and they work perfectly, and will probably do so for years to come, without further maintenance.

The sights work as flawless wet or dry. After getting wet, I just wipe them off and allow to air dry. But I do use a small drop on the detent balls and the Z lock connection and screw, which has been replaced with a wing nut.


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## JDT_Dad (Nov 5, 2008)

Jim C said:


> One of the canton nationals rained do much that during the practice day, Karen Scavotto said to me--HEY JIM THERE IS A DUCK SWIMMING UNDER OUR TARGET. I have that same sureloc on my field bow still-never a problem. HALF THE Tournaments in OHIO in may and June are rain filled. Never a problem. What can I say, you had a bad experience. My two DT members were using surelocs-Dan and Sean-no problems on either pairs. And one of those sights went to Europe with Brandon Spray in 2000 (world juniors)


The older sights don't have the problem. I have never seen a sight older than two years old with the problem, so your experiences don't surprise me at all. The older sights work great! Our sight is almost 2 years old. From my experiences in speaking with people at the SI cup, I have concluded that only newer sights seem to be having the problem. If anybody has a older sight with the same problem, I would like to hear about it. 

Sure-Loc says that only a small number of the sights have a problem, which is why they don't feel a need to resolve the root cause. Others at the SI cup also had difficulty with their Sure-Locs, so it is not an isolated problem.


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## Jim C (Oct 15, 2002)

JDT_Dad said:


> The older sights don't have the problem. I have never seen a sight older than two years old with the problem, so your experiences don't surprise me at all. The older sights work great! Our sight is almost 2 years old. From my experiences in speaking with people at the SI cup, I have concluded that only newer sights seem to be having the problem. If anybody has a older sight with the same problem, I would like to hear about it.
> 
> Sure-Loc says that only a small number of the sights have a problem, which is why they don't feel a need to resolve the root cause. Others at the SI cup also had difficulty with their Sure-Locs, so it is not an isolated problem.


Your point has merit-all of my surelocs save a compound one with the lock I bought to put on one of my TNC target rigs are older than 2 years old.


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## Huntmaster (Jan 30, 2003)

Just to chime in, this is not a myth. Miranda has one brand new site, and one a couple years old. Yes, they do get darn near impossible to move. I'm trying silicone spray to water proof / lube them to see if it helps. Mirandas never froze up qute as tight, but it wasn't easy to move by any means.


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## nwarcher (Mar 1, 2005)

*Take the new bushings*

It could be that their was a problem from supplier of the material they are using for the bushings (manufacturing defect) and the fix is to replace it with new bushings. If it is a limited number of people being effected that would be my guess as to why they say they are not going to change the materials and are just offering to replace them. Good Luck


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## Huntmaster (Jan 30, 2003)

Update on this thread.

I've been noticing a problem with the sight....large adjustments when wet, the sight would set, then on the second shot, reset to just a slightly different location (which is one thing that bit Miranda in her match). At small changes, the change would happen on the second shot. This was because the bushing was tight, so the vibration of the bow going off would true things up between the threads and the slide rod. It's no longer acceptable to me and an immediate change was about to happen, even if I had to machine custom bushings or change sights.

When I called Sure-Loc, they informed me that they had indeed changed the bushing material to a synthetic material that no longer absorbs moisture. I'm sending in her sets of sights to be fitted with the new bushings when she gets back. If you're experiencing a problem, give them a call.


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## zal (May 1, 2007)

That, and the usual buzz and rattle were the reasons most archers I know went with Shibuya. I'm sure the market forces even the most stubborn companies to fix their faulty products in the end.


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## titanium man (Mar 5, 2005)

We were walking through a field course in Illinois this summer and were pretty muched soaked from the morning rain. My wife's Sure-Loc was acting rough, and so came the complaints. The cadet who was shooting with us for the weekend, pulled out a small squeeze bottle of olive oil, and that did the trick. It hasn't given her any problems since.

One drawback though, after a tough day of shooting, she's never in the mood for salad.:wink:


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## Greg Bouras (Nov 17, 2006)

6X60 said:


> I own several Sure Loc Supremes and have been in the rain many times and without a problem. Never heard of one locking up before.
> 
> One thing that is not correct is that they don't need lubed. The detent balls on the windage and elevation knobs do need a drop of oil now and then, especially after being in the rain. They can be scratchy or even hard to move if you don't put a drop of oil there after getting wet. Don't lube anything else. You can find this info on the instruction page of their web site under care and maintenance.
> 
> Diane and the folks there have always been very helpful.



My experience is my Sure-Loc is same as yours. Might suggest that a can of "Dust Off" be a part of everyone who shoots in the rain intentionally or otherwise. The compressed air helps blow out moisture which a hair dryer might miss.


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## gilliland87 (Apr 5, 2006)

Landed in AZ said:


> Steve Gibbs told me to be sure to use a hair dryer on the sight after shooting the in the rain. We did not have this problem with our sight at SI Cup, but our sight is a little older then theirs and it sounds like yours is too if it got soaked 3 years ago in Colorado. It is interesting that they will replace with the same stuff that causes the problem. Wonder if you can do that yourself with something else?




The question isn't really if you can do it. Anything is possible with the tools and time required, in this case I would assume some torlon material and a lathe to turn down some new bushing that wont expand. The bigger question is that after after spending top dollar on a product like a Sur-Loc should you have to take that time to "fix" a top dollar site?


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## montigre (Oct 13, 2008)

JDT_Dad said:


> My problem wasn't with a "scratchy" feeling while turning the knobs. They just wouldn't turn without excessive force. Alternatively, I could turn the elevation knobs, put it was so hard to do, my wrists would get tired very quickly.
> 
> Sure-Loc has offered to replace the bushings,
> 
> Does anybody use plastic baggies or some other means of protecting this sight in the rain?


I use a newer Sure Loc Supreme and I had the same exact thing happen to me while at outdoor nationals last year. On the last day of the shoot and after the Sure-Loc van had left for another tournament (Murphy was at his best that day) the sky opened up for a few hours. I had a zip lock bag with me just in case and used that over the sight, but it still locked up solid. Took me forever to make adjustments and I felt horrible for holding up the rest of the group because of it.

I sent the sight back to Sure-Loc and they cleaned it and replaced the bushings and I have not had any issues since,but then again, I have also not shot in the pouring rain again.... Excellent customer service though.

When I spoke with their CS department last year, I was told that a fix was in the works, but they were having some problems with it.


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## Huntmaster (Jan 30, 2003)

montigre said:


> I use a newer Sure Loc Supreme and I had the same exact thing happen to me while at outdoor nationals last year. On the last day of the shoot and after the Sure-Loc van had left for another tournament (Murphy was at his best that day) the sky opened up for a few hours. I had a zip lock bag with me just in case and used that over the sight, but it still locked up solid. Took me forever to make adjustments and I felt horrible for holding up the rest of the group because of it.
> 
> I sent the sight back to Sure-Loc and they cleaned it and replaced the bushings and I have not had any issues since,but then again, I have also not shot in the pouring rain again.... Excellent customer service though.
> 
> When I spoke with their CS department last year, I was told that a fix was in the works, but they were having some problems with it.


This is what I revived this thread for. The fix is in. They changed materials to a synthetic material and will fix if you have the problem. Give them a call.


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