I recently began to exhibit an allergic reaction to the rubber eyecups on Leica Ultravid. This is manifest as an inflamed area under my eyebrows, where the eyecups contact my face, usually after one or more very long days of birding. I have never had such a reaction to either my older Leica 8x20 BCA or Nikon Superior E.
I sent an inquiry to Leica, and their response was to apply Armorall Protectant to the rubber, or to remove the rubber and let the plastic disks contact my face. I have used Armorall on my cars for about 20 years, but I'm not sure I want to use it on my face. I e-mailed Armorall about the safety of this procedure (they say the product is non-toxic), but they have not responded.
Does anybody have any experience-based solutions?
Hi Jonathan,
Somewhere at the back of my mind I remember either being told or reading that a very thin coating of baby oil can combat this (it's apparently not all that uncommon). Unless of course you are allergic to baby oil!
Tom
[QUOTE=Jonathan B.]I recently began to exhibit an allergic reaction to the rubber eyecups on Leica Ultravid. This is manifest as an inflamed area under my eyebrows, where the eyecups contact my face, usually after one or more very long days of birding. I have never had such a reaction to either my older Leica 8x20 BCA or Nikon Superior E.
I sent an inquiry to Leica, and their response was to apply Armorall Protectant to the rubber, or to remove the rubber and let the plastic disks contact my face. I have used Armorall on my cars for about 20 years, but I'm not sure I want to use it on my face. I e-mailed Armorall about the safety of this procedure (they say the product is non-toxic), but they have not responded.
Does anybody have any experience-based solutions?[/QUOTE]
Jonathan,
Armorall is OK on eyecups. I removed my SE eyecups, applied Armorall, let them dry, and then wiped them smooth. It worked great and there's no adverse reaction for my wife or me.
That skin under the eyelid is tender and soft tissue. You are probably getting a bacteria reaction of sweat in contact with tainted eyecups. I had the same problem with eyeglass bridges and the cure was to put a very thin coating of Neosporin on my nose. It worked like a charm in controlling the inevitable rash, itch, and subsequent pain.
Clean your eyecups and think about controlling the inevitable bacteria buildup on that soft tissue with a mild antibiotic.
John
PS
I sent a query to Leica via their web page, but I've yet to get a response. How long did Leica take to respond to you?