Second hand lens prices?

ShawWellPete

ShawWellPete

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Is it me or are some people expecting unrealistic prices for second hand lenses on the forum?

I work of the principle that a lens out of Warrantee and in excellent condition should be about 25% less than the price it is available new, and this is how I price things when I sell them.

Am I in the wrong ball park?
 
The seller will always try to get as much as possible and if the buyer is prepared to pay it I don't see the problem.
 
they are worth what the next person pays for them
personally I expect them to be cheaper that I can buy them new from hdew or panamoz
I also expect them to be no dearer or actually cheaper that I can buy them used from MBP
 
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It's always been this way, some people price things realistically, others don't. Some buyers seem to not mind paying over the odds.
 
Whatever the market dictates on them, really. I've seen many that are "too high" all things considered, but there were purchasers who evidently didn't mind or felt that it was worth it.
 
Not just here. I have seen used Canon 50mm f1.8 lenses on ebay, frequently sell for the price of a new one lol If people are willing to pay over the odds, can't blame seller.
 
I think it's because they expect people to haggle on here so sellers price things up a little.
With eBay auctions it's getting caught up in the moment that makes people pay more.
 
i have definatly seen this with Ebay!(2nd hand a few quid less than new ;/)..i tend to look at many b4 hand...In saying that,iv had some amazing bargains of ebay to.
 
It seems to depend on which lenses they are, I've got a 50 1.8, a 18-55 IS MkII and a 55-250 IS sat in my spare bag doing nothing. I realise they aren't very high value lenses but I've seen people offering £35-40 for the 50 and the 18-55 and £50-60 for the 55-250. The same lenses on the likes of MPB, Cameraworld and Ebay for second hand are advertised at around £60+ for the 50 and the 18-55 and over £100 for the 55-250. I was thinking about looking for a trade for all 3 of my lenses for a 35 f2 or an 85 f1.8, but looking at the prices I might just keep them for a 'just in case' scenario.
 
The Greek said:
Not just here. I have seen used Canon 50mm f1.8 lenses on ebay, frequently sell for the price of a new one lol If people are willing to pay over the odds, can't blame seller.
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that does depend on which model it is - the Mk1s often go for more than the price of a new mk2 because they were a lot better made
 
Horses for courses really. A seller will want top dollar for the sale and a buyer will want bottom dollar for the purchase and hopefully a balance is found and all parties are happy.

There is a lot of debate over a uk sourced compared to an import sourced body / lens and their 2nd hand value.
 
big soft moose said:
that does depend on which model it is - the Mk1s often go for more than the price of a new mk2 because they were a lot better made
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I'm talking mk2, acreage price £65-70.
Saw a used one last night, with a £72 buy it now price + p&p. How much is a new one? Can't be much more surely.
 
thats bonkers - kerso can get you a new one for £79 while they are widely available at about £90

Personally I wouldnt give anymore than £50 for a second hand mk2 (which is what mine cost from MPB)
 
I don't sell much here but I tend to price things higher on forums than I would personally pay in the knowledge that a buyer will always try to knock you down. Usually it works and the buyer gets a warm fuzzy feeling knowing they got the price down and so do I as I usually get the price originally wanted.

After all, you can always lower prices but not the other way round ;)


The thing I can't get my head round since buying a 50D is this thing Canon users seem to have about the date code on L lenses. I am using 20+ year old lenses on my K-5 that are working just as well as they day they were made. What difference does knowing the date really make, there is no warranty after 12 months with Canon anyway and there is really no relation between age and amount of use.
 
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Mike.P said:
I don't sell much here but I tend to price things higher on forums than I would personally pay in the knowledge that a buyer will always try to knock you down. Usually it works and the buyer gets a warm fuzzy feeling knowing they got the price down and so do I as I usually get the price originally wanted.

After all, you can always lower prices but not the other way round ;)
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My thoughts exactly :thumbs:

I used to have a nice thing going on eBay until they changed the rules. I would put something up with the auction price around 10% cheaper than the average sale price on eBay making it look like a good price. But I would have a "buy-it-now" price around 10% higher than the average selling price. So people notice it for the low starting, and then think "well I can have it now for just 20% more..." But then eBay went and spoilt it all by requiring the starting bid must be at least 40% lower than the BIN.
 
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Mike.P said:
The thing I can't get my head round since buying a 50D is this thing Canon users seem to have about the date code on L lenses. I am using 20+ year old lenses on my K-5 that are working just as well as they day they were made. What difference does knowing the date really make, there is no warranty after 12 months with Canon anyway and there is really no relation between age and amount of use.
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some canon lenses had known faults on the earlier models - which don't occur on the latter ones - hence people wanting to know the date code.
 
Mike.P said:
The thing I can't get my head round since buying a 50D is this thing Canon users seem to have about the date code on L lenses. I am using 20+ year old lenses on my K-5 that are working just as well as they day they were made. What difference does knowing the date really make, there is no warranty after 12 months with Canon anyway and there is really no relation between age and amount of use.
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It might sometimes be one of those situations where if you intend to sell it on the forum at a later date and you know they will want to know the age... then it becomes important to you even though you don't care yourself...

And even if age isn't a good indication of use it is perhaps the second best after the condition. You'd expect a newer car with the same miles in the same condition to be worth more than an older model.

And like Pete said, some lenses have teething trouble and I am sure coatings might be updated slightly over the years.
 
big soft moose said:
some canon lenses had known faults on the earlier models - which don't occur on the latter ones - hence people wanting to know the date code.
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That's interesting to know .. it seemed to me they are just used to beat people down on price. Having 4 L lenses and not even asked about the date code I'm wondering if I should of now. :)

Which lenses have the known faults?
 
Mike.P said:
That's interesting to know .. it seemed to me they are just used to beat people down on price. Having 4 L lenses and not even asked about the date code I'm wondering if I should of now. :)

Which lenses have the known faults?
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I know the 24-105mm had a flare problem very early on (see the digital picture review). It was recalled though I believe.
 
Also there was an optical quality problem with some early 100-400s (again they should have been recalled but you never know)

some early 24-70s had cracks develop in the weather sealing

Those are the ones i'm aware of but there are probably others
 
big soft moose said:
thats bonkers - kerso can get you a new one for £79 while they are widely available at about £90

Personally I wouldnt give anymore than £50 for a second hand mk2 (which is what mine cost from MPB)
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Kerso has no stock and they've been quite hard to get for some time. Jessops are now quite reasonable at about £90
 
there's a mark 2 in the classifieds for £60 notes

that aside i'd still rather pay 90 notes to jessops/jacobs/LCE/mifsuds etc and walk out with a new one, than 72 quid on ebay (plus shipping) for a used example.
 
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big soft moose said:
there's a mark 2 in the classifieds for £60 notes

that aside i'd still rather pay 90 notes to jessops/jacobs/LCE/mifsuds etc and walk out with a new one, than 72 quid on ebay (plus shipping) for a used example.
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Well lets say you get one new for £90, and then decide you want a F/1.4 or something. So you sell yours for £60. You've lost £30. But if you buy one second hand for £60 and then a few months later (assuming nothing goes wrong) you sell it for £60 then all you've lost is the cost of shipping.

Because of this I think second hand lenses are better value then it appears, even at 70%+ of the new price. The difference is losing 30% buying new, or losing the price of postage buying second hand (ish).

I only tend to buy new when I plan to keep something for a long time (which isn't often to be honest)
 
whom said:
Well lets say you get one new for £90, and then decide you want a F/1.4 or something. So you sell yours for £60. You've lost £30. But if you buy one second hand for £60 and then a few months later (assuming nothing goes wrong) you sell it for £60 then all you've lost is the cost of shipping.
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Yeah that fine , but my point was that by the time you've bought a second hand one for 72 quid BiN and then paid another £8 for P&P you arent saving much over a new one - and you've paid more than you would for a new grey import, or a used one from a dealer like MPB , which makes no sense at all
 
big soft moose said:
Yeah that fine , but my point was that by the time you've bought a second hand one for 72 quid BiN and then paid another £8 for P&P you arent saving much over a new one - and you've paid more than you would for a new grey import, or a used one from a dealer like MPB , which makes no sense at all
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Yeah absolutely, I agree. I got my girlfriend to bring me one back from HK, only paid £65 for it new :thumbs: Then I got a F/1.4 new when Jessops mis-priced it at £185 (rather than £285).
 
All the mk2 are of a 'budget' build quality - which is why they are cheap - the mk1 had better build which is why they cost more second hand than the mk2s do new.

I've been looking for a mk1 second hand for a while but mint ones are hard to find ( I think people keep them), I've got a mk2 but i wanted a back up - I'm seriously considering the f1.8 85mm instead which kerso has in stock and at a good price
 
big soft moose said:
All the mk2 are of a 'budget' build quality - which is why they are cheap - the mk1 had better build which is why they cost more second hand than the mk2s do new.

I've been looking for a mk1 second hand for a while but mint ones are hard to find ( I think people keep them), I've got a mk2 but i wanted a back up - I'm seriously considering the f1.8 85mm instead which kerso has in stock and at a good price
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I've owned both and did like the mk1 a lot. It was mint and picked up with two other lenses and a body, all from 1986, the year EF was introduced. Well worth the extra money I feel.

IMG_0011.jpg


Are we a little off topic now...?
 
ShawWellPete said:
Is it me or are some people expecting unrealistic prices for second hand lenses on the forum?

I work of the principle that a lens out of Warrantee and in excellent condition should be about 25% less than the price it is available new, and this is how I price things when I sell them.

Am I in the wrong ball park?
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usually the prices are very good but the overpriced are coming up now and then. there is one at the moment but I won't tell which one;)
btw. ebay is far worse. yesterday I've seen used 1D mk3 for £1700:cuckoo:
 
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big soft moose said:
there's a mark 2 in the classifieds for £60 notes

that aside i'd still rather pay 90 notes to jessops/jacobs/LCE/mifsuds etc and walk out with a new one, than 72 quid on ebay (plus shipping) for a used example.
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The benefit of a good second hand lens is you know that it's working well and is sharp otherwise they'd have been exchanged for good copies already. If you buy new you just enter the sharp copy lottery and cross your fingers. I bought my 50 1.8 new and have been very happy with it when I have used it, which isn't very often, and if I were to sell it I'd want £60-65 (66% of original cost) for a 6-7 month old lens. I certainly wouldn't sell it for a ridiculous offer of £40 that I've been seeing recently. I'd rather just keep it as a spare TBH.

I've seen offers of £60 for the 55-250 IS recently too, for which I paid around double, and the amount of use it's had since, and the condition it's in, I'd want to be getting much closer to £90 (75% of cost), bearing in mind the price some retailers charge http://www.cameraworld.co.uk/ViewPr...EF-S+with+Cashback&CAT_CODE=2&SUBCAT_CODE=203
 
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thats true if you buy it from someone you trust on here - but buy it on ebay and you are still entering the is it damaged/stolen/not as described/heap of crap lottery

60 for a 55-250 is serious low balling though - you can get them new for about 120 (kerso) so I'd say about 80-90 would be reasonable for a minty second hand one
 
sthwild said:
usually the prices are very good but the overpriced are coming up now and then. there is one at the moment but I won't tell which one;)
btw. ebay is far worse. yesterday I've seen used 1D mk3 for £1700:cuckoo:
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Lol i don't want too get rid of my 1D mk3 but id be tempted too list it on eBay for buyitnow for that amount :D

Also i know eBay isn't perfect for sellers and buyers but ive had more problems on various forum purchases ive made than on eBay.. so you have too be wary with both in my experience
 
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I don't think there is as much copy to copy variation as a lot of people think. It's more focus calibration, what's right on someone's camera might be a bit off on someone else's.
 
ShawWellPete said:
Is it me or are some people expecting unrealistic prices for second hand lenses on the forum?

I work of the principle that a lens out of Warrantee and in excellent condition should be about 25% less than the price it is available new, and this is how I price things when I sell them.

Am I in the wrong ball park?
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TBF people can charge what they want and it's your choice to pay it or not. I work on the principle of what the market is at. If eBay etc is selling for x I'll put it up for x.


Out of interest are you after something at the moment ;)
 
never had a problem with any of the lenses I have bought off ebay they have all been perfect
 
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modchild said:
The benefit of a good second hand lens is you know that it's working well and is sharp otherwise they'd have been exchanged for good copies already. .........
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As Big Soft Moose said, you would hope so, but you are putting your trust in them that it is a good copy and they have declared any issues etc with it...

modchild said:
If you buy new you just enter the sharp copy lottery and cross your fingers. ..........
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But you could swap it and ensure that it is to your liking and have a full 12 months (or more) warrenty with it, if you're not happy.

modchild said:
if I were to sell it I'd want £60-65 (66% of original cost) for a 6-7 month old lens.....
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I'd agree with you, but I think here lies the OP question -> as a sellar you'd want as much as you can get for your lens, but as a buyer, do you want to pay £60-65 for a 2nd hand one, when you can pick a brand new one up from (current price) £75+ depending on where you go :shrug:
 
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andyred said:
I'd agree with you, but I think here lies the OP question -> as a sellar you'd want as much as you can get for your lens, but as a buyer, do you want to pay £60-65 for a 2nd hand one, when you can pick a brand new one up from (current price) £75+ depending on where you go :shrug:
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Where can you get the 50mm f1.8 II for £75?
 
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