Lens question

[shaloot]

<p>There is a listing in my local craigslist for a pentax 28-80 f/3.5-5.6 SMCP FA silver zoom lens. Could anyone shed some light on this lens? There is no individual price for this b/c it is part of a bundle with a k100d. The poster is also getting rid of a pentax 100-300 f/4.5 auto focus zoom (?). What do you all think should be a reasonable price?<br>

Oh, the poster is getting rid of his kit, b/c he is upgrading to a nikon...</p>

[deaner66]

<p>Try this page for some reviews, and prices paid for...</p>

<p>http://www.pentaxforums.com/lensreviews/showproduct.php?product=216&cat=44</p>

[pj_vesterback]

<p>I have the lens. Haven't used it in eons but if memory serves me correctly, it was okay but very cheaply built. Loose and wobbly... very plasticy. It was part of a kit with a ZX-30. I would not consider much for either of the lenses just whatever the camera is worth.</p>

[personalphotos]

<p>The 28-80 is very much a consumer grade lens and a used price should be no more than $20.00, Not very sharp, poor built etc. It make a nice paperweight on my desk.</p>

<p>The 100-300 is a better lens. A little better built but still a consumer grade lens. I had one for awhile and the IQ was decent. I'd pay $75 or so but considering the Sigma and Tamron 70-300mm are better featured and also good IQ for not much more, the value is low.</p>

<p>Keep the offer low and not much more than the used value of the camera body.</p>

[jpo3136b]

<p>I picked up that silver FAJ 28-80 a few weeks ago. I think it is an okay lens. I paid a whopping $17 unit price for it. At below $50, I think the kit lenses are reasonable. I also read somewhere that the 100 to 300 is an okay lens. Those silver models are usually plastic lens chassis; considering they are automatic, and will probably not last for over 20 years anyway, they're a good deal. </p>

<p>I find mine to be very useful, and fun to use. Keep in mind, though, this is a $17 lens. I can do a lot with it, it's light, convenient, and has automatic functions. I wouldn't expect it to last generations. If it holds up for a year, I feel I will have gotten my $20 back out of it. That said, I think they're a little bit better than the descriptions might let on; this is one of those items whose main value is in its utility. If you pay a small amount, and get out there and use it liberally, you'll probably enjoy it. </p>

<p>In my opinion, 90% of the time, the kit lens will do just fine if that focal length is called for. If you need to do some hardcore work with it, of course you will want sturdier equipment.</p>

[paul_noble]

<p>The FAJ 28-80mm lens is not the same lens as the FA 28-80. The former lacks an aperture ring, as do all the FAJ lenses, while the FA has the ring. I don't know how they compare optically.</p>

<p>I had the FA on a ZX-60. I believe it was the kit lens. I no longer have the camera or lens, but I think the descriptions are right. It is about what you would expect from a kit lens these days. It was very light and made of plastic.</p>

<p>The FAJ would have made more sense as a kit lens for the ZX-60, since it absolutely refuses to work if the aperture ring is set to anything except "A".</p>

<p>Paul Noble</p>

[andrewg_ny]

<p>There were a few different varieties of FA 28-80/3.5-5.6. The <a href="http://kmp.bdimitrov.de/lenses/zooms/short/FA28-80f3.5-5.6-i.html">first</a> had aesthetics similar to the <a href="http://kmp.bdimitrov.de/lenses/zooms/short/FA28-105f3.2-4.5.html">FA 28-105/3.2-4.5</a> and <a href="http://kmp.bdimitrov.de/lenses/zooms/short/FA24-90f3.5-4.5.html">24-90/3.5-4.5</a> though it predates these better optics. The <a href="http://kmp.bdimitrov.de/lenses/zooms/short/FA28-80f3.5-5.6-ii.html">second</a> has an aspherical element (has an 'AL' suffix in the name), and appears to be a Tamron re-badge--aesthetics match the other Tamron rebadges, the <a href="http://kmp.bdimitrov.de/lenses/zooms/short/FA28-105f4-5.6-ii.html">FA 28-105/4-5.6 IF</a> and <a href="http://kmp.bdimitrov.de/lenses/zooms/short/FA28-200f3.8-5.6.html">FA 28-200 3.8-5.6 IF</a> . The 'tell' is the tamron-ey manual focus ring (not a bad thing, I have the tamron version of the 28-105 and it has relatively good feel if short throw) and in the case of the 28-105 and 28-200 rather un-pentax-ey filter sizes of 62 and 72mm. The later FA-J, in addition to the lack of aperture ring, has the distinction of being crazy light, only 180 grams.</p>

<p>Anyway, I imagine whether it's the first or second variety it probably isn't worth more than $30 and probably takes decent enough pictures if in good light & not wide open. It doesn't contribute a whole lot to the value of that kit. The telezoom is worth slightly more but there are more desireable alternatives. He's throwing them in because he knows they won't be particularly easy to sell separately and doesn't want to be bothered. I'm thinking $350-ish would be my limit for that kit assuming the K100D is in good shape, maybe $375 if it's a 'Super'.</p>

[thebs]

<p>Peter is correct, the 100-300 is $75 and likely not worth anything close to $100.<br /> I bought a used FA 80-320 f/4.5-5.6 for $120 and loved that I could get 200mm at f/4.5 back when I was still using my K100D (whereas my DA 50-200 was f/5.6 at 200mm). I liked it a bit over the Sigma/Tamron options, especially in the build (even though it's clearly a consumer lens). The aperture mechanics ended up sticking (at it's last, most open aperture) after many, many months of use (might be fixable by someone, I don't want to bother). But I liked it so much, I picked up another used from K&H for not much more when they had stock of them again. The big issues with some of these older lenses, like the FA 80-320, is the rotating end (pain when zooming with a filter) and no option for a lens hood.<br /> Once I move to the 55-300mm f/4-5.8, I stopped using the FA 80-320 f/4.5-5.6 entirely though. If you're interested in buying my FA 80-320 f/4.5-5.6, let me know, as I'd like to find a good home for it. It was clearly well taken care of (B&H sure rates them appropriately). If anyone wants the original FA 80-320 f/4.5-5.6 I bought before that which now has the "sticky" aperture (and clearly more wear, likely from the original owner, I didn't use it that much), let me know as well.<br /> Here's a picture of my "old lens set" with the FA 80-320mm f/4.5-5.6 on the right (fully extended to both 320mm long and maximum focus, with the 58mm cap on it) ...<br /> <a href=" src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3050/2748074766_79f8245aff_b.jpg" alt="" /> </a></p>

[shaloot]

<p>Thanks for the input everybody, the seller did end up charging too much ($125 firm) so I declined. Bryan... that is tempting...</p>