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WOW!

These won't last long, I'm sure. $499 for the awesome and rare Sigma 50-150 F2.8 EX DC HSM II.
50-150mm F2.8 EX DC HSM II Refurbished | Sigma

Last time it was offered in the Sigma Outlet Store was for $559.

As discussed here in this thread:
https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/pentax-price-watch/195883-refurbished-si...nses-sale.html

And Edgar does an excellent write-up of this lens here:

https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/lens-sample-photo-archive/196246-sigma-5...es-thread.html
https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/pentax-slr-lens-discussion/128533-sigma-...lots-pics.html

Run, don't walk, to buy this great zoom lens at an amazing price!

[Shanti]

now they are on backorder? does that mean no more left?

[Weevil]

Curious:
Did you try to put your shipping and billing address as the US address?

Could not, because that would not be validated against my credit card info (the billing address has to be the same as your credit card home address to authorize the amount on the credit card side).

[seventysixersfan]

now they are on backorder? does that mean no more left?

Yes, I think they don't have any left right now. If you try to add the lens to your cart (by clicking on the "backorder" button) and then try to checkout from your shopping cart, an error message appears that says "Sorry, Pentax is now out of stock. Please remove it from your cart to continue to checkout."

[Edgar_in_Indy]

I have the email address for the "Sales Operations Supervisor" for Sigma USA from previous correspondence, so I sent him the following message this morning:

I have noticed that there have been two or three large batches of the 50-150mm that have gone up on the outlet site as "refurbished" lenses in the last year or so. Some of those who have bought one of the lenses have said that the lens appears to be brand-new, even shipping in the retail box. There has been some speculation that these lenses were originally produced in other mounts such as Canon or Nikon, and have been retrofitted to Pentax mount since the lack of in-lens stabilization is not an issue for Pentax users.

Just for the sake of curiosity, are you able to share the story behind the large numbers of 50-150mm's that have shown up as refurbs in Pentax mount?

Thanks,

Edgar

And here was his response:

Good afternoon,

Honestly it's more a situation where the lenses were just sitting there and were never added to the refurb site when they should've been. I can guarantee that every one of them that went online on Friday have always been Pentax mount. But they are now all officially gone so they won't be added again. Please let me know if you have any questions. Have a great day!

So that answers a few questions.

1) The 50-150mm's are all gone, and there probably won't be anymore posted in the outlet store.

2) The lenses were originally manufactured as Pentax mount.

I'm still curious if they actually are refurbished, or if they're just old stock leftover, but I guess it doesn't really matter.

I later responded to his email with the following:

Okay, thanks for the clarification and the quick response.

On a related note, if you guys ever come across any of the old 100-300mm f4 lenses for Pentax, I'd certainly be interested.

Thanks,

Edgar

And his response:

I can guarantee that we definitely don’t have those lying around! At this point, we can pretty much confirm that this item won’t come into stock as it’s been 3 years since we’ve sold one… but I guess never say never. Good luck in your search. Please let me know if you have any questions. Have a great day!

So for the person a few posts above who asked if any of the 100-300mm f4's might show up at the outlet site, it looks like it's pretty unlikely.

[seventysixersfan]

Honestly it's more a situation where the lenses were just sitting there and were never added to the refurb site when they should've been.

Hmm, that's an interesting response. I don't know what "just sitting there" means... that they were old stock that never got shipped to other retailers, or they were refurbs that for whatever reason didn't get offered up for sale on their Outlet store.

Thanks, Edgar, for investigating this! It's great that Sigma has been so responsive, honest and open about it.

[seventysixersfan]

The 50-150mm's are all gone, and there probably won't be anymore posted in the outlet store.

Ah hah, that also means that this rare lens will not be available anymore directly from Sigma. So, with such relative scarcity, as well as the demand for the lens, I would expect the lens to hold its value in the resale market for the foreseeable future...

[seventysixersfan]

I can guarantee that every one of them that went online on Friday have always been Pentax mount.

Wow, chalk this up to total dumb luck and coincidental timing that I found out about these lenses the same day they were made available. I assure you that I don't check the Sigma Outlet inventory every day to see what they have in stock. I just happened to be visiting the Sigma website on Friday morning because I wanted to read more details about their new Contemporary 17-70 zoom lens. After I did that, I casually clicked on the Outlet Store link and voila, the 50-150 was sitting there for order! Totally random!

[Edgar_in_Indy]

Wow, chalk this up to total dumb luck and coincidental timing that I found out about these lenses the same day they were made available. I assure you that I don't check the Sigma Outlet inventory every day to see what they have in stock.

I've been trying to check it every day, but I had missed a few days and did not check it until Sunday morning. The site has been kind of screwed up for the last few weeks since they redesigned it, so I hadn't been checking as often. When I saw that the 50-150mm was available at a ridiculous price, I immediately ordered a couple. I would have ordered more, but my wife wasn't having it. It was only later that I saw that the deal had been posted in this thread. So much for cornering the market!

Later on Sunday I checked back to see if there were still any available, just out of curiosity. The lens was still up, so I tried to add 100 to my cart to see what it would do. (I had been told in the past by someone at Sigma that the Outlet site is a live database that tracks the actual inventory.) When I tried to update quantity in my cart to 100, it said that there were only 10 available. When I checked back a few hours later, there were only 4 left. So it looks like the lenses were moving pretty fast.

[Brazeal]

Wow, chalk this up to total dumb luck and coincidental timing that I found out about these lenses the same day they were made available. I assure you that I don't check the Sigma Outlet inventory every day to see what they have in stock. I just happened to be visiting the Sigma website on Friday morning because I wanted to read more details about their new Contemporary 17-70 zoom lens. After I did that, I casually clicked on the Outlet Store link and voila, the 50-150 was sitting there for order! Totally random!

And I for one thank you again for posting the deal. I've been looking for an economical quality zoom and refused to pay that much for the 50-135 or 70-200s, so this deal was just right for me! I ordered mine 30 minutes after you posted this and used 2nd day air, so I should receive it tomorrow...fingers crossed.

Mike

[seventysixersfan]

Mike-- you're certainly very welcome. I'm trying to pay it forward. I've saved hundreds when other kind members have posted alerts about great deals on camera equipment. Since I already owned this lens, and benefited from the refurbished sale last summer, I had nothing to lose by publicizing its existence! But I'm sorry if I interfered with Edgar's attempt to corner the market and his plans to run his own personal eBay storefront for the 50-150 in K-mount!

[Edgar_in_Indy]

But I'm sorry if I interfered with Edgar's attempt to corner the market and his plans to run his own personal eBay storefront for the 50-150 in K-mount!

I guess it's a good thing I didn't put a deposit down on that yacht yet.

Photography is just a hobby for me, and our household budget isn't such that I could ever justify diverting much money into photography equipment (Well, I could justify it, but my wife certainly wouldn't!). So all of my photography equipment has been bought and paid for with extra money I've earned on the side buying and re-selling various things. Craigslist and local auctions is where I pick up most of my items, but I'm always on the lookout for ways to get some more camera money.

The way I saw it, Sigma was basically selling the lens at wholesale prices. I paid $800 for mine new before it was discontinued, and I did so gladly. Now that it's out of production and rare, its value should hold pretty well, so I just couldn't pass it up at $500. I've still got my eye on the Sigma 85mm f/1.4 afterall, and I might like to upgrade my Sigma 10-20mm to the 8-16mm. And my Olympus PEN could really use some new glass. And if Sigma ever releases the 120-300mm f/2.8 for Pentax...

On a related note, I've got a rare doll on eBay right now if somebody has an extra $1275 laying around... (If you follow the link, you'll see how all my fancy photography gear helps me with my eBay sales)

[seventysixersfan]

I am astounded that dolls could ever be worth that much money! But I guess collectors are an interesting bunch of folk who are willing to pay top dollar to obtain rare and vintage items. On a side note, you should have marked those pictures NSFW-- the doll is naked in several pictures! Hah!

I don't begrudge your business tactics in buying a lens at below-market rate and selling them for a profit; I actually really envy your ability to do it so successfully. I don't have a ton of extra money to engage in this practice of flipping lenses, even if I was confident I would soon make up the investment and then some. And beyond any money-making motives on your part, you're doing some buyers a great service in allowing people in foreign countries an opportunity to purchase a lens that they could not get directly from Sigma USA....

[Edgar_in_Indy]

I started the auction at the same price Sigma was selling the lens for. If buyers bid it up, well...I can't be held responsible!

As far as flipping items, I have found that in a lot of cases it all comes down to presentation. It amazes me how somebody will try to sell something that is potentially worth a good amount of money, but they won't take a few minutes to clean the item up, and then they take horrible pictures with their cell phone camera in a dim, messy environment.

So when I get something to re-sell, I do my best to make it look like new, and then I take really good pictures of it, and I spend some time actually writing a compelling description. In the case of a lens or camera, I will usually take some really nice sample photos using the item, and include the photos in the listing. I've found that by doing so, my items will typically sell for above average...in some cases, well above average.

As an example, about a year and a half ago I bought a Sigma 170-500mm f5-6.3 APO that had been sitting on eBay for a few days with a Buy-it-Now price of $325. I had a lot of fun shooting with it and testing it out for a few weeks. When I put it back on eBay as a no-reserve auction, it ended up selling for $560. That's why I love selling cameras and lenses. Not only do I make a little money, I also get to play with the gear. And my wife is a doll nut, and she loves restoring old dolls, so she has some fun that way while we make a little extra money. I get my camera gear, and my wife and daughters have a huge giant "American Girl Doll" collection.

[Shanti]

I started the auction at the same price Sigma was selling the lens for. If buyers bid it up, well...I can't be held responsible!

As far as flipping items, I have found that in a lot of cases it all comes down to presentation. It amazes me how somebody will try to sell something that is potentially worth a good amount of money, but they won't take a few minutes to clean the item up, and then they take horrible pictures with their cell phone camera in a dim, messy environment.

So when I get something to re-sell, I do my best to make it look like new, and then I take really good pictures of it, and I spend some time actually writing a compelling description. In the case of a lens or camera, I will usually take some really nice sample photos using the item, and include the photos in the listing. I've found that by doing so, my items will typically sell for above average...in some cases, well above average.

As an example, about a year and a half ago I bought a Sigma 170-500mm f5-6.3 APO that had been sitting on eBay for a few days with a Buy-it-Now price of $325. I had a lot of fun shooting with it and testing it out for a few weeks. When I put it back on eBay as a no-reserve auction, it ended up selling for $560. That's why I love selling cameras and lenses. Not only do I make a little money, I also get to play with the gear. And my wife is a doll nut, and she loves restoring old dolls, so she has some fun that way while we make a little extra money. I get my camera gear, and my wife and daughters have a huge giant "American Girl Doll" collection.

so Edgar how about you sell me your Sigma 50-150 and ship it to me for 600 bucks???as a fellow Illinoian/Indianian.

[Edgar_in_Indy]

so Edgar how about you sell me your Sigma 50-150 and ship it to me for 600 bucks???as a fellow Illinoian/Indianian.

I don't know about that, but I could make a you a great deal on a doll...