Rich, I feel your pain.....Below is copied an email from Canon that I received regarding both of our pairs of IS Canon Binocs....I haven't sent them in for evaluation because we typically aren't in the US long enough to send them in and get them back before we return to the boat....Bad on us, since my pair, the 10x30's have gotten truly awful.....John's are not as bad yet. I've resorted to wrapping the casing on mine in duct tape (I know, I know) to keep the black gunk off my hands. Not a very elegant solution, but it works, for now. Should have sent the dang things in of course, but can't seem to live without them while cruising.....They function very, very well otherwise.....But wow....the annoyance factor on the stickiness is huge....If you find a solution, please forward to us....Thanks! Kathy & John m/v Mystic Moon, Selene53 lying Provo, Turks & Caicos, waiting for weather to head to Puerto Rico <Email copied below.... Dear Ms. Youngblood: Thank you for contacting Canon product support. We value you as a Canon customer and appreciate the opportunity to assist you. We are sorry to hear that the housings for your 10x30 IS and 15x50 IS are becoming sticky. Regrettably, we here in email support are unable to determine the reason for this issue. From what you have described, we recommend that your binoculars be examined by a service technician. We apologize for this inconvenience. Please forward your binoculars to the Factory Service Center shown below. Be sure to include your name, street address (no P.O. boxes, please), telephone number, and a detailed letter describing the issue with the product. As we do not provide RMA numbers for service, we suggest using a trackable and insurable service (i.e. UPS, Federal Express, Priority Mail) to ship your binoculars. Please package the binoculars very securely in a sturdy shipping box to prevent damage during shipment. 2580 Prospect Ct. Suite 103 Aurora, IL 60502 Upon arrival at the Factory Service Center, your binoculars will be logged in to our repair database and assigned a repair number. Next, the binoculars will be visually inspected and you will be advised of the findings. If the factory decides to repair your binoculars under warranty, the repairs will begin immediately, and you will not be contacted. When the repairs are complete, the binoculars will be shipped back to you via Federal Express. The length of time for the repair will be dependent upon the nature of the repair and availability of parts, if needed. Usually, warranted repairs are completed within approximately seven to ten business days of the binoculars arrival at the Factory Service Center. All decisions regarding warranty coverage are made by the Factory Service Center at the time of repair. If the repair entails something that is not covered in warranty, a written estimate will be sent to you at the address that you have provided. The repairs to your binoculars will not begin until you approve this estimate and make payment arrangements. If, after receiving the estimate, you do not wish to have the binoculars repaired, please inform the Factory Service Center of your decision as soon as possible. If you decline the estimate, the binoculars will be shipped back to you unrepaired. Once you have confirmed with your shipper that the binoculars has been delivered, you are more than welcome to contact us for repair updates. Please include your name, address, and telephone number, as well as the serial number of the binoculars, in all repair status inquiries. Please let us know if we can be of any further assistance with your 10x30 IS and 15x50 IS binoculars. Thank you for choosing Canon. Sincerely, Chris Technical Support Representative Special Note: Certain issues are very difficult to resolve via email. If you would prefer to speak to a technician for additional assistance, you may call our special toll-free number for email customers with unresolved issues by dialing 1-866-261-9362, Monday - Friday 10:00 a.m. - 10:00 p.m. ET (excluding holidays). Original Message Follows: ------------------------- INQUIRY: In May of 2006 I purchased 2 pairs of binoculars, a 10x30IS and a 15x50IS. Both pairs have performed perfectly aboard our boat in the tropics. Just within the past 6 months, the housing on the 10x30 has become soft and sticky - it actually is almost clay-like. The body of the 15x50's is somwhat better, although the area around the eyepieces is much like the body of the 10x30's. What causes this? Sunlight? Heat? Humidity? Is there anything that can be done to fix this, as both binoculars are still performing well. Any help you can give me would be greatly appreciated! Thank you... Best regards, Katharine Youngblood m/v Mystic Moon <End of copy> In a message dated 11/12/2011 9:38:50 P.M. Eastern Standard Time, richgano@gmail.com writes: I have spotlight and a pair of binoculars which over the years sitting in the main cabin, not exposed to sunlight, have developed a nasty sticky layer