Would you buy a used lens?

[Miller1412]

The title says it all, would you? Is it too risky? If I do, what should I look for/be watching out for? Your thoughts please...

I am looking at 80-200 mm f/2.8 lenses, and I may go the used route...but I'm a little nervous about getting ripped off on a used product.

 

[zackiedawg]

Absolutely...but I'd only buy one from a good source I trust, or in person where I can inspect the lens. I'm not much of an eBay type for lenses. I've bought used lenses from KEH which seems a pretty trustworthy company with a reliable rating system for their used lenses, and I'd feel pretty safe with used lenses from the big providers like BH and Adorama.

KEH is my first choice with their ratings - and I've bought lenses which they ranked as a bit beat up but optically OK, and found them to be in much better condition than the rating made me think - so I think they are conservative with the ratings to ensure folks are happy with what they get.

 

[jann1033]

ita with the above. i did buy a lens from ebay once...it was supposed to be new,but i think it was used. first he sent me a nikon( i use canon) then one with a box so dusty it looked like pre-civil war but it worked ok. but the point is how trustworthy was he.

adorama, is my favorite but b&h or keh would be good as well. i probably would buy off fredmiranda as well or a individual locally if i couldn't find what i want. some camera stores sell used stuff as well so that would be worth a check if you have a local one you deal with.
i'd take a magnifying glass and inspect the contacts really well( since every lens problem i have ever had they tell me to check the contacts), check for scratches, messed up glass, dents or signs it was dropped. if the front element rotates out of the body if you sit it on a flat surface and the element is crooked ( when it's all the way in) it probably was dropped( can't do that if the front element doesn't extend naturally). make sure it has all it's parts( caps hoods bags etc just cause that makes me think they might be careful even though it 's easy to lose a cap if they were all missing i'd wonder how good a lens it is since either they didn't ever use it or it ws in their bag unprotected, neither a good sign to me) and if it's canon there is a site where you can check serial numbers to see how old it is. look up used canon lenses and you may be able to find it i don't remember it right now.

 

[annnewjerz]

I have purchased a used lens from a local camera store, and loads of people here have had great experiences with buying used from places like KEH, Adorama, B&H, etc.

I wouldn't hesitate to buy used from any of the above places, and if the deal was good enough I would also look at Craig's List, Nikonians.org, etc. I guess those places could be considered somewhat riskier because you are dealing with an individual rather than a company---but at least with Craig's List you can try the lens before purchasing it and with Nikonians you have to pay to list something for sale and most of the time can use PayPay for payment, so there is probably less of a chance of getting ripped off.

Good luck! The 80-200 is definitely on my list, especially if Nikon raises prices again---at just under $2,000 the 70-200 VR is definitely within a few dollars of being completely out of my price range ever.

 

[scoot241]

I would buy used lenses from a trustworthy source. I bought my Sigma 30mm 1.4 off eBay from a seller with a high feedback rating. I looked over his feedback carefully before pulling the trigger though.

The lens came as he described - like new. It was in pristine condition and included all its parts, bag, box and literature.

 

[AKPhotography]

I would buy from a reputable store with a credit card so you may dispute the charge if you get ripped off.

 

[KAT4DISNEY]

Yes, I have bought several used. I like it best from the larger stores that sell used and have returns- KEH, Adorama etc. KEH is my favorite by far - never had a problem. I purchased a lens from Adorama that was below my expectations of the rating of excellent. Optically it was fine, but it was dented and much more worn than I felt was described so back it went without problems.

I have bought from ebay as well. There's a greater risk which is traded off by the possibility of finding better bargains. I did have a problem with one lens but I've also gotten what appeared to be a never used lens and flash for a great bargain! I have a camera package coming today. DH keeps eyeing my camera so I HAD to do something!!! If it's ok then I got a camera body and 3 lenses for less than the value of one of the lenses. We'll see what happens!

 

[spinetnglr]

I bought a Nikkor 10.5 f2.8 fisheye lens from Craigslist. I got a basically new lens for more than $200 less than new price. I was very lucky as the guy was getting desparate to sell so he could purchase another lens for an upcoming event and I was able to meet up with him and inspect/try the lens on my camera before any money changed hands. He had the original receipt and only owned the lens for 2 months and said he shot maybe 25-30 pics with it and discovered it wasnt a lens he would have much use for. Craigslist can be a good source as long as you are searching your local listings and can inspect in person the lens before buying. As the rest here have said ... most of the reputable dealers sell good used lenses and I wouldnt hesitate from to buy from them either if it was a good deal. I check used listings at those sites fairly regularly and it seems their prices for the used better 9+ lenses are close to what you would pay for a new one. If the difference between used and new is not more than about $50-$100 I would probably go with a new one ... but thats just my preference.

 

[Code]

5 of the 6 lenses I own currently are used, and it has saved me at least $600 vs buying new. I prefer to buy & sell on community forums.. for Sony gear, I use Dyxum.com, and when I owned Olympus, I used the 43photo.com forum. I did buy one from ebay, but I communicated with the seller about the lens before I bought it.

The 2 times I have had doubts about a seller, I used escrow.com to ease my mind. It's a reasonable fee and protects both buyer and seller.

 

[MICKEY88]

I would, and I have. my 2 favorite lenses both came from ebay..

my Minolta 28-75 2.8 and my Tokina ATX-Pro 80-200 2.8..

but then again I'm the crazy guy who bought a brand new DSLR { Sony A700}clear across country , then asked a total stranger if they would pick it up at the store and ship it to me..

 

[KAT4DISNEY]

but then again I'm the crazy guy who bought a brand new DSLR { Sony A700}clear across country , then asked a total stranger if they would pick it up at the store and ship it to me..

Now that WAS crazy!

 

[KarenAylwood]

I would buy used lenses from a trustworthy source. I bought my Sigma 30mm 1.4 off eBay from a seller with a high feedback rating. I looked over his feedback carefully before pulling the trigger though.

The lens came as he described - like new. It was in pristine condition and included all its parts, bag, box and literature.

I bought the same lens off ebay recently. Gently used, in great condition. His feedback was good and he even had posted his own photography website to show pictures he had taken with the lens. Also mentioned where and when he had bought the lens. He didn't sell very often and had other random things he had bought/sold so I could tell he wasn't a huge seller. Sometimes I don't trust electronics sellers that sell used because they may have not used the lens and got it from a 3rd party. Who knows what could be wrong with it if they weren't the original owner. The whole transaction went smoothly and I was very happy with the lens. Sells for $440 at B&H and I got it for $326 shipped.

It's always a risk buying something used, but I've seen many people happy with purchases off both ebay and Craigslist.

 

[handicap18]

I have 4 used lenses. 3 I got from keh.com and another was a private sale done online through this forum. All lenses are in great working condition and I have been very happy with all of them.

I would certainly buy a used lens again in the future.

 

[MICKEY88]

Now that WAS crazy!

true, but luckily the person I asked was a true Angel and all went well...

 

[Miller1412]

Thanks everyone, I knew you all would shoot me straight. I really like the rating system on KEH and I'm also keeping an eye on one on eBay from what *seems* like a reputable seller. I'm a couple of days away from buying, but hopefully, I'll have a new addition to my Nikon family soon.

 

[annnewjerz]

I'm a couple of days away from buying, but hopefully, I'll have a new addition to my Nikon family soon.

Lucky! I'm green with envy. No new additions in my forseeable future.

If you do order one, enjoy and be sure to post lots of pics!

 

[Groucho]

One advantage if you're buying from a reputable buyer is that chances are the lens is a good one - some lenses are a little hit or miss, and if you get one that's a little substandard used, you may not be able to get it repaired under warranty. (I'm not sure how the different companies deal with that.)

The only other concern is the stuff that can potentially break on a lens. On an older manual-focus lens, you're pretty much set as long as there's no fungus and the blades aren't sticky. On the other extreme, some modern lenses have chips, stabilization systems, and autofocus systems inside of them, which are that many more things can potentially fail. By and large this doesn't seem to be a big problem, but it does happen.

 

[Groucho]

Hi Helen! Glad to see an official Adorama presence here.

Unfortunately, if we're talking used equipment from Adorama, I have to put in a not-so-good story... a year or so, I was looking at Nikon Coolscan scanners and I found a used 4000ED at Adorama in EX+ condition for the too-good-to-be-true price of $199. I bought it immediately and when I received it, I found that it looked EX+ but that it did not work at all. In fact, when it turns on, the power light blinks quickly if there is a problem, and mine did. I did not know that but found it out with a little research.

Since it was so cheap (normally they go for ~$500 or so), I decided that rather than send it back to Adorama, I'd have Nikon take a look at it. Turns out that they have a flat fee for repairing them... plus pretty expensive shipping, plus tax... all told, I ended up spending another $325 to get it working. My great deal turned out to be only "OK" - I spent as much as anyone would spend for a used one but at least it was freshly cleaned, calibrated, and had a 6-month warranty.

I've bought other things from Adorama and been happy, and lenses are certainly much less sophisticated than scanners, but I can only assume that this scanner was not tested before it was put up for sale. (One other side note - it claimed to include all accessories, but I believe it originally came with a firewire PCI card. I have firewire on my motherboard so that's not a big deal, but worth noting.)

I don't doubt that Adorama would have given me my money back if I had tried, but it should not have been sold as EX+ at all considering that it was DOA. I would probably consider buying used from Adorama again but I'll always have this scanner in the back of my mind. (I will certainly still buy new stuff, and I may have the chance to visit the actual store in a couple weeks too!)

 

[zackiedawg]

I've had two experiences so far with Adorama used dept - one for selling, and one for buying. Both went smoothly, and no complaints. I purchased a used P&S a few years ago that worked perfectly for 2 years with no problems, and I traded in a 3-year old Sony F717 once I had upgraded to a newer cam a few years ago, and used the money to buy my still-current Sony T100 ultra-compact (new).

I've also purchased from KEH which I also trust thoroughly.

I haven't yet purchased anything used from B&H, but I would tend to trust them on reputation. I probably wouldn't purchased used from anywhere else, unless it was someone from a message board who I was familiar with for some time, or could see the lens in person from a local store.

 

[YesDear]

Yes I have and Yes I would again!