p.1 #1 · Buying secondhand 1D III - what to look for?
Hi,
I'm looking at picking up a secondhand 1D Mark III for AU$3800 - just over 12 months old, only seen studio use for a specific project where 10 of them were originally required, now they're on-selling them.
Apparently it's in mint condition however I will be inspecting it before I collect it this evening.
What should I look for? Is the AF likely to be actually fixed or do I need one of these newer "yellow dot" models? Don't know the shutter count but these things are rated to 300k so I suspect I'll be fine here.
p.1 #2 · Buying secondhand 1D III - what to look for?
Get a money back guarantee from the seller. The Mk3 IMO is a great camera and I love mine (problem free, got it last August) but if I were buying a used one these days I'd want a money back guarantee from the seller.
You can also ask if the seller has paper work from Canon to see if the submirror fix was done. You could also get the serial number and call Canon to find out if its one of the affected bodies.
p.1 #4 · Buying secondhand 1D III - what to look for?
Esquire08 wrote:
I would be afraid of a Mark III that is out of warranty.
Do the Mark III cameras carry a longer warranty than a year?
Ones that are in the affected serial number range have their warranty extended by one year from the date that they were sent in for the sub-mirror repair (assuming they were sent in).
p.1 #5 · Buying secondhand 1D III - what to look for?
The only thing to look for is a seller that you trust and one that has had the Canon mirror repair. I have one from the first day of issue that is great and has caused me no concern. Some folks have blue dot or later that they are not happy with the performance. You can't tell by manufacture date IMHO.
p.1 #6 · Buying secondhand 1D III - what to look for?
The seller seemed trustworthy enough for me to buy. It had quite a few on the shutter, though - but the body was immaculate - not a scratch or fingerprint on it! It was used to produce a stop-motion animation along with 9 other bodies. It came with the original receipt from when it was purchased new and included the receipt for the sub-mirror fix etc which was performed in August.
Seller used it to shoot a wedding on the weekend and she said it was perfect. She bought two of them and sold one - the other presumably will compliment her 1D IIN.
Battery seems good, too - but I don't believe the battery was used much. Seller threw in a 50mm f/1.8 II with hood which isn't worth too much - not sure whether I will keep it or on-sell it.
thedigitalbean -do you have a URL or something to back up that fact re: the warranty extension?
p.1 #7 · Buying secondhand 1D III - what to look for?
i have one in the affected serial range that i bought used. i never had any issues w/ it, but still sent it in (after i bought it secondhand) still works great!
I don't know how it works in Australia. I would suggest calling Canon to find out. Also, for the USA folks, we got the warranty extension in the form of a letter from Canon when the repair was done. You could ask to see the seller's docs from the fix to see if the warranty extension is mentioned there.
p.1 #10 · Buying secondhand 1D III - what to look for?
I've had warranty service performed on Canon equipment after it's changed owners... so maybe this is a US-only thing or perhaps I was lucky.
I'm a little concerned that I've got a bit of an AF issue - it could be my skill (or lack thereof) with servo tracking but my 1Ds II is getting a better hit rate.. I'm seeing the lens move out of focus while I'm trying to track something but this is primarily happening with swimming events so perhaps the water is throwing it off. I'll play with AF sensitivity etc before taking my body in for service.
