amfoto1 Loc: San Jose, Calif. USA

An item can end up among the "refurbished" for a lot of reasons...

It might mean a returned item that was repaired, returned item that didn't need repair, returned overstock from a retailer, out-of-box item, damaged box item, "bundle" item that was separated from the rest of the bundle for some reason, store demo, trade show demo, spares that were used as corporate support loaners at pro event (i.e, the Olympics, Super Bowl etc.), loaner demo units through support programs, etc.

"Refurbished" items probably get more personal attention than brand new items do... The refurb's have to be carefully checked by a trained tech for any flaws or damage before sale, while items rolling off the assembly line may or may not get a quick quality control check before packaging and shipping them out.

Factory refurb or non-factory refurb doesn't necessarily matter. For example, there are folks at KEH, Adorama, B&H, LensRentals.com and elsewhere who are likely just as knowledgeable... maybe even more-so... than the factory tech sitting in the corporate warehouse. I'd be a bit leery of a "refurb" from an unknown seller, though. Some may be experts... while others may just be pretenders!

Most important is the warranty... and many places now offer warranty on refurbs that are more than adequate and sometimes even equal to brand new items. In addition, a no-questions-asked right of return for a week or two can be useful... in case the item is not exactly what you were expecting.

Over the years I've bought any number of refurb items from various sources (including most of the places I listed above) and have never had any problem. Good as new usually... at times maybe even better than new in some ways.

srfotog Loc: Northeast Pennsylvania

After wanting a nifty 50 1.4 forever, I finally purchased a refurbished one from Nikon a couple weeks ago. It is fantastic. I guess you need to know who refurbished the lens. I'd go only with the manufacturer. Of course, I am not sure if all lenses are refurbished only by their original manufacturer.

GAH1944 Loc: SW Mich.

I have four of them. No bad experience !

SonnyE Loc: Communist California, USA

I got a wide angle from Nikon, refurbed, and 10% off at the time.
I was nervous...
When I got it, I was sure there was a spot inside the front elements.
So I took some test pictures with it of a blank wall.
Every one had this faint spot in then around 3:00 o'clock.
Oh damn!

Then I cleaned my monitor...
The spot I was sure was in the lens turned out to be my reflection...
And the spot in every picture turned out to be my dirty display.

:oops:

Factory refurbished lenses are better than new. New lenses get a once over, if that.
Refurbed lenses get put through a QA and can't leave if there is any issues.

Pay attention to FACTORY REFURBISHED.
Not some flasher in a trench coat from Craig's BS, or some turd on flEaBAY.

wolfiebear Loc: 10,200 elev. in the Rockies

Love the spot story. AH-hahahaha!

Thank you, everyone. I am picking up a factory refurbished TOKINA 16-28 2.8 tomorrow. YAY. Never had a super wide before. YAY.

Kuzano

Remember that FACTORY is the KEY Operative word here....

Plenty of sellers sell "seller refurbished"... Not the same.

It must say Factory and there must be a slip with shorter warranty from the actual manufacturer which shows the checklist on the checkout for the lens, or other devices.

Just wanted to clarify that, as "refurbished" by itself may be just a dustoff and a new box from some sellers.

It's also important to know that "factory refurbished" does not necessarily mean there was any fault with the lens.

Any electronics that come back to a seller, even if purely buyer remorse or dissatisfaction, cannot be repackaged and resold as new. The law (FTC or other) requires that returned items must only be sold as reburbished once there is a history of the item sold new.

I'll repeat that. It is against the law for a retailer who sells a lens or other electronics, and the buyer takes it out of the store, opens the package, walks back in the store and return it, for the retailer to put it back on the shelf as new. The sale was recorded and cannot be reversed, once it's out the door. No exceptions. Furthermore, the title FACTORY refurbished cannot be applied unless the unit goes back to the OEM manufacturer.

So, a percentage of refurbs are from buyer remorse, buyer misunderstanding, or buyer inability to comprehend proper usage of the device.

In any event... refurbished means an item that got a full checkout and a "pass", unlike the majority of items sold "New in the box".

I buy refurb Olympus products all the time. I buy then from the refurb page of the Olympus web site. Nobody else sells Olympus refurbs cheaper than Olympus as far as I know.

Makes it sound pretty much like only idiots would pay full retail.

Well, I don't really know about that....... BUT????

Bram boy Loc: Vancouver Island B.C. Canada

only when there available . there every bit as good as new , but a third the price . keep it under your hat . or every one will be buying , when they finally catch on to what a bargen they are compared to new . I wouldn't buy anything else andbi been doing it for 50 years now .

Bram boy Loc: Vancouver Island B.C. Canada

is that for a dx camera . if so the wide what you want is a 10-20 mm as the
low number is what you will be using most often . sigma makes one that rates better than nikon , it's around $500 maybe less and nikons is $900

skiman Loc: Ventura, CA

Bought all of my Nikon FX lenses on eBay. Nikon 28-300mm $750, Nikon 80-200mm AFS 2.8 $650, Nikon TC-17E II $249. I have never had an issue with any of them. Just make sure you get lots of pictures to show they are in excellent conditions and have US serial numbers (so if there is an issue Nikon will work on them). The savings can be huge but not without risk, I have been lucky so far. Many times you will get free extras you don't get when you buy new. The &0-200mm came with a Nikon brand hard case, Nikon hood, B+W 77mm UV filter, and extra Nikon 77mm lens cap. However, I don't think I would buy a camera body that was not new or a Nikon refurb because of the complexity of the technology.

Snappin053 Loc: Southern Vermont

Hello Wolfiebear:

I purchased a used/refurbished Nikor 24 -70mm 2.8 from Nikon and saved a few bucks. The lens looks new and I have no complaints about its performance. This is an expensive lens and I had to give it considerable thought before buying. The fact that it was refurbished by Nikon and the condition was listed as excellent sealed the deal. On the negative side...no warranty. It's like waiting for the other shoe to fall. Compare your savings to the cost of a new (on sale) lens with warranty and it might help you make a sensible decision.

billozz Loc: Birmingham, England

can someone point me in the direction of a place in england to buy refurbished lenses please

Bear123 Loc: Wild & Wonderful West Virginia

Did you check the manufacturer's website. I shoot Olympus and I know they have different websites for all the different parts of the world. I would assume the other manufacturers have the same. Hope you can find what you need (want). :D

wolfiebear Loc: 10,200 elev. in the Rockies

I have bought a handful of lenses from eBay to get me going, Most seem just FINE at first blush, but the FACTORY REFURB TOKINA 16-28 2.8 I bought from eBay (for not THAT much less than retail) did not have any warranty or any other kind of documentation in the box.

At first blush it appears to be fine,m but that is not the issue. Somebody here said that a FACTORY REFURBISHED lens will always have a warranty with it.

As I communicate with this seller, I would like to state facts and not jsut run off at the mouth. The packing looks new. . .the manual looks new. . .. BUT, DO ALL FACTORY REFURBISHED LENSES COME WITH A WARRANTY OR NOT?

Jakebrake Loc: Broomfield, Colorado

Au contraire! I have purchased several "used" lenses on ebay at substantial savings, and when they arrived I couldn't tell them from new. One must always exercise some amount of caution though, and that is simply done by reading the listing fully, asking questions and the sellers feedback rating.

EBay's buyer protection plan is stellar so there is absolutely no way you can get burned. Each time I'm in the market for camera gear I look at ebay, amazon as well as other vendors and camera stores, including the big boys in NYC. They occasionally have great sales on equipment I'm looking to add to my arsenal.

Zone-System-Grandpa Loc: Springfield, Ohio

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Good Morning..

Although I have purchased items from EBay, I have never purchased cameras nor lenses from EBay.

Your best bet is to purchase a refurbished lens from the Original manufacturer of the lens ! Yet, before purchasing, make contact with the manufacturer and ask about their warranty offerings ! Doing such will be far better than to ask those of us here in the UHH forum :)

Best of luck and best to you in your photography endeavors !