Ok... who's buying these lenses??

CEWren · 08-25-2011, 06:25 AM

Someone in my area is buying all the good lenses on craigslist... so who is it? LOL! I've been stalking the craigslist in south central Pennsylvania and everytime I see one I want it is gone! The people selling them are selling the good lenses, and not the camera or the kit lens, so the buyer is someone who knows what they are doing... and its been going on for months!

so.... is it one of you????

------------------

Jason 407 · 08-25-2011, 06:33 AM

I don't know about where you live, but there isn't much here. One guy has a list of relatively common stuff for about $3200. It's probably around $1000 worth of glass and bodies and miscellaneous junk.

joe.penn · 08-25-2011, 06:47 AM

CEWren - it is re-sellers (the ebay guys) who generally snatch these up...

--

**boriscleto** · 08-25-2011, 07:02 AM

In the two years I've been watching Craigslist I've only managed to score two good deals.

A ZX-7 w/ FA28-80 and FA80-320 and a Quantaray flash for $50. I had to drive 120 miles round trip to pick it up.

A P30T w/ F35-135 and several flashes for $50. I sent the guy a $75 postal money order and had him ship it to me. It was the middle of winter and it would have been a 180 mile round trip. I figured the extra $25 was worth not dying in a snow drift in Deliverance county.

I haven't ever seen anything in the Syracuse area worth buying

A ZX-L with 3 Promaster lenses for $300?

A Sigma 70-300 "Just used once!" for $130?

$120 for an Optio I-10? "Very similar to a DSLR!"

A K1000 w/ 2 Vivitar lenses for $125, a K1000 w/ 2 unspecified lenses for $100.

The only thing even remotely worth considering is a K1000 w/ M50/2 for $35. And that seller had to reduce his original price. But I already have a M50/2 and an A50/2 and a M50/1.7 and two A50/1.7s that I don't use because I have an A50/1.4 and a Super-Tak 50/1.4...

There's something worth buying. A FA50/1.4 for $250. If i had $250 to spend.

Last edited by boriscleto; 08-25-2011 at 07:36 AM.

ripit · 08-25-2011, 08:38 AM

Same here in western NY. Its rare a deal pops up on anything pentax compatible but when they do they disappear fast.

LowVoltage · 08-25-2011, 09:36 AM

Originally posted by CEWren

Someone in my area is buying all the good lenses on craigslist... so who is it? LOL! I've been stalking the craigslist in south central Pennsylvania and everytime I see one I want it is gone!

Well, I can tell you it's not me. I live in Lancaster. I've given up watching Craiglist for the simple reason I never catch a good deal!

dgaies · 08-25-2011, 09:46 AM

Originally posted by CEWren

Someone in my area is buying all the good lenses on craigslist... so who is it? LOL! I've been stalking the craigslist in south central Pennsylvania and everytime I see one I want it is gone! The people selling them are selling the good lenses, and not the camera or the kit lens, so the buyer is someone who knows what they are doing... and its been going on for months!

so.... is it one of you????

------------------

Not me, although I suppose south central PA isn't that far for me to travel

Kidding aside, finding (and getting) a deal on craigslist is generally not worth the hassle. If someone thing is well priced, the chances of getting it in time are slim. The majority of stuff on craigslist is overpriced IMO.

That said, I did score on great deal on craigslist about two years ago. I was looking for a Pentax limited (to be my first at the time). Didn't find one, but I happen to be looking when an ad for a Canon 30D, 24-70/2.8L and 70-200/2.8L popped up for sale. It was $1200 for everything, which is about half of that it would typically sell for used. For about 30 seconds I thought, "hmmm, that's a good deal, maybe I should buy it and switch to Canon as I could sell my Pentax stuff (K10D, FA35, FA50, 18-55/50-200 kit lenses) off for about $1200 to cover it".

Then I had a better idea. Buy the Canon stuff, sell it, and use the profit to buy the FA77 I wanted. So I did. Turns out I got the 77 and upgraded my K10D to a K-7

LBA took over from there

sjwaldron · 08-25-2011, 10:29 AM

I lucked out once on my local Craigslist when a non-photographer type was selling a 14mm f2.8 they could no longer use, since then the stuff I've seen on there has been boring and very over priced.

jsherman999 · 08-25-2011, 03:03 PM

.

I've scored a couple really good deals over the years...

Bought that + ring flash + Pentax film body + bag directly from a non-photog Dentist for not much dinero.

Back in 2008-2009 when I was really active in acquiring my hoard, I'd often find myself in competition locally with another fellow, who I think is still a member of Pentaxforums. Once I was actually testing a lens in the kitchen of the craigslist seller when he called asking if it was still available. (snooze you lose.

) I've had my share of near-misses also, like procrastinating very briefly on an FA 300 f/4.5 for $400. By the time I had made up my mind, he'd had several other calls offering more $. (I did get a lke-new FA 50 2.8 macro from hiim for $175, though - not bad.)

At one point I even had a perl program that would use 'curl' to pull the local listing and parse it for Pentax stuff, sending me a text when it found something

That was a bit over the edge though.

.

**dadipentak** · 08-25-2011, 03:38 PM

I'll plead guilty to checking those craigslists but I've never seen anything interesting there (or in Baltimore or DC.)

I've come to the same conclusion as Dan:

Originally posted by dgaies

finding (and getting) a deal on craigslist is generally not worth the hassle.

CEWren · 08-25-2011, 04:30 PM

Originally posted by LowVoltage

Well, I can tell you it's not me. I live in Lancaster. I've given up watching Craiglist for the simple reason I never catch a good deal!

Hey Neighbor!

Baltimore and DC arent too far away either! How'd ya like that earthquake the other day??? I felt it the whole way up here in PA!

as for lenses, I have found a few... they arent usually listed, but rather pictures of the lenses on the camera, or beside. I find most people on craigslist selling the pentax items think that the camera body is the money maker... I dont think any of them realize that the lenses are what people want, not the body, or the kit lens for the most part. Usually when I call they still have the not so great kit lens and the body and they still want almost their full asking price for that... so I wonder what price people are making off with these 50's for... Personally I'd probably just snatch them up and sell them for a few lenses I really want (cause I am not gonna find them on craigslist, more than likely), so I am just as bad

BUT I am looking for an AF zoom lens and have seen one or two go up on CL. gone before I could get to them. Not that I would use it too much, but I try really hard to get this dang blue herion with my manual focus lenses and its not that easy as fast as that bugger can move.

CEWren · 08-25-2011, 04:32 PM

P.S. LowVoltage.. I may be up your way tomorrow

I want to take my kiddo to dutch wonderland if the weather stays nice.. however I wont have my K5 along. LOL

Steinback · 08-25-2011, 06:50 PM

Competition in Toronto is stiff. I actually know a couple of the local guys I'm competing with to find Pentax stuff, and you have to be fast on your feet to pick up anything decent. Last week I missed $1200 worth of gear listed for $200 by minutes. On the plus side the metro area is populous enough that interesting equipment shows up a couple of times a month.

sjwaldron · 08-26-2011, 01:13 AM

Another thing to keep in mind when buying from Craigslist/ebay:
Website Helps Recover a Nikon D3 Using EXIF Data | Popular Photography

Try to make sure they actually own what they are trying to sell you. Sucks for the guy who had his stuff stolen and the one who bought it unknowingly from that article.

CEWren · 08-26-2011, 07:00 PM

on an unrelated from photography subject... my husband listed his fancy car from his youth on ebay a few years back. We got a email from TX craigslist seeker saying that he found my hsbands car on their craigslist and wanted to know if the ebay listing was fraud or the craigslist listing was... we live in PA. so someone was trying to scam someone else by listing OUR CAR!! Anways, we reported it to craigslist and it was taken care of...

then we were selling a TV and I had a ton of people try to scam me. first person almost had me, then I realized what was going on because dude couldnt spell and had horrible grammer so I started researching... then when the next 5 or so came at me I knew better...

08-25-2011, 06:25 AM	#1
CEWren Inactive Account Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: Pennsylvania Posts: 258	Ok... who's buying these lenses?? Someone in my area is buying all the good lenses on craigslist... so who is it? LOL! I've been stalking the craigslist in south central Pennsylvania and everytime I see one I want it is gone! The people selling them are selling the good lenses, and not the camera or the kit lens, so the buyer is someone who knows what they are doing... and its been going on for months! so.... is it one of you???? ------------------

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08-25-2011, 06:33 AM	#2
Jason 407 Forum Member Join Date: Jul 2011 Location: Near The Mouse (tm) Posts: 95	I don't know about where you live, but there isn't much here. One guy has a list of relatively common stuff for about $3200. It's probably around $1000 worth of glass and bodies and miscellaneous junk.

08-25-2011, 06:47 AM	#3
joe.penn Veteran Member Join Date: Mar 2011 Location: Maryland (Right Outside Washington DC) Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 2,902	CEWren - it is re-sellers (the ebay guys) who generally snatch these up... --

08-25-2011, 07:02 AM	#4
boriscleto Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: North Syracuse, NY Photos: Gallery Posts: 16,475	In the two years I've been watching Craigslist I've only managed to score two good deals. A ZX-7 w/ FA28-80 and FA80-320 and a Quantaray flash for $50. I had to drive 120 miles round trip to pick it up. A P30T w/ F35-135 and several flashes for $50. I sent the guy a $75 postal money order and had him ship it to me. It was the middle of winter and it would have been a 180 mile round trip. I figured the extra $25 was worth not dying in a snow drift in Deliverance county. I haven't ever seen anything in the Syracuse area worth buying A ZX-L with 3 Promaster lenses for $300? A Sigma 70-300 "Just used once!" for $130? $120 for an Optio I-10? "Very similar to a DSLR!" A K1000 w/ 2 Vivitar lenses for $125, a K1000 w/ 2 unspecified lenses for $100. The only thing even remotely worth considering is a K1000 w/ M50/2 for $35. And that seller had to reduce his original price. But I already have a M50/2 and an A50/2 and a M50/1.7 and two A50/1.7s that I don't use because I have an A50/1.4 and a Super-Tak 50/1.4... There's something worth buying. A FA50/1.4 for $250. If i had $250 to spend. Last edited by boriscleto; 08-25-2011 at 07:36 AM.

08-25-2011, 08:38 AM	#5
ripit Veteran Member Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: NewYork Posts: 899	Same here in western NY. Its rare a deal pops up on anything pentax compatible but when they do they disappear fast.

08-25-2011, 09:36 AM	#6
LowVoltage Veteran Member Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Mount Joy, PA Photos: Gallery Posts: 544	Originally posted by CEWren Someone in my area is buying all the good lenses on craigslist... so who is it? LOL! I've been stalking the craigslist in south central Pennsylvania and everytime I see one I want it is gone! Well, I can tell you it's not me. I live in Lancaster. I've given up watching Craiglist for the simple reason I never catch a good deal!

08-25-2011, 09:46 AM	#7
dgaies Veteran Member Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Maryland / Washington DC Posts: 3,917	Originally posted by CEWren Someone in my area is buying all the good lenses on craigslist... so who is it? LOL! I've been stalking the craigslist in south central Pennsylvania and everytime I see one I want it is gone! The people selling them are selling the good lenses, and not the camera or the kit lens, so the buyer is someone who knows what they are doing... and its been going on for months! so.... is it one of you???? ------------------ Not me, although I suppose south central PA isn't that far for me to travel Kidding aside, finding (and getting) a deal on craigslist is generally not worth the hassle. If someone thing is well priced, the chances of getting it in time are slim. The majority of stuff on craigslist is overpriced IMO. That said, I did score on great deal on craigslist about two years ago. I was looking for a Pentax limited (to be my first at the time). Didn't find one, but I happen to be looking when an ad for a Canon 30D, 24-70/2.8L and 70-200/2.8L popped up for sale. It was $1200 for everything, which is about half of that it would typically sell for used. For about 30 seconds I thought, "hmmm, that's a good deal, maybe I should buy it and switch to Canon as I could sell my Pentax stuff (K10D, FA35, FA50, 18-55/50-200 kit lenses) off for about $1200 to cover it". Then I had a better idea. Buy the Canon stuff, sell it, and use the profit to buy the FA77 I wanted. So I did. Turns out I got the 77 and upgraded my K10D to a K-7 LBA took over from there

08-25-2011, 10:29 AM	#8
sjwaldron Veteran Member Join Date: Aug 2009 Photos: Gallery Posts: 1,235	I lucked out once on my local Craigslist when a non-photographer type was selling a 14mm f2.8 they could no longer use, since then the stuff I've seen on there has been boring and very over priced.

08-25-2011, 03:03 PM	#9
jsherman999 Veteran Member Join Date: Dec 2007 Photos: Gallery Posts: 8,237	. I've scored a couple really good deals over the years... Bought that + ring flash + Pentax film body + bag directly from a non-photog Dentist for not much dinero. Back in 2008-2009 when I was really active in acquiring my hoard, I'd often find myself in competition locally with another fellow, who I think is still a member of Pentaxforums. Once I was actually testing a lens in the kitchen of the craigslist seller when he called asking if it was still available. (snooze you lose. ) I've had my share of near-misses also, like procrastinating very briefly on an FA 300 f/4.5 for $400. By the time I had made up my mind, he'd had several other calls offering more $. (I did get a lke-new FA 50 2.8 macro from hiim for $175, though - not bad.) At one point I even had a perl program that would use 'curl' to pull the local listing and parse it for Pentax stuff, sending me a text when it found something That was a bit over the edge though. .

08-25-2011, 03:38 PM	#10
dadipentak Site Supporter Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: Baltimore, Maryland Photos: Gallery Posts: 11,590	I'll plead guilty to checking those craigslists but I've never seen anything interesting there (or in Baltimore or DC.) I've come to the same conclusion as Dan: Originally posted by dgaies finding (and getting) a deal on craigslist is generally not worth the hassle.

08-25-2011, 04:30 PM	#11
CEWren Inactive Account Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: Pennsylvania Posts: 258 Original Poster	Originally posted by LowVoltage Well, I can tell you it's not me. I live in Lancaster. I've given up watching Craiglist for the simple reason I never catch a good deal! Hey Neighbor! Baltimore and DC arent too far away either! How'd ya like that earthquake the other day??? I felt it the whole way up here in PA! as for lenses, I have found a few... they arent usually listed, but rather pictures of the lenses on the camera, or beside. I find most people on craigslist selling the pentax items think that the camera body is the money maker... I dont think any of them realize that the lenses are what people want, not the body, or the kit lens for the most part. Usually when I call they still have the not so great kit lens and the body and they still want almost their full asking price for that... so I wonder what price people are making off with these 50's for... Personally I'd probably just snatch them up and sell them for a few lenses I really want (cause I am not gonna find them on craigslist, more than likely), so I am just as bad BUT I am looking for an AF zoom lens and have seen one or two go up on CL. gone before I could get to them. Not that I would use it too much, but I try really hard to get this dang blue herion with my manual focus lenses and its not that easy as fast as that bugger can move.

08-25-2011, 04:32 PM	#12
CEWren Inactive Account Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: Pennsylvania Posts: 258 Original Poster	P.S. LowVoltage.. I may be up your way tomorrow I want to take my kiddo to dutch wonderland if the weather stays nice.. however I wont have my K5 along. LOL

08-25-2011, 06:50 PM	#13
Steinback Veteran Member Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: GTA, ON, Canada Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 1,673	Competition in Toronto is stiff. I actually know a couple of the local guys I'm competing with to find Pentax stuff, and you have to be fast on your feet to pick up anything decent. Last week I missed $1200 worth of gear listed for $200 by minutes. On the plus side the metro area is populous enough that interesting equipment shows up a couple of times a month.

08-26-2011, 01:13 AM	#14
sjwaldron Veteran Member Join Date: Aug 2009 Photos: Gallery Posts: 1,235	Another thing to keep in mind when buying from Craigslist/ebay: Website Helps Recover a Nikon D3 Using EXIF Data \| Popular Photography Try to make sure they actually own what they are trying to sell you. Sucks for the guy who had his stuff stolen and the one who bought it unknowingly from that article.

08-26-2011, 07:00 PM	#15
CEWren Inactive Account Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: Pennsylvania Posts: 258 Original Poster	on an unrelated from photography subject... my husband listed his fancy car from his youth on ebay a few years back. We got a email from TX craigslist seeker saying that he found my hsbands car on their craigslist and wanted to know if the ebay listing was fraud or the craigslist listing was... we live in PA. so someone was trying to scam someone else by listing OUR CAR!! Anways, we reported it to craigslist and it was taken care of... then we were selling a TV and I had a ton of people try to scam me. first person almost had me, then I realized what was going on because dude couldnt spell and had horrible grammer so I started researching... then when the next 5 or so came at me I knew better...