Nikon lens broken AF-S worth repair?

Jim B

Jim B

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Jamie Blandford
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The AF-S on my Nikkor 18-70mm f/3.5-4.5 G ED lens has stopped working. No surprise because the same thing happened to the 18-55 kit lens about a year after I bought it with the camera! :thumbsdown:

Anyway I bought the 18-70 about a year ago as a replacement for the 18-55. I shoot mostly rallies and I think that on some of the dustier events, dust has got inside the lens and has damaged the AF-S motor. It doesn't get a lock, just hunts backwards and forwards and makes a sort of squeeking sound. There is also a faint grating sound inside when you twist the zoom ring. :shake:

Basically I was wondering if its economic to send away to get fixed? I've looked at the Nikon UK repairs site (http://www.europe-nikon.com/home/en_GB/local/broad/86/1.html), and it says if I send it away and get an estimate but refuse it, the charge is £6.50 and VAT and return charges of £5.95 = £12.45.

They also have a list of repair centres (http://www.europe-nikon.com/home/en_GB/local_content/broad/186/1.html), does anyone have any experience or recommendations of any? From what I've seen after a quick Google, Fixation (http://www.fixationuk.com/Fixation/Repairs.html) seems a good place to go for, and according to their site if I email them, they'll offer an idea of the possibility and costs of repairs, so I think I'll try that first...

Thank you in advance,
 
Is it not worth the £12.45 to see if it's fixable at an economic price?
 
It won't be economical to repair an AF-S motor for a lens on this.

Just buy a used one for £90-£100, a repair bill will almost certainly be more than the cost of a replacement.

If you decide to get it repaired, Fixation will be able to do this easily, and quickly, and cheaper than Nikon UK.

(I'm assuming your lens is out of warranty)
 
Alasdair thats what I thought, but I thought it was worth checking here, and from what puddleduck has said its not worth it.

Puddleduck, as far as I could tell from the Nikon site, they contract out the repairs to companys and Fixation was one of them. The lens must be out of warranty, I bought it from eBay without a receipt or warranty card. :(
 
You can ask Fixation for a quote, but I'm pretty confident you'll be looking at £80-£100 minimum.

You might get lucky and they have a spare AF-S motor from a "written off" lens they could fit, but if they need to order a motor from Nikon, the repair bill will be uneconomical.
 
You'd be as well putting the lens up on Ebay - it'll probably still do £50 or so as it is and buy another one...
 
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