[vagabond79]

I find my LBA ramping up, especially as I continue to discover the old (but amazing) Tak, K, M and A series lenses. Like everyone else, I am always on the lookout for a deal. Where are the best bets for finding a good buy?

I find ebay to be pretty competitive for the nice old lenses and difficult to get a deal.

I look on craigslist fairly often but mostly find old, budget zooms of low quality.

Are there other good places to explore like garage sales, flea markets, pawn shops, etc.?

Thanks in advance for any suggestions!

[photolady95]

KEH is the best place to find old lenses. Screwmount to K-mount, and most are reasonably priced. www.keh.com


As for garage sales, flea markets and/or pawn shops, I've never found any Pentax lenses at any of them, especially not pawn shops. Their prices are too high for me, even if I found any that fit my camera, they usually stock the other guys gear. But I know some members on here do find lenses at garage sales and flea markets for good prices. I do prefer KEH because I usually find what I want there, plus they have reasonable shipping and a great warranty service. Most items they sell come with a better warranty than most online used places. Just my two cents.

[Nick Siebers]

If I really want a lens, I will usually just buy it at KEH. You might not get an amazing deal, but they don't overcharge, quality is almost always good and there is a 6 month warranty. Otherwise, you can try searching for cameras rather than lenses. Old film bodies with lenses tend to sell for less than the lenses alone, especially when poorly described.

Good luck!
Nick

eta: simultaneous post with photolady, and I agreed with her too! I've found Pentax lenses at flea markets, thrift shops, etc but they are rare to find and usually junk, like most ill-cared for equipment. If you want to find gems, prepare to do a lot of digging.

[vagabond79]

KEH is the best place to find old lenses. Screwmount to K-mount, and most are reasonably priced. www.keh.com


As for garage sales, flea markets and/or pawn shops, I've never found any Pentax lenses at any of them, especially not pawn shops. Their prices are too high for me, even if I found any that fit my camera, they usually stock the other guys gear. But I know some members on here do find lenses at garage sales and flea markets for good prices. I do prefer KEH because I usually find what I want there, plus they have reasonable shipping and a great warranty service. Most items they sell come with a 60 day warranty. Just my two cents.

I have browsed KEH every now and then but I will start looking more often. I tend to agree that with old lenses it's worth avoiding the hassle you might run into with condition issues when you buy from an unknown party on ebay or craigslist.

[photolady95]

I've bought most of my lenses and two digital cameras from them in the last 6 years and never had but one dud, a Sigma lens with fungus too bad to use. But their rating system is excellent and usually spot on. I don't remember what the ratings was on the Sigma but I do know it was fairly cheap to buy.

I have a friend who now uses Pentax because of my influence and has bought bargain rated lenses to only find nothing wrong with them other than a few scratches on the lens barrel but in perfect working order.

And if you find their new site confusing, they still have their old site up and running:

http://classic.keh.com/

[jatrax]

A few years ago, when Pentax was rumored to be close to closing it's doors, ebay was a fine source of old glass. But prices have increased there to the point it is nearly impossible to get a good deal on anything worth having. Of course the chance of a score keeps me browsing And occasionally I find a jewel, like a F 50mm f/2.8 macro in pristine condition for $125.

Estate sales, garage sales, thrift shops, Craig's list and Shop Goodwill.com have all yielded great finds but like the fairy tale, you have to kiss a lot of frogs to find a prince. Honestly, if your time is worth anything you are better off buying at a reputable dealer. You might drive to and search through 50 estate sales without finding anything with Pentax on it. And spend literally days and $100 in gas. But the treasure hunt is addicting. You always think the next sale will be the one with that aluminum box with Pentax on the outside and a 250-600 inside.

So if you like treasure hunts and don't mind spending your weekends driving about and looking through musty old homes and smelly garages with stacks of old baby clothes then by all means have fun. But if you just want a particular lens in good condition at a fair price then follow the market here and browse KEH.com, you will end up paying less and having more time to take pictures.

[dms]

I buy from KEH and B&H. Likely 2/3 of cameras and lenses from former and 1/3 from latter. Two weeks and 30 days respectively tor try and return w/ full refund. Seldom are they other than as represented, and when not they (KEH) refunded my shipping as well. B&H is my local store so my dealings are generally in person.

[Kayaker-J]

My hat is off to anyone who can make the legwork thing really pay off. You can carefully manage your participation in estate auctions -- I have friend who makes a living out of it, looking for vintage and high end audio gear, and vinyl records -- but casual activity strikes me as having rather dim prospects for much success... for most folks with specialist interests. I like the audio gear, vacuum tubes, and vinyl records, too, as an enthusiast (and even know how to profit a bit from that) but I could never make it worth my while overall. I wouldn't wish to criticize anyone's idea of good clean fun, though.

I've used eBay often, but I have nothing good to say about their so-called "buyer protection". Problem sellers who won't be bluffed, for any reason, good or bad, have the upper hand, in my experience. You probably have less taste for a conflict than they do. Selectively vetting your prospective sellers before an auction via multiple emails can be a big help: often, you can get a pretty good "read" on them that way. My key piece of advice, speaking from a lot of experience, is: Try not to convince yourself you need THAT particular lens; assume another, just as good or better, will show up in an auction before long... even if the odds are against that happening soon. Then, if you see or read anything -- anything -- that starts ringing a little warning bell in your head, stay out! Easier said than done, I can tell you from some regrettable experiences.

[MD Optofonik]

I think the Pentax "secret" has been out for awhile, not to mention the renewed interest in "vintage" 35mm film photography in all it's branded flavors. Even finding a deal on a working 70's "consumer" rangefinder like the Electro 35 GSN or QL17, rangefinder cameras manufactured in the millions, can be difficult. In such instances KEH can be great but don't totally avoid eBay. I have ordered most of my used gear from KEH with no problem and their customer service is great (gotta love that Southern courtesy) but eBay has yielded a couple of good buys also. KEH is less work, usually.

For example, I bought a black MX body from their eBay store because it was from them and, unlike their web page, pictures were provided (the lack of pix on their website is my only real criticism of them). There was an "BGN" example for sale on their website but the pix of the example on their eBay store looked good even though there was no rating associated with it so I bought it instead. Upon delivery I noticed the example I got from their eBay store had a label marked, "BGN", and cost $200.00 about $25.00 more than the "BGN" example on their website would have. I was a bit miffed. It's not that the the example I received was particularly beat up, it's just that even though the eBay example didn't have a rating I thought certain inferences could be made based on pricing.

I called KEH to speak with one of their CS reps, and was given a few weeks to shoot some pix and decide if I wanted to return the eBay example and go with "BGN" example from their website. It was explained to me that the shipping and operating costs between eBay and their official website were slightly different and the actual delivered cost difference between the two would be negligible as a result.

I thought about it, took some pix, and decided that the MX I had was just fine. It had a few scratches, "character" if you will, but I wasn't buying the camera to add to a collection, I was buying it to shoot and the test roll I exposed using it came out as it should. I ended up keeping the eBay example and made a note to buy from the official website in the future as I have always done. The customer service rep made the difference; I had a fine camera and had also discovered that, in the future, I could count on KEH to do the right thing.

On a related note, I purchased a Canonet G-III QL17 from them that had a very faded rangefinder and subsequently returned it with zero hassle. In this instance I lucked out and found a good example on eBay. Sometimes you just have to be patient and "you just might find, you get what you need".

** I recently noticed that the KEH price for a black MX body rated "EX" has gone through the roof even though the BGN examples have remained the same.

[johnyates]

I keep an eye on the 'cameras for sale' section of my local kijiji and have got some good deals that way. Usually it's not a single lens available, but whatever has been sitting in the camera bag in the closet for the last 20 years. The only problem with that is that you also end up with bodies, filters, other lenses etc, but if the price for the whole lot is less than what you'd otherwise pay for the one lens you want, you're still ahead.

I got a ME Super with a pristine M 50mm f1.7 for $15 at value village one day--couldn't pass that up.

[manntax]

I don't understand this beating that eBay gets here...

This is perhaps valid for US buyers , but for those of us who cannot use that highly prised KEH supplier - I recommend the eBay all day long! At least here, in the UK I had virtually ZERO problems with recovering my money if I came across a lemon seller. And even that happened maybe handful of times since 2007 when I stated buying gear there. Although some of my gear was bought either from local Cash Converters or charity shops - a vast majority I acquired on eBay with no issue. The key factors are :

1) Research sellers feedback
2) Contact seller and see how quick he responds - even for trivial question
3) Check the photos - are they detailed and good quality product shots of all crucial parts of equipment or blurry images from a cell phone ?
4) Return policy ?

I follow these simply steps after previously getting few lemons - but since then all my eBay purchases were only positive experience. Maybe the price I paid for some items was not a bargain one ( especially when I see some ridiculously low prices in the review section I get stomach pain :P) - I buy them not to earn money but to USE them. To be absolutely honest I sometime end up selling an item or two - after aquiring something better ( like when I upgraded from my Tokina 300 5.6 to SMC K 300 4 ) - but even if I end up selling the item I bought with some lose ( which happened once or twice ) - I had some fun with it after all - didn't I ? So there are photos taken with that camera or lens, and there is the growth of my experience - which cannot be replaced by simple reading the review section....

I recommend going for items based on their quality and condition, then seller's reputation, and after all this looks OK - I would vary my choice based on the price. Perhaps I overpay by going for a better presented and descibed item - but then I have the equipment which can be used straight out of the box and can be easily sold if I upgrade or get bored. Besides - that keeps my LBA under control due to budget constrains and I always ask myself that question: how many 50mm or 28mm lenses one needs after all ?

,,,
'>' manntax

[tim60]

My hat is off to anyone who can make the legwork thing really pay off. You can carefully manage your participation in estate auctions -- I have friend who makes a living out of it, looking for vintage and high end audio gear, and vinyl records -- but casual activity strikes me as having rather dim prospects for much success... for most folks with specialist interests. I like the audio gear, vacuum tubes, and vinyl records, too, as an enthusiast (and even know how to profit a bit from that) but I could never make it worth my while overall. I wouldn't wish to criticize anyone's idea of good clean fun, though.

I've used eBay often, but I have nothing good to say about their so-called "buyer protection". Problem sellers who won't be bluffed, for any reason, good or bad, have the upper hand, in my experience. You probably have less taste for a conflict than they do. Selectively vetting your prospective sellers before an auction via multiple emails can be a big help: often, you can get a pretty good "read" on them that way. My key piece of advice, speaking from a lot of experience, is: Try not to convince yourself you need THAT particular lens; assume another, just as good or better, will show up in an auction before long... even if the odds are against that happening soon. Then, if you see or read anything -- anything -- that starts ringing a little warning bell in your head, stay out! Easier said than done, I can tell you from some regrettable experiences.

I used eBay often, and the marketplace here a few times.


Absolutely agree with Kayaker: read carefully, look carefully at pictures. If anything sounds a warning re quality of item or seller, stay out. And even then, do not get carried away.


I collected most of the focal lengths in most of the speeds of the Takumar lenses this way from April 2010 to April 2014. Four years spread the spend and was fun. All the lenses are usable, so look a little worn on the outside, a few have minor needs for repair that one day I hope to get to (such as slow iris) and the only one that has been technically more challenging was announced in the sale description as having the fault. And I paid for each one only the mean price of auction closes from the start of my campaign to the time I bought. There were two I paid USD 200 for (+postage) - 85/1.9 and 20/4.5 STaks. Interestingly the 85/1.9 was the only BIN I got, this year. It was a bare lens with off brand caps - so was not at the enormous BIN prices normally asked.

[Kayaker-J]

@manntax... "I don't understand this beating that eBay gets here..." Try this: $1600 worth of flawless "collector" grade camera + two lenses ("4 rolls" through it, total), shipped out from overseas more than 3 weeks late; only after repeated urgent requests; arriving in a box with zero -- ZERO -- packing material in it, just camera and two lenses as projectiles; the tersely "communicating" seller disputes nothing I claim. Case resolved in favor of the seller: apparently I "got [exactly] what I bid on" (closely reproduced). Another reason for the decision, sternly delivered: "Why did you wait 17 days to file a case?" (under terms of a 45 day "buyer protection" safety net). I might suggest a case of psychological apoplexy as an excuse.

Would anything there answer your question, manntax? There's more, of course...

[Kerrowdown]

Where have you found deals on old lenses?

I'm not telling you, I don't want to have to fight off yet another person.

[manntax]

@manntax... "I don't understand this beating that eBay gets here..." Try this: $1600 worth of flawless "collector" grade camera + two lenses ("4 rolls" through it, total), shipped out from overseas more than 3 weeks late; only after repeated urgent requests; arriving in a box with zero -- ZERO -- packing material in it, just camera and two lenses as projectiles; the tersely "communicating" seller disputes nothing I claim. Case resolved in favor of the seller: apparently I "got [exactly] what I bid on" (closely reproduced). Another reason for the decision, sternly delivered: "Why did you wait 17 days to file a case?" (under terms of a 45 day "buyer protection" safety net). I might suggest a case of psychological apoplexy as an excuse.

Would anything there answer your question, manntax? There's more, of course...

I feel sorry for your loss - really! But ask yourself what You could have done differently perhaps. Have you researched the seller - the feedback should tell you a story or two. It is sometime worthwhile ( especially with this expensive items ) to go an extra mile and browse through ALL feedback - bare in mind that eBay is HIDING negative and neutral feedbacks after a year from when they were left !! I always list all feedbacks in 200 per page and quickly scroll through down to 2-3 years back to see if there are any red or grey ones pushed down .

Another thing - I always contact seller - unless it was a dealer ( they usually know what they are doing - but not all ! ) - to make sure he/she knows how to pack things !

And last but not least : IF item arrived in not as described condition ( doesn't matter for the seller's packaging fault, transit damage or whatever ) - I would politely ask the seller ( NOT opening the case - not even contacting via form 'item not as described - which essentially opens the case ! ) - but Contact -> Item details question , and I would describe the issue, attached 3-4 photos to support my claim and then I would wait 1-2 days if he/she replied with any concerns/ ideas on how to resolve this. If not - then I would open the case and wait for my full refund 8 days - Again I would support the case with all evidence I have - packaging damage, damage to the goods, - even how things were looking inside the box after opening, etc.. You can go mad and attach now even 20 photos !

After that seller would either offer a solution or I would escalate the case. During past 7 years I had something like 5 or 7 cases like that - and ALL were resolved in my favour. Admittedly - not for $1600 worth of goods - but even $100 - $400 could be a significant loss.

So all in all - I am quite confident with eBay purchases - under the condition that I have done my part right.

I am not saying you haven't - irresponsible or plainly cheating sellers ARE on eBay too - but in my experience they are in extremely small numbers and vast majority of people are willing to rectify all issues if approached right.

And of course I always exercise the well know maxima : "If something looks too good to be true - it usually is"

,,,
'>' manntax