andy a. Posted January 11, 2006 Share Posted January 11, 2006 My D200 purchase has caused me to have a new-found lust for old MF lenses. I was digging through my local camera shop's old treasure box and I found a copy of the above lens in pretty good shape. The focus is smooth but loose, and the push/pull zoom is very loose. It flops about as you tilt the lens. The glass looked good, and some test shots looked fine. I noticed some black electrical tape on the lens barrel (under the push pull part). Is that to tighten up the mechanism. If so, that would be an easy fix to just add some more tape. Anyway, they were asking $45 so that seems like a possibility. Do you folks find this focal length useful on dx format? Also, they had a pretty banged up (but clean glass) 105 F/1.8. The focus was smooth but really really tight. I had to grip it like the pickle jar to turn it. Is this something I could fix myself? They were only asking $150. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vivek iyer Posted January 11, 2006 Share Posted January 11, 2006 Grab the 75-150 f/3.5. They all have loose zom action. Perfect for a dSLR. Buy the 105 f/1.8 and send it to me. I will fix it myself ;-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EricM Posted January 11, 2006 Share Posted January 11, 2006 grab both. the zooms are all like that and is a great dslr lens, especially for people shots. i had mine taken apart and packed with white lith grease to make it feel better. maybe the 105 just needs the opposite. grab them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnw63 Posted January 11, 2006 Share Posted January 11, 2006 I have a 75-150 with NO zoom creep at all, so that don't ALL have that. It does seem to be a problem with them though. Both lenes have pretty nice optics. If the glass is clean, that is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jay_miao1 Posted January 11, 2006 Share Posted January 11, 2006 My 75-150 does not either as I set the zoom in any position vertically it stays, but when I make action on the zoom ring it moves in normal loose fashion. Just make sure there's no hidden issue under the black tape, i.e. any crack or damage, otherwise, just take it for $45. The other one very very tight on the zoom ring, I suspect it might have been dropped or hitted on some hard surface 'cause I had once done that accidentally on a MF zoom even in a padded small bag then it got stiff on the zoom ring but later on it's all ok. Good luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rich B NYC Posted January 12, 2006 Share Posted January 12, 2006 I've had mine (early version) since they were first produced. It's had the zoom creep problem "forever". It has no effect on the end result so I've just learned to live with it. The tape was certainly someone's idea of a fix. I've also heard of using Dymo label material but have never bothered. My example is sharp and has very good contrast. Screw on a CL3T, stop down to f8-f11 and you have a nice Macro zoom. As I long as I own a Nikon film body the 75-150 E will have a place in my kit. For $45 you can't go wrong. As for being useful on a dx format body, only you can decide if the focal length range works for what you shoot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ian p Posted January 12, 2006 Share Posted January 12, 2006 Great lens - I've used it at several <a href="http://greenwichphotography.com/pics/thumbs;p=occasions/Goldfrapp">Goldfrapp concerts</a> on a F601 and Fujipress 800 (handheld). For a "budget" lens it's a great performer with suprisingly little <a href="http://greenwichphotography.com/pics/image;p=occasions/Goldfrapp;i=11;in=37760001_filtered.jpg">flare</a>. The zoom is very loose on mine too - I've heard self-adhesive felt can be used to tighten things up. On the D200 I *think* I'd find it equally useful, especially for portrait work. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kenneth_logan Posted January 12, 2006 Share Posted January 12, 2006 The late Galen Rowell used this lens for one of his most famous shots, a rainbow and palace shot. I have one. It has been my impression that zoom creep is normal for this lens. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andy a. Posted January 12, 2006 Author Share Posted January 12, 2006 Well I went ahead and picked these up. When I looked at them today, they actually looked better than the day before. The glass is very clean and the action on the 75~150 is not as loose as I remembered. Very silky. The 105 was stiff, but it actually was starting to loosen up as I used it in the store. Of course I didn't tell them that, hoping to bargain (no luck). I've been working it back and forth ever since, and it's better but still tight. Based on some forums, I tried heating it under a hair dryer. This helped some. Anybody have any other ideas? Just after I checked out, a guy walked up and asked if they had his lenses in. The guy behind the counter then proceeded to pull out a Canon 28 TS 3.5 L, a 35 1.4 L, and an 85 1.2 L, all brand new. Suddenly a 105 1.8 seemed very small. Talk about feeling inadequate... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EricM Posted January 12, 2006 Share Posted January 12, 2006 don't get it too warm...Send it in to a third party pop in his basement kind of fellow, just needs new lith grease by the sounds of it. nice catch, enjoy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dj_soroka Posted January 18, 2006 Share Posted January 18, 2006 If you get the 75-150; the hood that you want is the HS-7 (for the 58 f/1.2 Noctural Nikkor and 105 f/2.8 Micro) with a 77 mm snap cap. A lot more useful than the crappy little hood (HN-21, I think) originally specified for that lens. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johninjapan2000 Posted January 24, 2006 Share Posted January 24, 2006 I put a photo taken with this lens into my portfolio. It's the "Mr. Todd" photo. I love this lens. Wish mine didn't have as much dust in the lens as it does, but you can't really tell by the results, I think. I used the D50 body. John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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