Any reason not to buy a 7 year old 24-70 2.8L?

I'm going to check out a camera tonight. It's a package deal with a 5d2 and a 24-70 2.8L. The 5d2 is only a couple of months old but the lens is 7 years old. He's telling me it's been well cared for and is in great condition.

To make this package deal financially make sense, I'm figuring the lens is worth about $1k.

I don't know the data code of the lens yet but I see that when people sell them on here they specify the date code. Is there any date codes to stay away from with this lens? Does the age of it make it worth significantly less?

I'd wait til he's at least 8. ha!

Seriously though, hey if it checks out & it's a good price, why not?

My 24-70 is probably close to that age and still working great! I have no plans to update to the new model, until I wear out what I have now (well, maybe sooner... the new one appears to be considerably smaller and a little lighter, and I ain't getting any younger.... but I'll wait for the "street price" to drop a bit... and maybe a windfall like a lucky lottery ticket).

The 24-70 "Mark I" does seem to sometimes need a trip to Canon for calibration... Mine hasn't yet, but Lensrentals.com noted this with their many copies of the lens (that probably see pretty hard use and spend a lot of time bouncing around in the back of a UPS truck). If you run Micro Adjust on the lens and have trouble dialing it in at the two focal length extremes, it might be time to send it in to Canon.

One other thing to think about, eventually Canon will no longer have parts to repair any discontinued lens. It varies a lot, though. Might be ten years... might be only three or four (the 200/1.8L for example, has been hard to get the AF repaired, if needed, from only a short time after it was officially discontinued).

I really can't say what the price for a 24-70 should be... Shop around in the Classifieds here to see what people are asking for them. Check the used depts. at B&H, KEH and Adorama to see what they're asking. Do a search for ended auctions on eBay and see what people are paying for them.

It seems like they are selling from around $1000 - $1200.

I think I'm getting a good deal. The 5d2 only has 1600 shutter clicks. Body + lens for $2500.

dfinn wrote in post #14036620
Body + lens for $2500.

That seems like a reasonable deal to me, assuming the lens is in fact in good condition.

Why don't you have the date code yet? Wouldn't a reputable seller give you the date code in your first conversation?

InterMurph wrote in post #14036711
That seems like a reasonable deal to me, assuming the lens is in fact in good condition.

Why don't you have the date code yet? Wouldn't a reputable seller give you the date code in your first conversation?

I didn't ask. As of right now I don't have a reason to ask. I'm not being told by anyone that certain date codes are better or worse than others.

They only reason would be price and condition. Lenses last a long time if cared for.

Unless it is actually broken, it should be OK - have a play with it to check though. Sounds like a very good deal, actually!

The deal is good.

LensRentals article:

http://www.lensrentals​.com …0/the-limits-of-variation

Note that this *doesn't* mean not to buy an older 24-70L, but it does mean that there seems to be parts in the 24-70L that wear over time and may eventually require a trip to Canon. Keep this in mind when pricing an older copy of this lens.

The date code doesn't mean anything about the quality. I helped a friend buy a used one recently and picked up a 2006 model for him and he asked me how it compared to my 2010 one. I told him it was sharper and he asked if I wanted to trade, which I did. That said, all things being equal, some people do seem to care and will pay more for a recent date code.

Why don't you use the fact that the lens is older to drop the price a little further with this person. I don't care what people say, but if something is 7 years old, it's 7 years old. Their should be some slight devaluation in the item compared to a copy from the last few years.

Hope your deal goes well.

I have a 300 f2.8 from 1993. It's awesome.

dfinn wrote in post #14036485
I'm going to check out a camera tonight. It's a package deal with a 5d2 and a 24-70 2.8L. The 5d2 is only a couple of months old but the lens is 7 years old. He's telling me it's been well cared for and is in great condition.

The key is: how often the camera and lens are being used.

Although the camera is only a couple of months, there's possibility that the owner has used it for over 10,000 clicks. I think you should ask him about how many actuation #s and how often the lens is being used. Ask him how he store the lens also. If he doesn't store it in a dry box, for 7 yr old lens, you should inspect the lens appropriately making sure there is no fungus.

Sounds like a great deal to me, no problem with a well cared for 7 year old lens.

If you pass let me know because I would like in on that deal.