p.2 #1 · B&H, KEH, and MPB's condition rating system and used prices
I’m 99.999% sure that it was a mistake, but I ordered a “heavy use” rated Canon 1.4x iii extender from Adorama for $151 and they sent me one that may have been removed out of a new box and sent it to me. Zero scratches or anything. Only thing missing is one of the lens covers
p.2 #2 · B&H, KEH, and MPB's condition rating system and used prices
moosemunch1 wrote:
They offered me $1200 for my Canon EF 300mm f/2.8 L IS USM (in mint/beautiful condition with a date code that represents a manufacture date of 2009). I declined without hesitation, of course.
Maybe not too unreasonable. A "9" on here was just listed and sold for $1500.
p.2 #3 · B&H, KEH, and MPB's condition rating system and used prices
KEH has been my go to store for used equipment for many years, since they went into business. I think they are reasonable and do a good job on their cameras and lenses.
p.2 #4 · B&H, KEH, and MPB's condition rating system and used prices
25 years ob buying and selling. My Humble opinion only. I try to use B/S here as much as possible but I have had many experiences with the likes of KEH they do not give shutter count on bodies, so it's like buying a used car without checking the odometer. The last lens I bought from them was heavily paint chipped easily a 7 they described it as Exc+. MPB I will sell to but not buy from as I've found their stuff to be poorly graded at just look at the photos lots of items not even leaned off. And the shipping times are often ridiculously long. On the other hand the UK office has great reviews. B+H you have to understand they take trade in's from a lot of pros who trash their equipment, so you don't get as many shelf queens.
UsedPhotoPro is a pretty good place I've bought from with decent prices and a consistent grading system. They give you a 5% off coupon in the box on your first buy, and have a couple of good sales every year.
p.2 #5 · B&H, KEH, and MPB's condition rating system and used prices
thedruid wrote:
25 years ob buying and selling. My Humble opinion only. I try to use B/S here as much as possible but I have had many experiences with the likes of KEH they do not give shutter count on bodies, so it's like buying a used car without checking the odometer. The last lens I bought from them was heavily paint chipped easily a 7 they described it as Exc+. MPB I will sell to but not buy from as I've found their stuff to be poorly graded at just look at the photos lots of items not even leaned off. And the shipping times are often ridiculously long. On the other hand the UK office has great reviews. B+H you have to understand they take trade in's from a lot of pros who trash their equipment, so you don't get as many shelf queens.
UsedPhotoPro is a pretty good place I've bought from with decent prices and a consistent grading system. They give you a 5% off coupon in the box on your first buy, and have a couple of good sales every year....Show more →
I have found the mpb photos of the actual sale items to be very useful as it is easy to see the cosmetic flaws. In my experience their shipping is fairly quick. I don't know if they draw inventory from their European operations. If they do, that may add to the shipping time.
p.2 #7 · B&H, KEH, and MPB's condition rating system and used prices
thedruid wrote:
25 years ob buying and selling. My Humble opinion only. I try to use B/S here as much as possible but I have had many experiences with the likes of KEH they do not give shutter count on bodies, so it's like buying a used car without checking the odometer. The last lens I bought from them was heavily paint chipped easily a 7 they described it as Exc+. MPB I will sell to but not buy from as I've found their stuff to be poorly graded at just look at the photos lots of items not even leaned off. And the shipping times are often ridiculously long. On the other hand the UK office has great reviews. B+H you have to understand they take trade in's from a lot of pros who trash their equipment, so you don't get as many shelf queens.
UsedPhotoPro is a pretty good place I've bought from with decent prices and a consistent grading system. They give you a 5% off coupon in the box on your first buy, and have a couple of good sales every year....Show more →
I will second your experience with MPB. I've bought two lenses from them, one cheap and one pricey, and in both cases they came dirty, dusty, and covered in smudges and grease. 90 seconds with a microfiber fixed the issue in both cases, but it really left a sour taste in my mouth that MPB couldn't even be bothered to wipe the gear down before sending it. I also don't particularly trust their grading, as you can see lots of "excellent" items on their site that would be sold as 6's or 7's in this BST forum.
Personally, I have switched to doing all my BST stuff here on FM. This is a community of knowledgeable enthusiasts who value both their reputations and the safe buying experience the forum offers. I am much more likely to trust the sellers here, and in turn, more likely to make a reasonable deal for buyers who need a little wiggle room on asking price. I recently built out an R5II kit with multiple spare OEM batteries, CFexpress cards, an RF 70-200 f4, and a 35 1.4 VCM for under $5500 in total. You just can't get that kind of value anywhere else online.
p.2 #8 · B&H, KEH, and MPB's condition rating system and used prices
The OPs thoughts about s/h pricing turn up regularly here and elsewhere. People have exaggerated ideas about how much their gear is worth based on what they paid for it. A private seller is not a business. A business needs a profit. If you actually want to sell what you have in a reasonable timeframe then the KEHs and the like are what you after, assuming they are even interested. If buying s/h gear from them they offer no quibbling, guarantees, returns, and no worrying whether they are trustworthy. This is the trade off vs private seller.
p.2 #9 · B&H, KEH, and MPB's condition rating system and used prices
I have used MPB in the past and found them to be reasonable in the market they serve. If I am selling 1 item, I will usually sell it by myself, almost exclusively here. But if I have multiple items, I tend to sell through MPB. As I said, their offers have been within reason. I did have one experience where, after receiving my gear, they actually upgraded my condition estimate of one of the lenses and gave me more than their original offer! That being said, I did trade in all of my gear for my recent upgrade to mirrorless through a local camera store, Southeastern Camera here in Raliegh NC. After assessing my gear, they gave me a really good offer and met B&H prices on the R5II and RF lenses I bought. They were very fair and good to work with.
p.2 #10 · B&H, KEH, and MPB's condition rating system and used prices
If you were running a business how much margin would you demand? You have to pay someone to receive the item, inspect and grade it, list it for sale, ship it and support it after sale. You have to accept risk it won’t sell or will get returned. 50% margin is not really obscene here.
p.2 #11 · B&H, KEH, and MPB's condition rating system and used prices
IMO this is always very item specific
I've had generally great experience with MPB, they will even send Fedex to come pick the item up from your house for you. And they will generally buy anything no matter how rare it is.
However, for some items one can net a bit more by selling it here. Best to always just explore both on a case by case basis.
p.2 #12 · B&H, KEH, and MPB's condition rating system and used prices
I've sold to MPB. Their offering price was reasonable. You have to realize that they are the middleman and thus get their "cut". You'll most likely get "bottom" dollar in the offers but hey, you'll get convenience, free shipping, and no headaches. I've also sold online here, and POTN (retired). I get better offers, but selling online can be a bit of a pain. So pick your poison
p.2 #13 · B&H, KEH, and MPB's condition rating system and used prices
I bought a EF 70-200mm II from MPB in good condition. When it arrived it had a long scratch in the middle of the front element. (no mention of this in the description), It didn't effect the image at all but i knew it would not resell well in the future so I returned it. They took it back no question, so that was great, but if you're not in a position to wait around for gear to mailed back and forth I would skip them. I do like the six-month warranty though.
p.2 #14 · B&H, KEH, and MPB's condition rating system and used prices
Everything I've purchased from MPB has been as-described (or better) condition. For items I've sold to MPB, they've adjusted the condion up or down a level on occassion. Where they rated it lower than I did, they were quick with a reasonable explanation. To me, the lower price I get on a sale is worth it for the lack of hassles.
p.2 #15 · B&H, KEH, and MPB's condition rating system and used prices
I only have experience selling. When I switched to Sony and sold all my Canon gear I went to Adorama. They’re ridiculous. The guy gave me a total price, wouldn’t break it down by item and said the price was good for that day only. It seemed very low. So I went over to B&H. They gave me a price per item good for two weeks to decide I think. The equipment was old and I didn’t really investigate pricing much so I took a check on the spot. Only much later when I went to B&H with another item did I realize how lowball both Adorama and B&H are.I’d never sell to either one again. I was unaware of KEH and MPB at that time.
I recently sold gear to both MPB and KEH. MPB is faster because they always receive my gear next day because we’re both in NYC and they pay by wire to your bank. KEH takes longer to receive the equipment and it also takes longer to receive their paper check payment. It’s not like KEH or MPB are paying well just better than the two NY stores who will really lowball you. KEH is listing a Leica camera and lens I sold them at about 115% of what they paid me so you certainly take a hit but their description of the condition is accurate to me.
