richard_sentry Posted November 1, 2003 Share Posted November 1, 2003 I am curious about the actualities of what Nikon will do for USA owned Nikon lenses under warranty. I keep spotting stories by unhappy owners of lenses who state that Nikon would not fix this or that factor of the lens and charged them quite a bit for shipping, in advance. I still assume that the warranties that cover the Nikon cameras, such as the F5 and F100 are valid and workable. But are the reasons for going the extra mile and paying the extra amount for the Nikon warranty ? actually of validity ? If Nikon is uncooperative with fixing a Nikon lens under warranty, for just about anything but owner abuse, such as dropping, other owner mishandling and or weather damage, then what is the point of paying double for a Nikon lens with Nikon warranty ? rather than a mint condition used Nikon lens for half the price ? Richard Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ellis_vener_photography Posted November 1, 2003 Share Posted November 1, 2003 I've owned Nikon cameras and Nikkor lenses for over twenty years and I have never had a problem with them not repairing my equipment when it needed it, whether it was under warranty or not. That isn't to say that other people have not had problems, abd to be fair to Nikon I also know friends of mine with Canon equipment who have had the types of problems you describe with Canon's official repair services. I also have a good friend who sent his EOS 3 bodies bodies to Canon because they were both consistently under exposing. Canon said they checked the cameras out only to findthat nothing was wrong with them. The cameras were returned but guess what? The under exposure problem was now gone! I had a similar problem once with an Agenieux (sp?) news that the US distributor shipped back to the factory in France. I was quoted over $600.00 in repairs (to simply recalibrate the focusing mechanism. I refused the estimate, and had the lens returned to me...and the problem had disappeared. If you find a mint condition lens at half the price of a new one, and you have tested the lens and it really performs and looks like a new lens, there is nothing wrong with buying that lens. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bob_katz1 Posted November 1, 2003 Share Posted November 1, 2003 <p>I wonder if Nikon USA is anything like Nikon Canada? <p> Nikon Canada's position used to be (and maybe still is...?) that they did not make defective products, so therefore <i>any</i> problems <i>had</i> to be the result of owner abuse! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EricM Posted November 1, 2003 Share Posted November 1, 2003 Richard, yes the extra mile is worth it for both those bodies. I recommend going the extra mile to support your local camera shop. Make sure it has a Nikon USA warranty and that it is not a grey import. Up here in Canada, we don't have much (if any) of the grey import/online sales like the Usa does. And they have always accepted my F90X for repair, it's the only piece of equipment that has gone there, twice for ttl under exposure. And lens. I don't see the point of buying new lenses, most of us treat our gear with delicacy and respect and if you see a lens treated other wise, then avoid. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alex_lofquist Posted November 1, 2003 Share Posted November 1, 2003 The Nikon facility in Morton Grove, Ill will repair any Nikon equipment whether or not it has a US warrenty. They are no longer owned by Nikon US and must be profitable to exist. I have used them twice and have been pleased with their rapid and quality service. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
david_h._hartman Posted November 1, 2003 Share Posted November 1, 2003 Fortunately I�ve had very few problems with Nikon products because to the best of my memory Nikon has never repaired anything I�ve sent them on the first try but always returned it unprepared then fixed it on the second try. What comes to mind now is an Nikkormat FTn (meter), Nikon MD-2 motor drive and an FE2 (shutter). I had an 85/2.0 AIS that squeaked badly but I fixed that my self. That is very few defective products considering that I�ve bought about 22 new cameras and over 50 lenses. I also had an F2A with a defective O/C Key. I first went to Mel Pierce Camera, in Hollywood which was supposed to be a Nikon Authorized Repair Station. They told me on the phone that they were and that they had the part would exchange it, no problems. When I got there the wanted $18.00 for the part. I next went ACS in Sherman Oaks where after waiting about 15 minutes from the time I first explaining the problem the owner Willie said, "If it means that much to you" and handed me the part. I was told that Mel Pierce lost and regained their authorized status a few time. I don�t know if that true or not. ACS was authorized. Over all I think this is rotten service but fortunately it was seldom needed. I�ve had no problems with my F4s, F5, F100 or any of my AF lenses so I don�t know what Nikon service is like now. Hopefully it�s better than in the past. Regards, Dave. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
richard_sentry Posted November 2, 2003 Author Share Posted November 2, 2003 The actual, underlying principle of this concept, as I have requested responses, is what Nikon will do, with lenses, that are fully under warranty. I see statements on various posts, about Nikon denying unpaid warranty service on lenses. But the actual point is that I see these posts, on other threads, that Nikon seems to be charging for lens service for USA lenses under warranty. I have never utilized Nikon for any warranty service in the several decades of using Nikon F cameras, so this surprises me. I already know of the separate but associated uncertainty regarding transferring the warranty to a new owner, which for any other product is no problem, but apparently for Nikon is not permitted. Leaving the USA versus Gray market aside, that there would even be a question of warranty service by one of the great names in high end merchandise is almost unique. Perhaps, as I recall it, there was a reference to lens fungus, as being an owner induced malady, rather than a Nikon responsibility, but there would seem to be little point in paying the extra for a new Nikon USA warranty if Nikon is unwilling to actually service. I suppose I could start a detailed dialogue with Nikon USA, which is close to me in Torrance, but I would like to get a certainty on what Nikon will do and not do with lenses under warranty. Richard Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carl Stone Posted November 2, 2003 Share Posted November 2, 2003 Nikon does not charge for work done under a valid warranty. Fungus is not caused by a manufacturing defect or a failed part. Fungus can be prevented with proper care of the equipment, and is therefore the responsibility of the owner to manage. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
douglas k. Posted November 2, 2003 Share Posted November 2, 2003 My experience matches David Hartman's: Nikon has never -- NEVER -- managed to fix anything on it's first trip to California. In fact, they seem utterly incapable of even understanding the very simple and thorough explanations I've provided in accompanying letters. When I've sent items a second time, they sometimes actually take a crack at repairing them, but usually repair some other imaginary problem rather than the one explained in the cover letter. This happens for both warranty and non-warranty service. I don't bother with them anymore, preferring to send my Nikon gear to Authorized Photo Service in Illinois. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShunCheung Posted November 2, 2003 Share Posted November 2, 2003 Out of my 20+ Nikon lenses, only one required warrenty service. Back in 1990 my then new 35-70mm/f2.8 AF developed some mechanical problem in the push/pull zooming motion after a few months. I sent it to Nikon USA in Long Island, New York (I think they were still in Garden City at the time), and they fixed it immediately. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
todd_phillips1 Posted November 2, 2003 Share Posted November 2, 2003 Another vote for APS in Morton Grove, IL. I've used them for a 20-35 AF 2.8 aperture blade problem, a SC-17 cord problem and a 35Ti problem. Great service and they give a discount to NPPA members if you supply your number. Now, I've got to check and see if they will do a CLA to an old Nikon F. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
richard_sentry Posted November 3, 2003 Author Share Posted November 3, 2003 Again, the value of this board and its members. Thanks. I did not even know about APS in IL, having lived and shot mostly overseas and the two American Coasts. I did just call APS, it was not easy understanding the very friendly Japanese fellow who I spoke to, but they do make repairs on any Nikon body or lens. He even indicated that the checking of aperture and shutter integrity of an F3, for example, would be no charge, but it is hard to get a feel of and for what their actual monetary charges are, as he courteously indicated that he could not give me sample costs. In any event, that is ok with me and a good resource has been found. These various points brought up are valuable insights, thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
douglas_greenberg Posted November 4, 2003 Share Posted November 4, 2003 Hey, I'm the guy with the "ant" in his new 80-400 vr lens (actually, for those you recall this thread, it was a piece of milled plastic). I wrote a very clever (I thought) letter accompanying the lens to Torrance stating how HAPPY I was that I bought a warrantied lens instead of buying used on ebay or grey market because I KNEW that Nikon USA would take care of it. They are allegedly fixing the lens on warranty, though it's taking a while. I assume this is a fairly simple task, the only danger being that they won't put the lens back together correctly (fingers crossed). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chuck_greene Posted November 5, 2003 Share Posted November 5, 2003 I had two lenses repaired by Nikon USA at the facility in Melville NY. My AFD 35mm f2 developed the oil leak problem. I sent it to Southern Photo Technical in Charlotte NC and they fixed it under warranty, but 2 months later the oil leak came back. The second time I had it fixed I sent it to Nikon in NY and they fixed it. I haven't had any problems with the lens since. The focus ring on my AFD 80-200/2.8 ED started getting stuck in so I sent it to Nikon in NY and they sorta fixed it. When I got the lens back the focus ring wasn't stuck but it would turn when the M/A switch was set to auto and the camera was focusing - it's not supposed to do that. I didn't realize it until a year later when I was shooting another 80-200/2.8 ED. I sent the lens back to Nikon in NY and they fixed it this time. I bought both of these lenses new with USA warranty and didn't have any problems with Nikon doing the work under warranty. My only complaint is it took them two tries to fix my zoom. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joseph_mcdonald Posted November 5, 2003 Share Posted November 5, 2003 A couple years after I bought an F4s it it developed an intermitant electrical glitch. I hit the shutter, the flash would go off at full power, the red error light would come on and the camera would lock up. I had to turn it off and on to reset it. Big bummer. I took it to NIKON in Torrance, CA and they did a $135 service job that did nothing for the problem. When it happened again, I didn't move anything, I set it on the seat of the car and drove over there. The lead tech came out and examined it. Ends up they could not fix it so they shipped me a brand spanking new one from New York. It worked great, for a few years anyway. I shot about 35 rolls of supera 100 on my last trip to Thailand and had them developed over there. I didn't notice some of the negs were thin. They were then printed over here in the States. Turns out all the (SB-26) FLASH photos from the F4 were underexposed, big time. I took it in, and $230 later they repaired an aperture lever, and a contact in the DP20. Never been dropped, only packed around a little roughly in planes trains etc. Only (fast) NIKON lenses and flashes are used. Bottom line, when they couldn't fix it, regardless of warranty, they replaced it with a brand new, not re-furbed, unit. I liked that. Joe McDonald Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
larry_miller5 Posted June 21, 2006 Share Posted June 21, 2006 I wouldn't send jack-crap to Nikon. Not worth the hassle.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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