Sigma 170-500mm f/5-6.3 DG RF APO - Thoughts or experiences

I'm consider this older Sigma zoom, as the price is pretty good.

Those of you who may have used this please feel free to give advice or criticism.

thanks.

Love it. Couldn't be happier with a lens than I am with my 150-500.
For the price, I think it is a head to head contender to the 100-400L.
Down sides are: AF is slower and it is heavier than the L
Plus sides are: 100mm more and way better image stabilizer (tough with a louder sound)

The sweet spot is at f/8, so the L is sharper wide open. It might be a deal breaker for you... I know I am very happy with it at f/8.

A few samples all at 500mm:

***NOTE***, OP, the lens Alex_Venom is happy with is the 150-500, not the 170-500 you are asking about. The general view on the 170-500 was that it was not too bad, but some way short of the best in its class, hence the relatively low price on the secondhand market today. It lacks the sharpness and the image stabilisation of the newer 150-500OS. So it really boils down to how good a lens you want and how much you can afford, because with optics you really do get what you pay for. The best bet would be if you can give it a try before you buy, and check the results on your computer to see if you'd be happy with it.

Madweasel wrote in post #11524015
***NOTE***, OP, the lens Alex_Venom is happy with is the 150-500, not the 170-500 you are asking about. The general view on the 170-500 was that it was not too bad, but some way short of the best in its class, hence the relatively low price on the secondhand market today. It lacks the sharpness and the image stabilisation of the newer 150-500OS. So it really boils down to how good a lens you want and how much you can afford, because with optics you really do get what you pay for. The best bet would be if you can give it a try before you buy, and check the results on your computer to see if you'd be happy with it.

Wow! I'm so sorry for that. I totally misread the thread title

how cheap can you get it...you can usually pick up a used sigma 150-500OS for a little under $800...might be better just to save for that...i think the OS alone would be worth it

I had one and it was alright for what it was.
500mm rarely offered pictures of any quality, 450mm was kind of the end point of the usable range in my experience. Depending on the price you can get it will determine if it is worth it or not. While $800 for a 150-500mm is an option, it is well over double what I paid for my 170-500mm when I first got it. I think the only things you are going to find in that price range at that focal length are mirror lenses.

In the end it wasn't a terrible lens, but I also won't buy one again.

There's one being advertised locally for $400.

thetolleyman wrote in post #11524472
There's one being advertised locally for $400.

that seems to be what the going price is on ebay for them as well...if you can't save up anymore you could just give it a go, and use it/test it out...see if it works for you...if not just sell it for about the same price, and not really be out anything...