L glass 2nd hand values.

jnO

jnO

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Jonathan
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This has been bothering me for a few weeks.

People selling a 5 year old lens for 15% less than it can be had new, with warranty. I am not just talking about this forum but on ebay and other classified boards.

They're not rare and as I understand it the older units are no different to the new ones.

Am I missing something? :thinking:
 
Then buy new, people will charge what the market will stand, if these items are going for that money and the sellers are looking at what they are going for then they will price accordingly ?
 
dseered said:
Then buy new, people will charge what the market will stand, if these items are going for that money and the sellers are looking at what they are going for then they will price accordingly ?
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I will.
I am not completely unfamiliar with economics either and my question was not why do they price it as they do. My question was what justifies that price.
Stating 'thats what other people are selling them for' does not explain why people feel they do not lose value and why a 5 year old example drops such little value.
 
I've just paid £800 for a 300 f/4. I could have probably got it for 25% more new but why should I? Lens rarely fail, don't really wear out and are a constant design so used is a good bet.
 
Have you got links. People are sell 2nd hand goods in accordance with current new prices (plus abit), personally, a 2nd hand lens in good condition - my cal is 30% off of current price new, people are just taking advantage of current high prices and lack of available lenses etc

Canon only offer 1 years warranty, some of the Hong Kong based eBay sites offered their own warranty for 1 - 3 years (that's how they use to be able to sell stuff cheaper than US) or there's a Mack warranty http://www.mackcam.com/ but a 5 year old lens with warranty, sounds abit dodgy

As for second hand lens prices, well just look at the new listed prices for lenses. Friend bought 400mm f4 DO lens for £2700 new (HK), UK price at time £3300, current UK price £5400, so second hand price is about £4000.

eBay prices have gone completely barmy at the moment, people even pay more than new for 2nd hand goods.

Got a great (fantastic) deal on the 300mm f2.8 from Stuart at Digital Depot, so very happy at the moment.

Peter
 
pete.rush said:
Have you got links.

Canon only offer 1 years warranty, some of the Hong Kong based eBay sites offered their own warranty for 1 - 3 years (that's how they use to be able to sell stuff cheaper than US) or there's a Mack warranty http://www.mackcam.com/ but a 5 year old lens with warranty, sounds abit dodgy

As for second hand lens prices, well just look at the new listed prices for lenses. Friend bought 400mm f4 DO lens for £2700 new (HK), UK price at time £3300, current UK price £5400, so second hand price is about £4000.

eBay prices have gone completely barmy at the moment, people even pay more than new for 2nd hand goods.
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It is mainly eBay I am referring to I guess, and as you said it seems to be slightly crazy, however there are examples on this board but highlighting them is not really fair.
Maybe I am just far too worried about warranty.
 
I would not buy a IS lens second hand unless I could save at least 25%.
They do go wrong and cost a tidy sum to fix.
The more complex the lens the more you must discount.
 
Must admit that this has bothered me over the last year. I know people will sell an item for the most they can. But, when Canon decide to hike prices by 30-40% to suddenly be able to get the same increase in second hand values of a lens that was bought years before the price increases seems slightly unfair.

I'm only moaning because I came too late to the party and missed out on all the cheap second hand bargains :(
 
Used prices go up with new prices and yes you can sell a lens now a year after you bought it for the same price and lose nothing.. But its what used to be termed "paper money" as your only making a profit on paper. You normally then use that same money to buy a better lens which has also gone up in price..
 
One thing I have noticed a lot on ebay recently, is that some sellers, are selling 90% of their goods to 1 person. This person often puts in a high bid initially, often more than the item could be bought for new via CPB, and often there is a second chance offer that comes through within 2 minutes of the auction end.

Call me paranoid, but in these cases, my suspicion is that there are two accounts held by the same person, and the bid is just to put the price up.
 
That's why I avoid eBay, unless I know the seller (i.e. done business before)
 
swings and round abouts really. if you are selling one then you are probly going to buy another so you need to get the market value . the real night mare is if they drop by 45% and you loss a fortune when you come sell :eek:
 
some lens are rare, so people charge a premium even at 2nd hand. i think us buyers also act in herds sometimes, so we open our wallets more based on the prices being paid by others.

im after a 2nd hand 24-70 L and cant find one anywhere.
 
I also find some used prices bafflingly high, even on here, but apparenty many people are happy to pay them :thinking: I guess you only need one buyer.

L lenses and the like quite rightly hold their value, but you are never absolutely sure why they are being sold, whether the lens is not quite as it should be, or has been knocked or whatever. And not many lenses have a date code. I need a damn good discount to make those risks worth taking - more like 20% at least off lowest new price.

If you buy new, even on line, you can send it back if it's not perfect and also get a manufacturer's guarantee. I'm wary of buying from the far east, because of those uncertainties and potential difficulties, but I base my buying prices on what our friend Mr Kerso sells stuff for (even lower than www.camerapricebuster.com ) and his stock is UK supplied (though sourced in the US), factory fresh, next day delivery, full UK warranty. You'd be a fool not to ;)
 
HoppyUK said:
I also find some used prices bafflingly high, even on here, but apparenty many people are happy to pay them :thinking: I guess you only need one buyer.

L lenses and the like quite rightly hold their value, but you are never absolutely sure why they are being sold, whether the lens is not quite as it should be, or has been knocked or whatever. And not many lenses have a date code. I need a damn good discount to make those risks worth taking - more like 20% at least off lowest new price.

If you buy new, even on line, you can send it back if it's not perfect and also get a manufacturer's guarantee. I'm wary of buying from the far east, because of those uncertainties and potential difficulties, but I base my buying prices on what our friend Mr Kerso sells stuff for (even lower than www.camerapricebuster.com ) and his stock is UK supplied (though sourced in the US), factory fresh, next day delivery, full UK warranty. You'd be a fool not to ;)
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based on that sound advice (you might remember my PM to you a few weeks ago asking for some pointers on a 2nd hand 70-200 2.8 L IS on ebay) I bought mine brand new from Kerso, for about 150 more than the ridiculous 2nd hand price and am well chuffed.
 
coldpenguin said:
One thing I have noticed a lot on ebay recently, is that some sellers, are selling 90% of their goods to 1 person. This person often puts in a high bid initially, often more than the item could be bought for new via CPB, and often there is a second chance offer that comes through within 2 minutes of the auction end.

Call me paranoid, but in these cases, my suspicion is that there are two accounts held by the same person, and the bid is just to put the price up.
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pete.rush said:
That's why I avoid eBay, unless I know the seller (i.e. done business before)
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I have picked up a few bargains as second chance offers not least my mint 40D with an unused 18-200mm IS lens all for £685. I bid a lot on the basis that the high bidder will be refused or retract especially if the high bidder has a low rating.
 
It is just a question of waiting until you can get what you want at the right price in my experience.

When I bought the 100-400 on ebay there were others going for much more that were older whereas the one i bought was less than a year old.

Same with the 40D I bought, same price for unused with a years warranty as people were paying for cameras over a year old.

Since then I've bought everything else on here, because I found some people I was very happy to trade with.

If I have experience trading with somebody I'm prepared to pay a little more.
 
Its just the way it is now new prices are so high.I have seen used prices on here for 4 year old lenses a lump more than I got them for new 2 years ago, I am just glad I got most of my lenses when I did but there is still a few that I want and when I see the used prices it makes me sick because I should have got them when I got the others and saved a load of money by buying new lol.:D
 
It's all down to market forces im afraid if people are willing to pay the second hand prices that are asked secondhand lens will stay expensive
Regards
Lost
(thank god ive got all mine i would'nt want to buy them now)
 
I'd expect any L series lens in decent condition to be 70 - 75% of the new price... whatever the new price happens to be at the time. As new lenses go up in price the used market follows. Why would you expect anything different?
 
Bill Roberts said:
I'd expect any L series lens in decent condition to be 70 - 75% of the new price... whatever the new price happens to be at the time. As new lenses go up in price the used market follows. Why would you expect anything different?
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That kind of price (25-30% drop) I can understand, just.
People however are selling lenses 10% or less below new price and people are buying them :thinking:

This isn't 'market forces' in it's true sense though. L lenses are not in short supply/rare, they have not changed the design and they are subject to wear and tear, however they have a depreciation scale that is almost unique. I cannot think of another group of items that match this criteria that command this kind of price hold.

Nevermind, I appear to be in the minority when it comes to thinking this is ridiculous :)
 
Try buying a secondhand 600mm f4 i.s lens you will search all over the place one comes up on e-bay you will have about 10 serious bidders same with 500mm this tends to filter down through the range although the cheaper the l glass the more plentiful thet are there seems to be plenty of buyers out there who look at a jessops price and take that as a starting price on new equipment they dont bother looking round i always try and get a deal. you don't ask you don't get. If you notice most l glass sells on this forum quite quickly if prices seem to high go for a new one or buy secondhand from a shop 3 months warranty is included in their price.
Regards
Lost
 
I've noticed this too, but it doesn't really bother me. People will always try to get the best price for the goods they're selling, and a sharp increase in new prices will encourage inflation of the second hand prices.

The true value of anything is what someone else is willing to pay, when you want to sell it. Personally, I'd be very reluctant to pay anything close to retail unless I was able to examine/try the lens first, or it is something hard to find that I particularly want.
 
jnO said:
I cannot think of another group of items that match this criteria that command this kind of price hold.
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Personally I can't think of any item that doesn't exhibit this trend.

From cars to cameras, a secondhand market will have price fluctuations that follow those of the new product, and in any market there are always those that are prepared to pay more for some secondhand items than rather cannier people seem to spend on them.
 
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