Home Forums Gear Photography Cheap Knock Offs?

Should I fear buying a camera on ebay?

Are there knock offs "out there"?

I've bought used stuff from KEH, and it was as advertised. e-Bay can be a bit of a crapshoot.

I have not heard of any knock-off cameras like there are Leupold scopes.
I would be mote tempted to buy used from KEH or B&H where there is a return policy rather than ebay. Maybe locally off craigslist where you could see/test before buying? You might try Fred Miranda forums also for used gear

I've been buying used gear from KEH and B&H for almost 20 years now and have never had a problem. I bought a lens from B&H last week listed in "9" condition and it appeared to be brand new, for about $100 less than the new price of the lens. KEH "bgn" grade equipment tends to be very clean as well; and, as redrabbit pointed out, both places have great return policies.

Never encountered any knock offs, but did get some warnings when I was first looking for a good camera for Cookie. With a little surfing, one will find some almost too good to be true prices on cameras. In those instances resellers are taking apart the typical package deals and selling the body and maybe a lens at what seems to be a fair discount. Then the issues of: oh you want a charger, some lens cleaner, download cables, battery, memory card, and user manual with that? Then they nickel and dime one up to an unreasonable profit. Unless one simply wants a body, it's best to stay away from those folks and get the completely loaded box from reputable dealers.

No, I bought two used cameras on eBay with out an issue. Don't know what kind of camera your after but there was several scams on eBay with high end Canon body's. And they all seem to come out of the Southern California region.

One thing to consider is that some of the new camera gear for sale that has seemingly good pricing may be "grey market" and the manufacturer may not support the warranty at a US factory warranty service center. Look for a USA warranty but you will likely have to pay map pricing. B&H, Adorama and other stores also sell imported/grey market cameras in addition to the USA warranty gear.

research grey/gray market

I discovered the grey market when camera shopping 8 or 10 years ago. An importer will buy them direct from the factory without going through the official US importer who takes care of the warranties. It's the identical camera and saves money but it's warranted by the factory, not the US importer. To get it fixed, it has to go back to the factory in Japan, China, or wherever. Good luck when calling Wang Foo, their customer service person.

Some Ebay sellers will say that it has a US warranty, others will not. Be sure they do.

I've never had Canon,Nikon,Zeiss or the ilk,balk on a repair...nor ask for "paperwork". And I break a fair amount of schit,on the average day,week,month,year. Hint.

Opened my latest KEH parcel earlier in the day('nother Canon Pro DSLR) and as per always,condition exceeded their review. The second body was from FM and it too,exceeded the billing.



Ordered a Siggy 35m F/1.4 ART from Adorama minutes ago,if only to keep the ball rolling. It shipped with a USB dock and a cookie for shipping(we'll see). Have a Canon 300mm F/4 IS L on the radar from KEH too,along with another body.

I've crushed my share of First Party Glass and NONE of it "had" to "go back" to Japan,China or anywhere else. Fact is,Leupold is the worst,unless you count Burris. Hint. Just sayin'.

Rock Chuck's "list" of wares,would make Shefire and Jeff Zero appear as "Pro's" too.

Laffin'!

Wow!!!!



I got more equipment in my Feesh Vest,than she's ever seen.

Hint.

Laffin'!