Power Purchasing Nikkors

In the quest for the Digital Grail of Nikkor optics,there are two principle methods of purchase - eBay (and other similar auction/Buy It now resources) and online retailers. Let's look at them a little...

eBay
The advantages and disadvantages of eBay-style purchases are obvious - pay the stated price or wind through the auction process for a potential 'win'. You can ask questions and check their rating as a seller, but that's time consuming and offer no real buying advantage. Without written assurances, you have little recourse but to accept your purchase as long as it is what they described. It can easily become a 'pig-in-a-poke' situation and we'll find ourselves reselling that item ourselves. It works, but...

Online Retailers
This lesser known resource requires a little more upfront effort but has some real advantages to gain. As in any typical retail relationship, a solid dealer will offer you more assurances of satisfaction and options to return without debate. I have used both methods about 50/50 and like this one for it perks. For example...

Once, I checked up on a none too common 35/2 AI-S I was tracking on eBay and noticed it was being sold by XXX Camera. Hmmmm, why not check their website and see if it's for sale there too? I can get an idea of what they want and ... maybe I can buy it before it is bid on and lost to a savvy eBayer!

Sure enough, they had it listed in their used gear for $110 in an 8 condition. I pulled up my Nikkor serial numbers reference webpage, gave 'em a call and had the kindly salesman give me the specs and a thorough examination of its condition on the phone. As a late model AI-S, all the important areas checked out and I bought this gem for $122 shipped with a 48-hour no-questions-asked return opportunity.

Online retailers frequent eBay constantly. Call them if they haven't received any bids yet and have the item listed on their website. You may be able to avoid the auction process and save money too - that's power purchasing!

Mule