Lensauthority & Used Lenses

Used Lenses seem to me to be a good deal if they are well taken care of. I wouldn't want to buy a body used, you don't necessarily know beforehand how many times that shutter has been activated. Regardless I want the entire 150K shots for myself. However, getting used glass can save some dough and allow me to acquire more glass than I would otherwise be able to afford.

So what is the consensus on lensauthority.com, the used sales division of lensrentals.com? If a lens receives serious damage, such a being dropped, is it removed completely from their inventory, or is that lens repaired by them and put on the lensauthority site? It appears that they limit rentals of lenses to 2 years or 40 weeks in the field, whichever comes first. I could be wrong on that though.

Are there are used lens marketplaces that are well respected and trustworthy? That I can count on getting a lens that has not been abused?

I do enjoy Roger's articles and find them educational. So it's at least a good resource in that respect.

Thanks,
heldGaze

Heya,

I've not really seen any negative stuff concerning them.

Personally I use KEH.com. Longer warranty on their items. And they do coupons that are % based fairly often. So I just watch a few items, grab them all with a 20% off coupon, and get enough of a deal on several items to make it worth while, and still get 180 day warranty, etc. I actually emailed KEH once and asked them to put something on Amazon so that I could use Amazon credit on it and buy it from them. They did, and emailed me the link. That's how cool they are.

LensAuthority lets you return and most of their stuff has a limited warranty.

That's a heck of a lot better than buying from someone with zero return ability potentially and zero warranty. Right?

Very best,

I've had good luck purchasing lenses.....a good source for me.

I've purchased a camera body and a lens from lensrentals- no issues. They also offer the option to buy an extended warranty for very cheap- I added a 1 year warranty to my 70d for $15, and a 2 year warranty to my 100mm for $8.

I've purchased from lensauthority.com

I feel like they are pretty accurate, if not conservative in their product descriptions.

I'd purchase again (if they ever had anything I want in stock!)

I purchased my 400/2.8 from them. It was in great condition, described well and in fact you can call in and the guy will go get the lens you are buying and answer any questions you have with the lens in his hands. I also got a great price on it. I would be confident about buying from them.

I've purchased a Wimberley gimbal and a Markins Ballhead from LensAuthority. Accurately described and shipped promptly. Would gladly purchase from them again. I've also purchased a used Gitzo tripod from Adorama that was accurately described. KEH sold me a LN Canon 400 5.6. It really was 'Like New'. Also bought a used 100mm macro lens from B&H. At the time, I didn't know that there was a non-USM 100mm macro so I was surprised. B&H easily accepted the return of that lens. All of the top companies have been reliable. I've also bought off the B&S sell board, all of those deals have been good.

Good luck with the purchase!

John Mc

I bought a 24-70 f/2.8 vII last February from them. It was exactly as described and it's still working great after almost a year of usage. I also got a 2 year extended warranty from them for an additional $20. I'll gladly buy from them again.

their prices don't seem to be all that great for used gear...what lens are you looking for?

I've bought a lens from Lensauthority and have bought and sold multiple lenses and bodies over the years from KEH, and would gladly go back to either of them. Prices vary, and some things will be cheaper one place or another for an equivalent condition lens so I shopped both on my last purchase.

Thanks everyone for your feedback. Looks like lensauthority and KEH are both trustworthy sources for used gear. I already check B&H & Adorama, but usually for new gear, but I'll look there as well as these two new sources when looked for used lenses.

DreDaze wrote in post #17840772
their prices don't seem to be all that great for used gear...what lens are you looking for?

I'm looking at two lenses right now...

24-70 f/2.8 II
11-24 f/4 L

their price for the 24-70II is more than refurb direct from canon...at least when they had it in stock a couple weeks ago...prices may have gone up, but it last sold there for $1291...and that includes a 1 year warranty

the 11-24mm is going to be hard to find used i think...

I bought a used 24-105 f/4L IS USM and a used 100-400 f/4.5-5.6 IS USM I from them. I'd also rented a TS-E 24 f/3.5 II from LenRentals. I found their descriptions to be spot-on, and I thought their prices were fair. According to Lr, I've taken over 21,000 photos with the 24-105, and 2,300 with the 100-400. They're careful with shipping their rentals and sale items, and they seem to take care of their rental lenses.

I would consider buying from them again, and I'd give them a solid recommendation for anyone looking to buy used from them.

My wife and I just bought two bodies from LensAuthority (she a T5i as her first DSLR and I a 7D Mk II) and we're quite happy. It helps that we bought during their (extended) Black Friday sale and saved 10%. They both look and handle great, with minimal signs of use. The nice thing IMO about buying from them is you get the testing performed by all the renters, plus the extensive testing Lensrentals does after each rental, and before posting it for sale. You get similar testing from Canon direct refurb sales, however. I had looked at the Canon direct sales, but LA came out a bit cheaper.

They do generally provide shutter actuation estimates for cameras, but do not guarantee that as the various counting methods are of dubious accuracy. I wouldn't hesitate to buy another body from them in the future, nor would I hesitate to buy a lens if the price was right. Their lens prices do tend to be a little more than buying used here or on eBay, but then again you get the benefits of buying from an established business with a stellar customer service reputation, and the aforementioned testing and any necessary servicing.

I have had similar results with KEH (flash) and B&H used (lens).