FD inventory drying up?

[paul_dulaney1]

<p>I noticed the KEH inventory of FD equipment is very low. There are very few bodies and I don't even see a 50mm normal lens listed??! What gives? </p>

[ivan_iskra]

<p>All expiring FD users are buried with their equipment. SMILE. Regards. </p>

[Member69643]

<p>Try selling your FD equipment to KEH. For what they offer you'll probably be able to buy a brand new FF Nikon DSLR.</p>

<p>And a pony.<br>

:)</p>

[philip_wilson]

I guess they don't make it anymore!

[SCL]

<p>Micro 4/3 users have been enticed to using fabled FD lenses on their new camera bodies.</p>

[steve_mareno1]

<p>KEH was in my area (Daytona Beach) this past weekend at a local camera store for 2 days of buying gear. They're absolutely my favorite used camera dealer, so I popped in to say thanks and hello. The store's owner had told me in an earlier conversation that last year they bought mostly digital stuff at that time. A lot of what people brought were old Argus cameras and such, and they didn't want it. KEH has also done away w/ it's "As Is" department some time ago, which was one of my favorites, so there's been some changes.</p>

<p>I guess it just isn't that profitable selling $25 cameras and lenses, especially w/ 14 day no questions asked return policies and 6 month warranties. I honestly don't know how they do it. I was going to bring them some FD stuff, but since they generally pay about 1/3rd (tops) of retail, it didn't make sense. Off to the auctions it goes.</p>

[tom_cheshire]

<p>There is plenty at eBay. Shop where it is at.</p>

[chris_waller]

<p>The F1 went out of production in 1994 and the last time I enquired about spares, some 2-3 years ago, I was told that there were no longer any spares available.</p>

[yuri_yupiter3]

<p>There are many casual users who bought a brand new Leica, Nikon or Canon camera and used the unit very little. These do pop up at estate sales, Craigs List and Ebay.</p>

<p>I bought a Nikon F2 and 50mm F1.4 that were really unused. They were spares a Doctor had that were used a few times and then placed back in original packaging.</p>

<p>Finding a little used camera with low miles is possible. It just takes some hunting. The same goes with scanners. I have two Nikon 9000 scanners. One is used all the time. The other is a brand new spare still in the original box. It cost me 1900 about 4 years ago, If I sell it on ebay I can double my money.</p>

<p>As far as used Canon FD's there are many sitting on shelves that have low miles. Finding them often is by estate sales. Very very few still cameras really ever wear out. They often die to to lack of usage. The lubes dry up. The batteries corrode and make a mess. They often die by being dropped on the ground or by going underwater in a flood. In Katrina areas many folks lost all their old still cameras due to flooding. in</p>

<p>Go ask older retired folks about their old cameras. Many have old stuff on shelves. One local guy runs a tiny advert in a tiny free flyer that he buys old camera gear. Many folks need cash and think that nobody uses cameras anymore,</p>

<p>With Ebay a wise seller knows that a low mileage classic camera has some worth. Thus you are paying for his time to find the item. ie the camera costs double or triple of what he paid for it with a local purchase.</p>

<p>a reseller like KEH keeps a low inventory of stuff that does not sell as much. Thus they keep less FD stuff that a decade ago or two decades ago.</p>

<p>Stuff like super exotic FD lenses will always command higher prices.</p>

<p>The what a seller carries in a declining product is drying up if they are wise.</p>

<p>They do not want to tie up hard cash</p>

<p>Even when all photography was pure film used cameras went through cycles.</p>

<p>In the late 1960's there was a glut of rangefinder 35mm cameras.</p>

<p>used camera dealers had gobs of 50mm F2 LTM lenses. A used 5cm F2 LTM nikkor sold for 9 dollars in 1969. They were worth 4 bucks as a trade in when one bought a Petri slr.</p>

[paul_dulaney1]

<p>I think Steve hit the nail on the head. I recall buying 2 EOS A2's a fews years back and subsequently returning both for minor issues. Having only paid about $30 for each camera, it was likely a waste for them to deal with me. I recall they paid the return shipping. At the end of the day, KEH is hard to beat when you can buy a 35-40 year old high end camera for next to nothing and get a return privilege and warranty!!!!!! I know other vendors offer similar warranties but they never seemed to keep the level of inventory.</p>

[mark_pierlot]

<p>I'm glad that the FD inventory is drying up. That means I'll have no trouble selling my gear, should I decide to do so.</p>

<p>It's also encouraging that the mirrorless "craze" is giving our beloved FD lenses a new lease on life. <strong><em>Long Live FD!</em></strong></p>

[mfophotos]

<p>What are you looking for? </p>

[mwmcbroom]

<p>Count me in as one of the many fans of KEH. They're great folks to do business with, and often their prices simply can't be touched by anyone else. My most recent KEH purchase was a "bargain" Tamron 80-200mm f/2.8 LD zoom for less than $250. It was "BGN" because the zoom ring slipped a little. Otherwise, it was easily an Exc+ lens. Such a deal. So anyway, just becase KEH's inventory may be getting a bit low, this in no way justifies a conclusion that the global supply of FD gear is drying up. Just think for a minute about all the many millions of FD cameras that Canon built over the span of a couple of decades. And the millions upon millions of lenses that were produced to be used with those cameras.</p>

<p>So if supply were really drying up, where is it going? The m4/3 crowd can't be accounted for all of it. Maybe if you throw in the Sony NEX and Samsung NX crowds and the soon to be huge Canon EOS M crowd. Once that puppy hits the streets, then what you'll see isn't supply drying up, but prices beginning to soar. Hey, it wasn't too long ago that the old M42 screw-mount Pentax Takumar lenses could be had for peanuts. Twenty bucks for a 50/1.4 Super Tak, for instance. Try to find that sort of deal now. These days, DSLR users have discovered the magical world of adapters (it took me about two weeks after I bought my DSLR to discover adapters, and I haven't looked back since). And now mirrorless camera users are doing the same thing with their cameras, but because they're mirrorless now Canon FD can be included in the acquisition free-for-all.</p>

<p>Good deals can still be had on clean FD gear, but prices are climbing. Just two days ago, I scored a New FD 55mm f/1.2 that was attached to a T90 for about half the price of the lens's value alone. It was on eBay but apparently nobody bothered to examine the photos closely enough to realize the lens attached to that T90 was a 55/1.2, and the owner wasn't camera-savvy enough to point it out. The super fast FD lenses, like the 55/1.2's and the 85/1.2's, are popular candidates for FD-EOS conversions these days, which is one reason, I suspect, why they have retained much of their original value. So, the deals are still there, but often you've got to be patient to get the best ones -- and hope the other bidders don't spot what you've spotted.</p>

 

[dennis_kushner2]

Almost all camera dealers. KEH included have stopped buying FD years ago unless they could buy at

rock bottom prices or sellers unaware of value. I was amazed that KEH recently sold a 55/1.2 Aspherical

in bargain condition for $1800.

[mwmcbroom]

<p>The premium FD lenses -- especially the 55mm and 85mm f/1.2 Asphericals and "L" lenses, as well as some of the more desirable FD telephotos, tend to be in fairly high demand. They are often converted to EF mount so they can be used on EOS DSLRs. This is especially true with the 55mm and 85mm f/1.2s, so they remain hot sellers on the used market. I gotta say that $1800 is top of the market for a 55/1.2 Aspherical, especially in KEH BGN condition. $800 to $1000 is more like what I've seen these lenses going for. In fact, there's one on eBay right now -- the 55mm Aspherical, that is -- that has a BIN for $999.</p>

<p> </p>

[yuri_yupiter3]

<p>With KEH you are paying for their service to cull out the junk stuff. Thus you have less risk but you pay more than a local buy or ebay buy</p>

[Member69643]

<blockquote>

<p><a href="../photodb/user?user_id=1174719">Yuri Yupiter3</a> , Sep 30, 2012; 10:13 a.m.</p>

<p>With KEH you are paying for their service to cull out the junk stuff. Thus you have less risk but you pay more than a local buy or ebay buy</p>

</blockquote>

<p>That's a riot. KEH sells on appearance. They don't test their items. Try buying one of their AF film bodies and I can almost guarantee, you'll get one with faults.</p>

[mwmcbroom]

<p>Yuri, I've found some exceptionally good deals at KEH. Often ones with better prices than can be typically found on eBay. Like the Tamron 80-200 LD I mentioned in my above message.</p>

<p>Patrick, I've never bought an AF film body from KEH, but they do have a 14-day no-hassle return policy and a 6-month warranty on all their used gear. So you're covered if you buy a defective piece of gear. I did have to return one item I bought from them in the past. It was indeed a no-hassle affair. I'll continue to include KEH in my searches when I'm looking for used gear, whether manual or AF.</p>

<p> </p>

[steven_burch]

<p>Patrick, I've bought many (over a dozen) AF film bodies from KEH. Nikon and Canon. They have all worked perfectly, and I can say with certainty that KEH does in fact thoroughly test each piece of equipment they receive. Of course human error can strike at any time, and I did have to return a Hasselblad lens I bought from them due to a sticky shutter. They paid the shipping both ways and apologized profusely.</p>