customer service...

Well I've been reading everyone's customer service nightmares getting things repaired the last few weeks. All this while, I've been dreading the thought in the back of my mind that I needed to send my 600/4 in for service as I've had a few issues with it the last couple of months. I had been in contact with a customer service person at Konica Minolta for a few other issues the last couple of days and had mentioned the 600/4 in those emails. So I send my 600/4 to KM's New Jersey service center yesterday and this morning I find an email from them. In it he says,

"I do have to say that most of the repair on our 600mm lenses must be done in Japan. That will require our having it for a few months."



What am I going to do without my only long lens for a few months!?!? I've been planning a trip to Barnegat in late December and now that looks like it will be totally pointless. Aside from all that a few months seems totally inexcuseable to me but then again I don't know that I have any other choice

Michael:

Is there any chance that an independent repair place could service the lens? What sort of issues does it have?

There is some play between a couple of the body segments in the lens. The lens isn't as consistently sharp as it once was and I think the two are related. Since the lens is out of warranty I considered taking it to an independant repair place (and not having to pay shipping or risk something happening to it going across the country) but I was told by several people that with something as specialized as a 600/4 I was better off sending it to Minolta's service facility to look at

One option would be to buy a used 600/4 (maybe even 3rd party compromise) for the trip and once yours is repaired, put one of them up for sale.

Guy

Guy Tal wrote:One option would be to buy a used 600/4 (maybe even 3rd party compromise) for the trip and once yours is repaired, put one of them up for sale.

Guy

On a whim, I just looked at keh.com, and they have a used Sigma 500/4.5 for sale cheap (cheap in big glass terms, that is....). I'm not sure how easy it would be to sell a Minolta 500mm lens afterwards, though.


Maybe you could rent something, just for the trip. Though I'm not sure how common rental Minolta big glass is.

In fairness to Minolta, I doubt they have much call for repair of their big glass, so setting up multiple repair centers probably just isn't cost-effective for them.

While more costly in shipping you might consider getting the lens back and ship it directly to them in Japan. They would hopefully then ship it directly back to you when fixed.

I would bet the NJ center will sit on the lens and consolidate it with other things when they have enough to fill a container. Probably the same for the return trip.

Bill

MikeBinOK wrote:

Guy Tal wrote:One option would be to buy a used 600/4 (maybe even 3rd party compromise) for the trip and once yours is repaired, put one of them up for sale.

Guy

On a whim, I just looked at keh.com, and they have a used Sigma 500/4.5 for sale cheap (cheap in big glass terms, that is....). I'm not sure how easy it would be to sell a Minolta 500mm lens afterwards, though.


Maybe you could rent something, just for the trip. Though I'm not sure how common rental Minolta big glass is.

In fairness to Minolta, I doubt they have much call for repair of their big glass, so setting up multiple repair centers probably just isn't cost-effective for them.

I'm looking into my options at this point. Unfortunately the difficult part of this is cash flow. Since my main occupation is graduate school I just don't have the means to buy a used lens somewhere (they don't come up very often either) even if it is just for a period and rentals availability is virtually nonexistent As soon as I have the means to make it happen, I'm going to switch to Canon. Though its hard enough for me to make rent most months and I'm saving up for an engagement ring so who knows when that will ever happen.

I too doubt Minolta has much call for repair on the big glass but the vast majority of people who own 600/4 lenses are fairly dependant on them for what they do and being with out it for 1/4 of the year even for minor service is pretty inexcuseable I think. From a cost effective stand point, thats exactly the sort of thing that would cost them business, and their poor support for their products in the past has hurt them.

Michael:

I feel your pain about the prosepects of being w/o your lens for so long. I know my one experience with Minolta repair on a Minolta XG-7 film camer many years ago was enough to turn me off to the company. When my Minolta gear got stolen I was rather pleased and replaced it with Nikon.