crowdspotting Posted January 24, 2007 Share Posted January 24, 2007 Yes, I am embarassed to admit that I dropped my Nikon-mount Tokina 28-70mm AT-X Pro SV zoom from five feet above a hard surface. Actually, the quick-release on the tripod failed, and boom! Broken lens. The camera is fine, the lens took the punishment. But that's not the point. My question for the group is, and specifically for owners of Tokina lenses that you've had repaired at some point: What does it typically cost to repair a lens that's undergone the following trauma? This puppy is wasted: although there are no broken lens elements, the front filter ring is bent, the zoom ring has now become fixed at 28mm, and the focus ring, when set to manual, turns only with great resistance. I've contacted Tokina USA and they want me to send the lens in for an estimate, they say they can't even give me a rough range of cost until they see it, it takes two to four weeks, blah blah blah. The lens itself costs well under $300 US new, and thus I am trying to get a sense of if the repair will cost more than buying a new one. Anyone out there used Tokina USA repair services? Any experiences to share? Thanks. Jeff Phillips www.postnuclearart.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ellis_vener_photography Posted January 24, 2007 Share Posted January 24, 2007 "Actually, the quick-release on the tripod failed" Which quick release system? If the lenscosts less than $300.00 unless therepair is $50.00or less I'd just get a new one: lensesare very complex machines and once banged hardenough to break I'd be sceptical about their quality from theron out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michelle a. Posted January 24, 2007 Share Posted January 24, 2007 I agree with Ellis.... if the lens cost you less than $300 I would just buy a new lens. One time when I was still using a my Minolta Dimage 7 (a ZLR) it took a tumble on a carpeted floor. The lens was destroyed, very similar to yours. At the time (and this was over 6 years ago) the camera new cost me about $900. It cost over $300 to get the lens repaired and month of waiting to get it back. Needless to say the camera was never the same..... I ended up shelving it and purchasing a dslr..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rich B NYC Posted January 24, 2007 Share Posted January 24, 2007 I have to agree with the others. At under $300 for a replacement, it hardly pays to have the lens fixed if it's suffered major damage. I'd also be interested in knowing which q/r system failed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark_chappell Posted January 24, 2007 Share Posted January 24, 2007 <i>I'd also be interested in knowing which q/r system failed.</i><P> ... and <B><I>how</i></b> it failed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bwcombs Posted January 24, 2007 Share Posted January 24, 2007 Is it okay to drop your Nikon, Sigma, Tamron, Canon, etc. gear from five feet above the pavement? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
photo5 Posted January 24, 2007 Share Posted January 24, 2007 My Tokina 17mm f3.5 SMC manual focus lens fell off a table onto the steel deck of a yacht and suffered no noticable effects. Maybe AF lenses, being made mostly out of plastic, are more apt to get damaged. Dave Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jerry_ Posted January 24, 2007 Share Posted January 24, 2007 "Is it okay to drop your Nikon, Sigma, Tamron, Canon, etc. gear from five feet above the pavement?" The actual limit is 4 feet 7 inches. ___ :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bwcombs Posted January 24, 2007 Share Posted January 24, 2007 Four feet seven inches huh? Man, even the distance parameters for dropping gear is getting smaller. A fall today just won't break as much as it used to. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andrew robertson Posted January 25, 2007 Share Posted January 25, 2007 Any lens has a good chance of failing when dropped. If it doesn't you can count yourself lucky. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crowdspotting Posted January 29, 2007 Author Share Posted January 29, 2007 The tripod head is a Manfrotto ProBall 308RC. I've had it for years, and over time the little brass latch that holds the camera plate in place has begun to refuse to "catch" unless you wiggle the whole assembly. Of course I've known this for some time, but have always remembered to make sure it "latches." Except this time. Perhaps I should correct my own words above: instead of saying that "the quick-release on the tripod failed," I should be saying "the photographer failed." :-) Jeff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vind_cator Posted January 8, 2009 Share Posted January 8, 2009 <p>Same thing happened to me four years ago, and I still haven't found a repair facility that has the confidence to properly repair it. I threw the tripod out right away. If I had had a shotgun, I would have done it better! I would gladly pay $100 to get it fixed. Finding a 35-200 with a Konica (AR) mount isn't available anymore. I still have the lens, but it no longer zooms.</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
karl_franco Posted March 11, 2010 Share Posted March 11, 2010 <p>Hello everyone!<br> sad to say that i also dropped my Tamron AF70-300mm, i accidentally push the tripod. there is no scratches but the lens are not working at all. blurred pictures but moving mechanism.<br> there is a noisy sound inside the lens if you shake the lens. the lens are almost 1 month old only.<br> hope the service center can fix it with low cost.<br> any one out there that experience the same. is it fixable?<br> thanks,<br> Karl franco</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
john_randolph1 Posted March 25, 2010 Share Posted March 25, 2010 <p>I rammed (at walking speed) the front of my 11-16 2.8 crop/dx into a mailbox. Not only did it induce a new vignetting effect in the lens which I'll have to have repaired, it damaged the mount of my Nikon SLR and it can no longer sense AF properly. at the speed and pressure that I collided with the mailbox I'm pretty disappointed.</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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