Leica Rugby 100 problems

[Eddiebackblade]

I recently purchased a full Leica Rugby 100LR kit including their top reciver the Rod Eye Pro.
I have had nothing but problems with the whole thing!!
Firstly it would not charge, this was traced to the plug on the charger lead that is pushed into the Laser. Apparently it is very common if the cable is bent at the end then the wires pull off internally.
It needs to be beefed up a little in construction i think!
Secondly the expensive Rod Eye Pro reciever went completely crazy and had to be returned.
It was supposedly repaired, but was exactly the same on return and is now away again with a demand for a new replacement.
Lastly I paid extra for the rechargable battery, but have found it a complete lottery as to how long it lasts. sometimes it will go all day after a charge, other days about half an hour!
However when working the Leica rugby is brilliantly simple in use, with an easy to set manual slope and automatic levelling of the cross axis.
This is coupled with the Long Range (hence LR) and is supposedly good for 750 metres.
However i can honestly say that my main purchasing reasons were Leicas legendary reliability, and this episode is making me wish i'd gone with a Topcon!
Am I alone Leica Rugby problems?

[Squizzy246B]

Eddie, company I have with/for for many years has two of the Rugby's. They have been very reliable. I have the David White which has also been very good, with the exception of the receiver which (got moisture) was replaced with a Lightning a few years back

[JBL]

Squizzy, I had the same problem with a david white receiver. Called the company and they said to send it to them. A few days later they called and said they were sending a new one, covered under warranty even though it was out of warranty. Pretty stand up company from what I can tell.

[Squizzy246B]

Squizzy, I had the same problem with a david white receiver. Called the company and they said to send it to them. A few days later they called and said they were sending a new one, covered under warranty even though it was out of warranty. Pretty stand up company from what I can tell.

I think mine crapped out after like about 18 months. The dealer looked at it, threw it in the bin and told me pick another...they said DW were good for it:beatsme I wasn't complainin:cool:

Eddie: I read somewhere that the Rugby 100 was the No 1 selling base model (auto level) laser in the world. Sure see a lot of them out there. Anyway, These days I'm more inclined to judge a product by the quality of service you get these days rather than the name or the colour. Hope you get it sorted.

[PipeGuy]

I've got an Rugby 100LR. I haven't had any problems with it. I've had it for about 2 years. I just bought a Leica Piper 200 also.

[Johnny English]

We bought a rugby 50 because of its ease of use. The most common fault with rugby 100's is too only press the off button once instead of twice. When pressed once the power button alters the rotation speed, when placed in its box it then tries to self level and drops off its axis. A quick visit to a dealer sorts this though. All in all its good gear though.

[Eddiebackblade]

I have now recieved a brand new replacement reciever free of charge, and the dealer posted me a loan one for the whole period I was without mine.
I have been lucky to have some great old fashioned service throughout from the Dealer.
Obviously the new one is fine:D, so we will see what develops.
The Battery life issue is still in my mind, and I'm uncertain what to do.
I could simply get another rechargeable pack, or get the unit that takes standard batteries. At least I can nip to a shop and get some in an emergency then. Coupled with a car charger for the Rechargeable pack I would then cover all eventualities.
I am dissapointed there is no battery indicator system on the unit, it's not really any use to me when it starts flashing 5 minutes before it dies!:(
It would just be handy to know what power is left, with a reasonable guide of time.
It,s still a pleaure to use when it's working though.:D

[DeLong]

We have 4 rugbys and purchased the back up battery pack that holds 4 or 6 d batteries that you can put inplace of the rechargeable. Works great if you forget to recharge it.

[weaknees]

I have a Leica Rugby 400DG with the remote, and a 100. I have had some minor problems, but my local repairer is great, and generally I am very happy with them. They cop a hiding in site trucks going everywhere over rough ground, but just keep going. The remote is great for juggling grades on a blind drainage cut - you can just drive to each end, and reset the slope based on the machine sensor from the scraper cab. I get a week out of my rechargeable pack no problems, and just keep enough D's on hand to get through a day if I forget to charge it on the weekend. I have about 10 rod eye things, some in pretty bad shape (rippers and chains get sat on them sometimes, if the staff just got thrown in the back of a ute), but they seem to keep working.

[Laser]

I recently purchased a full Leica Rugby 100LR kit including their top reciver the Rod Eye Pro.
I have had nothing but problems with the whole thing!!
Firstly it would not charge, this was traced to the plug on the charger lead that is pushed into the Laser. Apparently it is very common if the cable is bent at the end then the wires pull off internally.
It needs to be beefed up a little in construction i think!
Secondly the expensive Rod Eye Pro reciever went completely crazy and had to be returned.
It was supposedly repaired, but was exactly the same on return and is now away again with a demand for a new replacement.
Lastly I paid extra for the rechargable battery, but have found it a complete lottery as to how long it lasts. sometimes it will go all day after a charge, other days about half an hour!
However when working the Leica rugby is brilliantly simple in use, with an easy to set manual slope and automatic levelling of the cross axis.
This is coupled with the Long Range (hence LR) and is supposedly good for 750 metres.
However i can honestly say that my main purchasing reasons were Leicas legendary reliability, and this episode is making me wish i'd gone with a Topcon!
Am I alone Leica Rugby problems?

There were a bad batch of chargers that went out with the rugby 100 series.