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I am looking to purchase a used Sigma 70-200 2.8 II HSM APO Macro.. getting a deal for $750 locally. Seller indicates that it is 10/10 condition however he has no receipt. Apparently it comes with 10 year warranty from Sigma and he hasnt filled out the sigma card yet either. I went on sigma's webstei and they say that you can register online for the warranty, however, will need proof of purchase in person for servicing and such. Can anyone confirm the process for sigma? Teh seller also indicated i dont need the receipt as they go by the code on the lens.

Also, how would you rate this lens? any suggestions?

I had the first version but regarding the service, I needed to take it in to get the chip updated on it was it was front focusing on one of my Canon bodies. They asked for the receipt but I didn't have it on me but I told them when I bought it from and where. Plus I never bothered filling in that warranty card either. No other questions after that and the fixed it within 24 hours.

Your experience may vary, as some were given a bit of a hard time while others like myself didn't.

I've heard it's a little soft wide open especially @ 200mm. I've been tempted by it on several occasions. Price is right and i like the over all appearence and size, ie not a huge white lens. Being Sigma, it's highly possible yours will be tac sharp wide open or supersoft, so try it out before you buy if possible.


My service experience with Gentec(Sigma) has been varied. Some good some bad.

One of my best lenses, and great at the price.

I'm not sure where this question of variable quality for Sigma lenses comes from. I've seen it written a number of times that you can get a good copy or a bad copy, but I don't think I've actually seen much from anyone who owns one.

I have 5 Sigma lenses, all of them great quality & VFM. And all the EX ones from Sigma Canada come with their 10 year guarantee (which I haven't had to use yet).

I dealt with Gentec before. No receipt = no warranty.

My Sigma 20mm 1.8 needed recalibration right out of the box brand new. Got a bit of flak from Gentec for buying from a HK store through Ebay. New is new, regardless of where it comes from.

In the end they recalibrated it for free( as they should have, it was brand new) It is now one of my most used lens. Very sharp stopped down 2.8 or +. Totally usable @ 1.8 IMO, just not tact sharp that wide open.

My 30mm 1.4 was decent, but my friends 20mm 1.8(which he bought because of mine) was a total dude. Soft at all apps, no recalibration helped. One side was noticably softer then the other.

Trust me, SIgma roulette is real.

Do you guys find your Sigma lenses tend to hunt a bit in low light and esp if you don't use center AF point? My 150mm and 50mm tends to hunt in low light even on my 1D MKIII body.

Yes, my 20mm 1.8 AF's poorly in very low light situations. I think thats why it gets so many bad reviews for being super soft @ 1.8. It's not soft, it's just missing focus. In very poor light shooting F1.8 i often MF and get excellent results.