Is there a difference in Gray Market Canon EOS lenses

Is there really a different in "gray market" and USA Canon lenses

or is the only difference the lack of a Canon USA warrantee?

There is NO difference. None. Canon even currently offer

warranty repair on grey market lenses, though they are not

legally obligated to (see the original EOS FAQ for more info).

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Some of the worse mail order stores will simply lie to you about

"grey market lenses". They will tell you that there are plastic mount

"grey" L series lenses, or lenses made with substandard optics. These are lies.

All they are trying to do is bait you in with low "grey" prices, then

get you to switch to full price "USA" lenses by telling you the "grey"

lenses are no good. If a store tries this, hang up. Don't deal with them.

Don't even argue. If they can't get your money this way, they'll

find another, like a $75 shipping charge or a $45 battery or a host

of other creative rip-off methods designed to part you from your money.

Being from Germany, on a one-year stay in the U.S. of A., and having

purchased my EOS50e in Germany and my EF 200/2.8L in Canada, I

recently queried Canon Germany about warranty. They told me that

Canon offers a one-year, worldwide warranty - if you have the "World

Wide" or "international" warranty card. I suspect that all this fuss

about "US warranty" is just a big marketing ploy. They probably don't

give you the "International" warranty card if you buy a "US" product,

do they? I guess that if you are traveling extensively -

internationally, that is - you are probably better off with an

international warranty, because that'll be honoured all over the

world.

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Manufacturing-wise? I think it simply doesn't make business sense to

set up different manufacturing lines for different markets for photo

lenses. Sure, it would be relatively easy to have quality control

sort them into multiple buckets, but why bother? They can sell them

for whatever the market bears in different places even without

differences in quality.

USA warranties are honored all over the world too. Basically if you

buy in the USA with a USA warranty, or if you buy outside the USA with

an international warranty, you are covered everywhere.

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You only run into problems with some companies when you buy a product

with a warranty not intended for the country in which you purchase it.