Is it normal for a brand new lens to be loose?

I just got a 28-135mm IS lens and it's loose. I can basically wiggle at the area shown below. It's loose either extended or not. I took some test shots and the shots were fine, but it just doesn't feel right. I used to have a Tamron 70-300mm which was much longer than this lens, but it wasn't loose like this.

Just FYI. I bought this lens from Norman Camera (over internet) along with the nifty fifty. I saw a thread by another member complaining his brand new 50mm f/1.4 that he bought from Norman didn't work. I wonder this is just a coincidence. You can see his thread here.
https://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthre​ad.php?t=120067

Any suggestions?

HOSTED PHOTO
please log in to view hosted photos in full size.

I don't have that particular lens, but I have an old 28-105 that I just picked up and wiggled. It moves a bit, but nothing I would worry about. Maybe you could head down to a local camera shop and check one out there?

the slop is perfectly normal in the 28-135 and the worse i have seen with any lens.

ed rader

I just talked to someone at Norman Camera where I purchased. The guy said he checked two lenses and they both were loose too. Then I called Canon and first the guy told me that some lenses are loose and some are not. When I told him that I used to have a Tamron 70-300mm and it's not loose at all, and he said, "well, it's Tamron, not Canon". I was surprised he said that, so I told him I would expect better quality/workmanship from Canon. He checked the 28-135mm that he had and said the lens is "kind of" loose a little, but not too loose.

Mine is too loose that I can even hear some noise when I walk around the house with the camera/len hanging on my neck.

The Canon guy said I can either get the exchange from Norman or send it for service. Since the guy at Norman said the two lenses they have is also very loose, I'm afraid I will have the same problem. On the other hand, the Canon guy said he "cannot" guarantee that the lens will get tighter after the service.

Any more suggestions?

mines loose too. i wouldnt bother with taking it into service unless it wobbles alot. if its only a couple of mm leaway like mine then i say leave it

I don't remember my copy being loose like that but it's been a while and I didn't have it long. I wasn't that impressed with it overall. I do think I'd have remembered something as loose as that tho'. I'd be tempted to get a refund and get a better lens unless you need IS, but if you're a Canon only guy you don't have many options ... actually none better unless you spend a lot more. The 28-105 F/3.5-4.5 II USM seems pretty decent and similar IQ and the 24-105 IS L is a very attractive prospect but costs quite a bit more.

I've just gone and found "the doorstop" and I can confirm that there's a bit of play in it. Unless it's excessive I wouldn't worry about it.

Whether it's always been that way or whether it's a side effect of the time I left the front door open and the wind caught the living room door (which it was propping open at the time) and blew it across the room, I can't be sure.