Condition was rated Ex- when I purchased it. I have replaced it with one in
better condition, so this one has to go.
The exterior is fabulous with only a little brassing on the aperture ring.
There are very few marks on the bayoney mount. The glass, however, needs to
be explained in detail.
The front element has light cleaning marks in the center. I don't suspect
they would effect the image quality much, if at all, if bench tested.
The rear element has a pretty substantial scratch that runs for about 1.5cm.
Only 5mm is deep, another 5mm is faint and the last 5mm is very faint. It is
located on the side of the element about 6mm from the edge to about 2mm from
the edge.
There is also a fiber of cotton (?) 1.5mm long pretty much centered between
what looks like the last and second to last elements (it's pretty small).
It's important to note that I have never noticed any image loss due to these
flaws, but I imagine Gary Reese would say a thing or two about it if he
tested it head to head with a brand new one.
For those curious, the front element is not available from Olympus America,
but might be found somewhere oversees or at Photosphere or another camera
place that stocks repair parts (John H.?). I wouldn't bother with the front
element myself, though. The rear element is still available from Oly America
and should probably be replaced, but I don't think it's bad enough to be in a
big hurry. My plan was to get the rear element while it was still available,
use the lens until it needed a good CLA, and then have it replaced. Instead,
I got a kit with a nice sample in it and decided to sell this one.
The price is a bit tricky. I have $265 in it and would like to get that much
out of it, but it's pretty much being sold "or best offer." At some point,
however, I'll take my chances on eBay.
Thanks
--p.j.
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