17-55mm f/2.8 - new vs. used

I have an opportunity to buy a year-old 17-55mm f/2.8 from a photographer for about $750 -- the lens is in great shape and he is only selling it because he's moving up to FF. I can afford to buy a new lens, but saving almost $300 is a plus -- is there any reason not to buy used?

Any input is much appreciated!

Carla

Do it!

Just make sure there is little to no dust behind front element. Also make sure the zoom ring is to your liking. I had same lens with a stiff zoom ring and I had to sell it because It bothered me so much. $750 is a great deal, and the lens is amazing.

Assuming you are able to try it and establish the functionality; then, there is only one reason, in my opinion, to choose new over used. Warranty. Having said that, I always buy used.

Thanks everyone! I recently upgraded to a 7D, so very recently decided I needed some better glass and did my research. I'll definitely check out the lens for functionality and dust - thanks for the advice!

One guy on here just had to get the IS on his replaced and it ran around $175 or so, so you would still be about $150 ahead even if you have to have a major repair done.

I just bought a used one 3 days ago... brought my t3i, laptop and checked it out in a starbucks. Asking price was $750 and I offered $650 because of the dust in the lens. Ended up buying it for $730. Took it home and did a few more test shots and now I feel like I may have to send it to Canon to file the edges on it - I feel like it should be quite a bit sharper from reading so much on how great of a lens it is. I recently felt the same about my Canon refurbished 50mm 1.4 (sent it in for them to sharpen) and when it came back I was much happier. I knew the removal of dust would be easy - loads of youtube vids... basically 3 screws and blow it out. Anyway, $300 was a lot for me to save but now I feel like if I had to have purchased new I may not have to be dealing with the dust issue (I think they sealed the newer models?) and free fix of any focus issues...

luvsadog2 wrote in post #14745177
I have an opportunity to buy a year-old 17-55mm f/2.8 from a photographer for about $750 -- the lens is in great shape and he is only selling it because he's moving up to FF. I can afford to buy a new lens, but saving almost $300 is a plus -- is there any reason not to buy used?

Any input is much appreciated!

Carla

There are two lenses EVERY 7D should come with.

17-55IS USM, and a 30/1.4.

The 17-55 is magic on the 7D. Pure magic.

hayabusa3 wrote in post #14745250
I just bought a used one 3 days ago... brought my t3i, laptop and checked it out in a starbucks. Asking price was $750 and I offered $650 because of the dust in the lens. Ended up buying it for $730. Took it home and did a few more test shots and now I feel like I may have to send it to Canon to file the edges on it - I feel like it should be quite a bit sharper from reading so much on how great of a lens it is. I recently felt the same about my Canon refurbished 50mm 1.4 (sent it in for them to sharpen) and when it came back I was much happier. I knew the removal of dust would be easy - loads of youtube vids... basically 3 screws and blow it out. Anyway, $300 was a lot for me to save but now I feel like if I had to have purchased new I may not have to be dealing with the dust issue (I think they sealed the newer models?) and free fix of any focus issues...

They aren't sealed, if Canon had added something like that they would have made it a "II" and jacked the price another couple hundred bucks.

I have heard from a few people now that they have a filter on the front and that seems to seal it from getting visible dust behind the front element at least. What about the pics looks soft?

The dust removal vids I've watched add a small bead of sealant over the screws covering the open spaces, which is then covered by the canon ring with the decals on it... reading the posts there it seemed like the dust issues were fixed on the newer models so I assumed Cannon had done something similar. As for the soft pictures I'm getting - I feel that My 50 blows it away right now ( more at 100% crop) you could say I'm being too picky, but I don't think so..

hayabusa3 wrote in post #14745250
I just bought a used one 3 days ago... brought my t3i, laptop and checked it out in a starbucks. Asking price was $750 and I offered $650 because of the dust in the lens. Ended up buying it for $730. Took it home and did a few more test shots and now I feel like I may have to send it to Canon to file the edges on it - I feel like it should be quite a bit sharper from reading so much on how great of a lens it is. I recently felt the same about my Canon refurbished 50mm 1.4 (sent it in for them to sharpen) and when it came back I was much happier. I knew the removal of dust would be easy - loads of youtube vids... basically 3 screws and blow it out. Anyway, $300 was a lot for me to save but now I feel like if I had to have purchased new I may not have to be dealing with the dust issue (I think they sealed the newer models?) and free fix of any focus issues...

Sounds like your body might need a microadjustment vs your lens.

pyrojim wrote in post #14745264
There are two lenses EVERY 7D should come with.

17-55IS USM, and a 30/1.4.

The 17-55 is magic on the 7D. Pure magic.

Agreed. I just sold my 30mm to fund my 5dc. Going to pick up a pancake to replace it. Keeping the 17-55 for events and video use.

[QUOTE=Stir Fry A Lot;14745390]Sounds like your body might need a microadjustment vs your lens.


Can this be done on a t3i? Can I do it myself?

[QUOTE=hayabusa3;14745​551]

Stir Fry A Lot wrote in post #14745390
Sounds like your body might need a microadjustment vs your lens.


Can this be done on a t3i? Can I do it myself?

No. He is saying your body may be out of calibration (the sensor plane is off) which is causing every lens to not be sharp. Only way to get that fixed is a trip to Canon. But if you think the 50 is much better after Canon calibrated it the lenses might be the issue. Is it sharp other lenses?

luvsadog2 wrote in post #14745177
I have an opportunity to buy a year-old 17-55mm f/2.8 from a photographer for about $750 -- the lens is in great shape and he is only selling it because he's moving up to FF. I can afford to buy a new lens, but saving almost $300 is a plus -- is there any reason not to buy used?

Any input is much appreciated!

Carla

This is from my year old 17-55 on my 60D. 1/100 sec at f5, ISO 400. 100% crop with just slight exposure and clarity bumps in LR4. It even looks good at 200%. If this isn't sharp enough, then you had better stay away from any zoom lenses. And by the way, no issues with dust. I do have a Hoya MMC UV filter on since I read that it might help with the dust, but one way or another, I've never had any trouble with it.

Not true. Canon does "silent upgrades" on stuff from time to time. The original 70-200/2.8 IS was an good example of a silent upgrade. They put a revised IS mechanism in it, a year or two into production. The "upgrade" wasn't to improve effectiveness or durability of the lens, just a revision that made servicing the lens easier, maybe offered lower cost production as well. You could have an older lens updated for $600, but it really wasn't worth doing unless the IS in your lens broke, in which case the newer mechanism probably would have been used anyway. We've just seen another example of a silent upgrade with the "light leak" problem on the 5D3... the problem came to light pretty quickly, Canon has taken a few back and fixed them... But no doubt they've also added a piece of tape to their production process to avoid the problem in the future. A few years ago Canon dealt with the 1D Mark III sub-mirror focus issue (Finally! After denying there was any problem at all for about a year.) It's a sure bet they changed the bits they were using and/or the way the camera was being assembled. And the original 5D classic had problems with the mirror coming loose (what genius thought all that was needed was glue!). A fix was developed and cameras were recalled and had it installed free, even if out of warranty (you still can get the fix done free, but they won't just do it as a matter of course... only if the mirror comes loose). The final batches of the 5DC to roll off the production line had the fix incorporated, yet weren't giving any sort of new designation or increase in price.

There are more examples... sometimes it's just a "bad batch" thing. Lensrentals.com talks about that on their website... That at times they have had "problem" lenses (and they buy dozens or a hundred copies, often in a single manufacturing batch), although earlier and later copies of the same model were fine. It's not just Canon, either, by any means. All manufacturers have some variations from time to time. I suppose it's inevitable whenever any complex product is mass produced, that sometimes an individual bad copy will get through... or that a batch might be made with bad components or assembled incorrectly. (How many automotive recalls have you heard about, over the years? it's much the same thing. Any company that didn't change their manufacturing or components to prevent future reoccurance would be foolish.)

Though nothing has been reported anywhere, I suspect they've done something with the 17-55, too. A few years ago there were lots of reports about dust in the lenses and IS failures on that model... here on POTN and elsewhere. But we hardly ever hear any complaints these days. So I can only guess that Canon's made a few changes to solve the dust problem and might have changed suppliers or redesigned the IS system for improved reliability.

At any rate, I wouldn't be too concerned about a one year old 17-55... I think they've been fixed and seem to be as reliable as most other Canon lenes. I'd just check it inside with a flashlight, or by holding it up to a bright light source, that the front element is reasonably dust free (there will be some specks of dust in any lens, when you check it that way... lenses aren't assembled in a "clean room" and a few specks are meaningless.... won't harm image quality... but, hey, might be good for a little more discount off the asking price!) I'd also take my camera along and make a few shots, inspect them as best I can on the camera's LCD... or on a laptop if possible.

I'd be more concerned about a three year old 17-55, than a one year old. I don't know if the 17-55 is typically marked with a date code, but you also might want to familiarize yourself with those, so that if it is you can check to see if really is a one year old (approx.) lens. Just because someone bought it a year ago doesn't mean it is only a year old. It might have sat on a shelf somewhere for a couple years, before it was sold (unlikely, but possible).

Canon 50D, 7D, 5DII and III, and the last couple generations of 1-D series have focus Micro Adjust feature to fine tune focus calibration.

The other models do not have Micro Adjust. They are adjustable, though... by a repair tech. If the camera is out of warranty, a local repair shop might be able to handle it at a lower cost and faster turnaround (it just involves testing the camera and turning a screw to adjust focus)... If it's in warranty, it would be best to send it to Canon Service, so that the warranty isn't voided.

If this is a Craigslist item, be very careful about where you meet with a seller. Insist on a safe place, such as inside a busy bank lobby or coffee shop.