Originally posted by DennisH Bottom line is order V-rated lenses with confidence, and I think you'll be pleasantly surprised.
Thanks for letting us know!
If you've got an eye for it and the pictures supplied are right, lenses which are really badly scratched up externally can be an absolute bargain, whether on E-bay or wherever. Somewhere like Adorama, of course, has a lot more to lose by passing dodgy optics than an anonymous seller online; rating a not-quite-externally-perfect lens lower than it functionally is can be a good way to avoid disappointment/rage/retaliation-by-bad-feedback. Also it can provoke a mindset of "Wow, if this is how good their almost-junk stuff is, imagine how good it must be new. Next time, I'll save my pennies for the best!"