I have a question on your collective experience with refurbished lenses. I am looking at buying a refurbished Canon lens and wondered what all your takes were. It is a 100-400 IS USM from 1999 and was just refurbished by canon. The seller is asking $750 for it and I am a little hesitant but would like all of your input. Thanks in advance.
Kenny, does the person have the receipt for the refurbishing work, and would they be willing to provide a copy for your review and possibly a follow up with Canon prior to purchase? I'm a firm believer in used items. I have a complete Large Format system as well as Medium Format too, not one lens was bought new. I have never had any issues with them at all, and they were not touted as being sold as refurbished either. As usual, it is always buyer be aware. But, if the person will stand behind the sale on a money back guarantee, it might be worth the purchase.
FYI - I have just sent my 100-400 in for some work. It was new in 2004. It has been having communication problems with the body it was attached to and I have asked that it be completely cleaned of the dust that accumulates inside. I also asked that it be calibrated to exact tight factory standards. The total cost will be $324 which includes tax and return shipping.
So, take this into account when considering a price quoted for a refurished lens. I agree with Paul that you should see a copy of the work order and receipt so you know it is truly refurbished and recently done.
A really good way to get a sense of what you are buying is to get a current assessment of the condition of the lens. Just like you would take a car to a trusted mechanic and pay him for the service, you should consider having a lens checked out by a trusted source who is going to vouch for the condition of the lens. Service records are fine, as is evidence of recent repair, but they do not add any more to the value of the lens than an appraisal of current condition would indicate.
If the lens is in excellent condition, then it will bring a premium, regardless of whether it was used gently and refurbished, or was never unpacked or used at all.
BTW, if a seller claims that the lens was never used, it makes sense to send it off to the mfgr to have it checked out, at the seller's cost, if you can.
A year ago I purchased a Sigma lens from a private seller. It clearly had not been abused, and he had a receipt indicating that he was the original owner and it was less than a year old, but it was not producing the sharp images I knew it was capable of. Since Sigma has a 4 yr warranty, I asked the seller to send it off to Sigma to have it serviced. When I got it back 10 days later it was perfect. The seller was only too happy comply with my request, and it cost him about $10 in S/H charges.
Like the other posters above, over a 40 yr span of time I have rarely purchased new gear.
Discussion
4 repliesI have a question on your collective experience with refurbished lenses. I am looking at buying a refurbished Canon lens and wondered what all your takes were. It is a 100-400 IS USM from 1999 and was just refurbished by canon. The seller is asking $750 for it and I am a little hesitant but would like all of your input. Thanks in advance.
Can he provide unedited image samples with EXIF data?
So, take this into account when considering a price quoted for a refurished lens. I agree with Paul that you should see a copy of the work order and receipt so you know it is truly refurbished and recently done.
If the lens is in excellent condition, then it will bring a premium, regardless of whether it was used gently and refurbished, or was never unpacked or used at all.
BTW, if a seller claims that the lens was never used, it makes sense to send it off to the mfgr to have it checked out, at the seller's cost, if you can.
A year ago I purchased a Sigma lens from a private seller. It clearly had not been abused, and he had a receipt indicating that he was the original owner and it was less than a year old, but it was not producing the sharp images I knew it was capable of. Since Sigma has a 4 yr warranty, I asked the seller to send it off to Sigma to have it serviced. When I got it back 10 days later it was perfect. The seller was only too happy comply with my request, and it cost him about $10 in S/H charges.
Like the other posters above, over a 40 yr span of time I have rarely purchased new gear.