Nikkor 80-200 AFD help!

[tintin]

Hi all,

So I picked up a Nikkor 80-200 AFD off eBay the other day and got it in the post this morning... you probably know what I'm going to say next

It works okay but it's not great fucntionally; the zoom ring is chuffing stiff and the rubber grip surrounding the zoom and focus ring rotates freely around the barrel so to zoom you have to effectively remove the camera from the eye, drop it down to chest level, grip the ring hard and give it a pretty rough turn, relatively speaking.

AFAIK the optics are okay and that's where I need advice. Can anyone help with some basic tests so I might be able to confirm if I keep it or not? If I can confirm the optics are okay then I might keep it as it cost £250 and I won't find another this price for love nor money.

However I'm also concerned the zoom ring stiffness is a symptom of an underlying issue that might get worse in the future maybe?

I've been on the phone to Fixation in Vauxhall who have offered to take a look free of charge which is cool but then if I do that I kinda have to accept the lens is mine and deal with the consequences!

ARGH! :bonk::bonk::bonk::bonk::bang::bang::bang::bang:

 

[OutLore]

The thing I would do is to shoot something face on with some text on it like a book standing on its end from a fair distance away (defininately not at the closest focus distance) and examine the output (ie "Pixel peeping" at 100% crop) for sharpness. You'd need to ensure you do it at different focal lengths and apertures - but keep your tests consistant, so if you shoot at 80mm at 2.8, 4, 5.6, 8, 16 etc then use the same settings at the other focal lengths.

Use a tripod, and a fast shutter speed - use flash if you need to.

I have the same lens, and it's a little soft from 135mm onwards - apparently this was quite common when they were first released.

 

[tintin]

Hey Spencer,

Thanks loads for the advice! Okay that's done and I found the following:

* 80mm - very hard pressed to tell the difference throughout the aperture range.
* 105 - same as 80mm.
* 145mm - Defo soft at f2.8, acceptable at f4 and good/great at f5.6.
* 200 - Defo soft at f2.8, acceptable/good at f4, soft again at f5.6, good at f10 then tails off a little.

So it's as you say, soft at the wide end from 135mm onwards although not really an issue as it's still pretty acceptable. So the optics are as expected which is good news

Now I just wish the zoom mech wasn't so stiff, it makes it a bit of a ball ache to use tbh

 

[OutLore]

Hey Spencer,

Thanks loads for the advice! Okay that's done and I found the following:

* 80mm - very hard pressed to tell the difference throughout the aperture range.
* 105 - same as 80mm.
* 145mm - Defo soft at f2.8, acceptable at f4 and good/great at f5.6.
* 200 - Defo soft at f2.8, acceptable/good at f4, soft again at f5.6, good at f10 then tails off a little.

So it's as you say, soft at the wide end from 135mm onwards although not really an issue as it's still pretty acceptable. So the optics are as expected which is good news

Now I just wish the zoom mech wasn't so stiff, it makes it a bit of a ball ache to use tbh

No probs - might be worth getting a few more people to comment, see if there's anything else they would check as well

I say mine's soft from 135 onwards - it's not that bad really, just a little soft, and seems to be the same right from 135 to 200. I did a little research and found a few old reviews (mainly from owners) saying it's a little soft at the long end, and also some saying that it's perfectly sharp right the way through. Mine also makes a funny, quiet little clunk noise if I tip it up and down slowly, sounds like maybe the front element is a little loose, which it doesn't seem to be

Can't help on the stiff zoom ring though - if fixation will give you a quote for free then I'd take them up on the offer, although I would bet that they will have some kind of disclaimer to say if they find anything they didn't see at first then they'll need to charge more etc etc... You might end up with a working lens, but for the same amount as you could have bought a good working example for in the first place.