Buying a Lens - Dust - What's your "red line"?

[LifeORiley]

I'm thinking about buying an expensive lens at a big discount (almost 50%). It has a very small amount of dust between the elements.


Your thoughts?

What's your policy on dust.

Never, sometimes?


Thanks

 

[chuasam]

What lens is it?

 

[D-B-J]

Expensive lens at a 50% discount sounds super sketchy to me...

 

[LifeORiley]

Well it's 899.00 full retail. 829.00 used

.........he wants 550.00 with dust........... 1997 US serial

I should say "expensive to me"....others can afford a 300mm 2.8

 

[480sparky]

Depends on the price. But one of my sharpest lenses (and old 135mm Nikkor Ai) is FULL of dust. My 20/4 AF-D has a hunk of white something behind the front element I'm tempted to start farming on.

Dust in a lens rarely is an issue. They're not assembled in a clean room then hermetically sealed.

 

[LifeORiley]

something behind the front element I'm tempted to start farming on.


rarely do I read something that makes me LOL:lmao:

 

[chuasam]

$550 for a dusty 17 year old lens isn't a good deal.

 

[Tinderbox (UK)]

Virtually every lens has dust inside, try shinning a light though it, i advise not too it can give you the fright of your life but it does not show in the photo`s

Seems a lot of money for an old lens

John.

 

[Derrel]

$550 for a dusty 17 year old lens isn't a good deal.

Except if it's a manufacturer's own brand 300/2.8...then $550 is a good deal. I have lenses over 30 years old that have a lot of dust...cannot see any ill effects from it. Not really sure what the lens actually "is". Check the interwebs for the Ken Rockwell "flashlight test" article. People fixated on internal lens dust have some serious mental issues tied up with what is in reality, a non-issue most of the time.

 

[ristretto]

Well there's dusty and there's dusty. 'A very small amount' sounds ok.

 

[chuasam]

What is the lens we are talking about? Scratches don't affect the performance of a car but would you buy one?

 

[ristretto]

I've bought lots of scratched cars over the years.

 

[ristretto]

..it's one of my purchasing criteria: scratched, hence..

 

[chuasam]

Not without a substantial discount