I recently bought a lens from them because it was substantially cheaper than other Internet sellers. I was concerned that the discount could be due to it being gray market which I did not want a gray market product. Since the website said nothing about white or gray market, I called and asked the salesperson point blank if it were gray market. He said emphatically yes and that the US warranty would be enclosed with the lens. The lens arrived and did include something about US and foreign warranties. This did not arouse my suspicion.

I found out from the manufacturer, Sigma, that 42nd Street was not an authorized dealer and that the lens was gray market. Consequently, I returned the lens and did receive a full refund of the purchase price.

Those are the facts. Here is my feeling: I do not like being lied to and deceived. Caveat emptor. And shame on me. I hope no one else falls prey to this unscrupulous merchant.

I recently bought a lens from them because it was substantially cheaper than other Internet sellers. I was concerned that the discount could be due to it being gray market which I did not want a gray market product. Since the website said nothing about white or gray market, I called and asked the salesperson point blank if it were gray market. He said emphatically yes and that the US warranty would be enclosed with the lens. The lens arrived and did include something about US and foreign warranties. This did not arouse my suspicion.

I found out from the manufacturer, Sigma, that 42nd Street was not an authorized dealer and that the lens was gray market. Consequently, I returned the lens and did receive a full refund of the purchase price.

Those are the facts. Here is my feeling: I do not like being lied to and deceived. Caveat emptor. And shame on me. I hope no one else falls prey to this unscrupulous merchant.

I have no experience with this particular seller but if an item is 'grey market' with no USA warranty that does not necessarily make it junk or not worth buying. It's still a brand new item and identical to the US version. The buyer just has to decide if a lower price at the outset is worth taking a chance on potentially having a problem later.

For instance you can get a brand new grey market Canon 7D body for $750 while a U.S. warrantied version will cost you $999.
Is the $150 savings worth it? It might be to some as it's extremely likely nothing will go wrong with the camera within a year.

I've had five different Canon DSLR bodies, and five different Canon L series lenses over a dozen years and never had a single one needing a warranty repair, all have performed flawlessly with heavy use.