Buying used L glass

I watch Craigslist as well, I found a 17-40L for a lot less than the going rate..Also I buy from a local store that watches out for decent glass for me. They have called a couple of times and thoroughly looked it over. While they tend to be a little pricey I like using them as much as possible. They treat me well, Allow me to play with future toys and generally tell me when I am gonna get raked over the coals if I try to trade in...BTW most larger stores have went to a national rating that KEH uses.

jmcgee131 wrote in post #13618416
I watch Craigslist as well, I found a 17-40L for a lot less than the going rate..Also I buy from a local store that watches out for decent glass for me. They have called a couple of times and thoroughly looked it over. While they tend to be a little pricey I like using them as much as possible. They treat me well, Allow me to play with future toys and generally tell me when I am gonna get raked over the coals if I try to trade in...BTW most larger stores have went to a national rating that KEH uses.

Good idea with Craigslist. Have bought and sold other things cheap on there.

with craigslist you can download apps for your smart phone that notify you when things get placed on there that you could be interested in...the problem is figuring out a way to only get what you want, and not receive updates every time a canon lens gets listed...

same thing can go for ebay with saved searches...they'll email you when something matches

bassman69 wrote in post #13618424
Good idea with Craigslist. Have bought and sold other things cheap on there.

Buying cheap good. Selling cheap...not so good

I bought both my 70-200 and 100-400 lenses by diligently watching craigslist until I found a good deal. Like I said in an earlier post: patience

wtfmate wrote in post #13617988
Glass holds its value really well and especially L glass.

If you are like me and tend to switch gear alot to find a perfect lens setup it is great. I bought a 24L about a year ago for $975 and sold it just yesterday for $925. I basically rented the lens for an entire year for $50. Can't really beat that.

Buying used has its perks for those that tend to switch gear often.

I have to agree with this quote. Indeed the resale value of these glass are second to nothing.

I prefer buying used from a vendor that tests the lenses. That way, I know exactly how good (or bad) a specific copy is.....much more so than buying a new lens, which does not get tested. I'd rather pay $1175 for say a used 100-400L that is TESTED fantastically sharp at 22/22 lp/mm, with clear optics and no mechanical issues and maybe a small paint scratch or two, than a brand new 100-400L that costs $1600 and may be a poorer 18/18 lp/mm lens, or have some other optical issue that I'm less likely to pick up than an experienced tester.

I picked up a 100-400L from lensrentals recently, exactly as described above. VERY happy with my incredibly SHARP copy!

Well from what I can tell, most sellers on here don't make the sale, because the asking price is to high. Like the first post said, why not get a new one for a ten percent markup or less when one considers there is usually a PayPal fee that goes with the used one?

I was in the market for a 100mm macro just a few weeks ago, and watched several go through the ads here, and most every one was just a few bucks shy of a new one, sometimes more expensive than a new one, as canon had a sale going on. Needless to say it was a no brainer to get a new one.

But how big is the "chance" to get lens with some defect that you can't see on first look? I am just asking about possibility to get lens as good deal and after first shoots and maybe after term when you can send them back find out that there is some problem?
For pro maybe this possibility is smaller that for beginner to find defect soon enough..
And is there much "parts" of lens that could have problems that is hard to detect for beginner?

Evita wrote in post #13621739
But how big is the "chance" to get lens with some defect that you can't see on first look? I am just asking about possibility to get lens as good deal and after first shoots and maybe after term when you can send them back find out that there is some problem?
For pro maybe this possibility is smaller that for beginner to find defect soon enough..
And is there much "parts" of lens that could have problems that is hard to detect for beginner?

I guess that is the risk that you take buying used. Just make sure that the seller has good feedback here and is an active member. I would be very afraid of buying from someone that comes in here twice a year to sell gear and that is it. Someone that is a part of the POTN community is not going to send you a problem lens on purpose, or I sure hope they would not. The other thing is to read their posting history, if you see something that shows the type of person you are dealing with move on.

duane0524 wrote in post #13618374
The key is being able to wait for the right deal. If you are in a hurry and need it right away, you will lose the battle. I have aquired most of my lenses through this site used and I have been patient to wait for the right price and condition.

The only time I will buy new is if I can get a great deal, like the Canon 10-22 that I just picked up last week from Adorama.

I have my eye on about 3 lenses. In the past it was 5 lenses. I waited and found two on this site at really great prices, more than 25% less than retail (one was only 1 month old - both I was able to keep the warranty still left on them). I have been waiting for a while for the other 3, so next week I am going to take advantage of the sales at BH and purchase them new.

I switch lenses all the time and love buying used because I never loose much. Also I have never had a lens stop working due to normal wear and tear on me. Honestly lenses are pretty robust. I have had a copy of the 80-200L 2.8 that was 20 years old and honestly the image quality was just incredible even compared to the newer 70-200s. Everyone is different, I have a good friend that wont buy used either, and I don't blame him, but I do feel bad for him when he finds out that he doesn't like the lens and then he has to sell it for 200 less than he paid for it and turn around and buy new again.

bassman69 wrote in post #13617944
Well I had thought about it but not so sure. Is it just me or are the re-sale prices in the market here too high? I have been seeing the 24-70 f/2.8, 24-105 f/4 and the 70-200 f/4 all selling for like $75-$100 under retail. Why wouldn't someone just buy a brand new lens for another $100? I sure would. I don't care if its only a few months old and used a handful of time, its still USED. I like L glass as much as anyone else but I don't think the current used prices I see are very good. As they say, askin aint gettin.

i paid $800 for my 24-105L and $1125 for my 100-400L, both lenses were LN and both from the POTN sales forum.

ed rader

Consider refurbished lenses from Canon.

MCAsan wrote in post #13623142
Consider refurbished lenses from Canon.

Kind of funny that you mention that. I can't tell you how many times I've checked prices there after seeing a piece of gear offered here or on FM and it's amazing how often I can buy the refurb from Canon Direct for less. Now I know about the ask high/sell lower routine but I hate it and avoid at all costs.

A prime example of the above was a few months ago on several 85/1.8 lenses I saw.

For me it depends on the time of year it is. Most of the year I buy used, but if it is near a sale period then I'll just spring for a new lens if it is an L. Non-L I usually buy used because they don't hold value as well. I figure that saving a little bit and buying used versus waiting several months or a year is worth it for me.