How important is build quality to you?

[Neil S.]

I have been seeing quite a few threads about broken gear lately, and was wondering how much people here value build quality.

Please state your opinions on this, and provide examples and personal experiences, etc.

I personally put a very high value on build quality, and it is something that I consider carefully when looking for new gear.

 

[MrLogic]

I personally put a very high value on build quality, and it is something that I consider carefully when looking for new gear.

Says the guy with the 10-22mm EF-S.

 

[Neil S.]

I personally put a very high value on build quality, and it is something that I consider carefully when looking for new gear.

Says the guy with the 10-22mm EF-S.

lol...

Are you serious with this garbage post?

Really?

I would like to thank you for NOT trolling my thread. :thumbup:

 

[Derrel]

But Neil, isn't the 10-22 Canon EF-S the lens that tends to snap into two pieces, in what Canon refers to as "barrel separation"??? I think that is what MrLogic was referring to...

 

[Neil S.]

But Neil, isn't the 10-22 Canon EF-S the lens that tends to snap into two pieces, in what Canon refers to as "barrel separation"??? I think that is what MrLogic was referring to...

OK this is going in 100% the wrong direction...

Mr. Logic: Did you ever think that the fact that I bought 2 EF-S lenses may have something to do with my CURRENT opinion on build quality?

Do you think that its possible that maybe my opinion has changed on this over the years? Could that be possible?

I did not buy them rescently, and a lot has changed with my knowledge/experience/opinions since I did.

Can we please discuss build quality, and not try and just "get me" somehow.

Great job on that by the way lol...

 

[Derrel]

Well, it's petty well-known that the Canon 50/1.8 Mark II and the Canon EF-S 10-22mm quite frequently snap into two pieces...

Here's a web page showing a typical barrel separation fault on the Canon 10-22 EF-S lens that MrLogic brought up in your thread about build quality.

EF-S 10-22mm Broken!!! | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

This is what you call cheap design...press-fit, no screws,all-plastic,and cheezy engineering.

 

[Neil S.]

Well, it's petty well-known that the Canon 50/1.8 Mark II and the Canon EF-S 10-22mm quite frequently snap into two pieces...

Here's a web page showing a typical barrel separation fault on the Canon 10-22 EF-S lens that MrLogic brought up in your thread about build quality.

EF-S 10-22mm Broken!!! | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

This is what you call cheap design...press-fit, no screws,all-plastic,and cheezy engineering.

He didnt say aything about what your talking about at all, it was just a useless post in my opinion.

Are you honestly going to act like saying "Says the guy with the 10-22mm EF-S." is constructive and in some way related to the topic?

Say it aint so...

This is actually pretty interesting, and I hadnt heard of it before.

 

[Rekd]

Depends on what I'm buying.

Camera gear? Build quality is absolutely important, just like buying a car. Pay $180k for a car and you'll know it every time you mash the peddle to the floor. Put some crappy $100 tires on it and you'll instantly know the difference.

I don't care much about things like clothes, sun/reading glasses, dishes and many electro-mechanical items etc because I'm too hard on them and lose/break/rip them constantly.

Bottom line is that if you buy crap you get crap. Can you make due with crap? On some things, yeah, absolutely. But not everything.

 

[Neil S.]

Depends on what I'm buying.

Camera gear? Build quality is absolutely important, just like buying a car. Pay $180k for a car and you'll know it every time you mash the peddle to the floor. Put some crappy $100 tires on it and you'll instantly know the difference.

I don't care much about things like clothes, sun/reading glasses, dishes and many electro-mechanical items etc because I'm too hard on them and lose/break/rip them constantly.

Bottom line is that if you buy crap you get crap. Can you make due with crap? On some things, yeah, absolutely. But not everything.

I agree with you...

 

[Overread20]

I have to say I prefer buying once over buying twice so I try with most things to get quality products (it greatly annoys me how fast technology depreciates to the point where its cheaper to dump than to have something repaired).

Overall however its a tricky thing to nail down - mostly because a lot of things that tend to not break also come with a high price tag attached, so its a case of trying to get some priorities whilst also not being fully market aware in every area. I also read but try to keep a level head when it comes to online reviews and online problems - for example anyone purchasing a hard drive (internal or external) from Amazon will likely never touch a hard drive again for the massive number of complaints - but what keeps going unsaid is the vast number that do work. In addition one has to make sure that the errors aren't human induced - I've read a few funny reviews complaining that "this lens won't zoom" and other similar comments that are based more on either personal preference or the user not fully understanding what they bought

 

[Neil S.]

EF-S 10-22mm Broken!!! | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

This is what you call cheap design...press-fit, no screws,all-plastic,and cheezy engineering.

I know exactly what you mean.

You can tell when holding EF-S lenses that they are built like junk.

Its sad to say, but its the truth.

If they were really cheap then it would be justified. The problem is that they often cost quite a bit ($800-1,000+) and for that price I would expect much better build quality.

From now on I will probably buy nothing but L glass, and maybe the occasional non-L EF lens at least partly for this exact reason.

You can really tell when holding L glass that the build quality is far superior to EF-S lenses.

I am agreeing with what you are saying about EF-S lenses as you can see.

Its beyond me why some people want to try and make things personal instead of just discussing the topic, as was the case with MrLogic.

The name of the thread is "How important is build quality to you?" not "Come and make smart a$$ remarks in my thread please".

- Neil

 

[Neil S.]

I also read but try to keep a level head when it comes to online reviews and online problems - for example anyone purchasing a hard drive (internal or external) from Amazon will likely never touch a hard drive again for the massive number of complaints - but what keeps going unsaid is the vast number that do work.

This is a good point.

In that thread where the lens mount was ripped off the camera, it was because the lens and camera were dropped.

That being said , a metal camera body is far less likely to have this problem though for obvious reasons.

You are right that price is a factor too. Not everyone can afford gear with good build quality, if they understand its importance or not.

 

[Overread20]

That being said , a metal camera body is far less likely to have this problem though for obvious reasons.

You are right that price is a factor too. Not everyone can afford gear with good build quality, if they understand its importance or not.

Aye but the metal mount might buckle instead of snap from a drop - leaving you still with broken gear. Tougher does make for a better overall resistance but the key part is looking after your tools/gear.

Well looked after gear will perform better as the years go on - whilst gear kept poorly will deteriorate at a much faster level. Try sawing a bit of wood with an old rusty saw and then try a well kept and sharpened saw and I know which I would far rather :mrgreen:

 

[Neil S.]

Aye but the metal mount might buckle instead of snap from a drop - leaving you still with broken gear. Tougher does make for a better overall resistance but the key part is looking after your tools/gear.

This is an interesting point.

Have you or anyone else actually heard of this happening before?

With enough force its bound to happen I guess, its just something that I havent heard of before.

 

[KenC]

In 30+ years of using SLR equipment I've never broken a lens or body, and I've had some pretty inexpensive third-party lenses, so I don't put all that much stock in it. However, I've never had an EF-S lens, and I might think twice about that from what I read here, but I've been using a cheap 50 f/1.8 for 2 1/2 years now on an XTi with no problems.