Been surfing the net for this lens' review and I've come across this thread.

Any similar problems here in our shore?

http://www.nikonians.org/dcforum/DCForumID6/17245.html

I've been thinking of acquiring one and this issue crop up!!!!:(

Are you going to push thru with this lens....?

.

I wouldnt easily get discouraged on getting that wonderful piece of glass, the case may have been a fluke in production, user negligence in care/handling, a gremlin at work, and quite possibly an isolated situation.

Of course Nikkor lenses carry the 1-year International Warranty but its still a hassle to go through the service/repair procedures.

If and when you get it, post us a feedback on its quality, handling and performance.


:)

Hi! I've had this lens since the latter part of December and have not had any problems with it. I'm very happy with the quality of photos considering it's an 11x zoom. The built is better than the 18-70mm lens. Quality of pics is about the same, if not a bit better. The VR definitely helps especially on the long end. :)

I read somewhere that there are some 18-200mm lens that are now made in Thailand. I'm sure there is suppose to be no difference in quality but the problem mentioned above is with one made in Thailand. The one I own is made in Japan.

Hi! I've had this lens since the latter part of December and have not had any problems with it. I'm very happy with the quality of photos considering it's an 11x zoom. The built is better than the 18-70mm lens. Quality of pics is about the same, if not a bit better. The VR definitely helps especially on the long end. :)

I read somewhere that there are some 18-200mm lens that are now made in Thailand. I'm sure there is suppose to be no difference in quality but the problem mentioned above is with one made in Thailand. The one I own is made in Japan.

made in thailand? so does this mean it has a different price from its japan counterpart?:D

made in thailand? so does this mean it has a different price from its japan counterpart?:D

No difference in price :)

It's the same price. If I am not mistaken many of the new nikon equipment, D50 and D200 included, are produced in Thailand. Quality should be the same since these factories should still follow quality assurance guidlines for all nikon equipment.

Mine is from Thailand and other than zoom creep, I have had no problems with it. It hasn't practically come out from my camera since. Just a great piece of glass for its price and intended purpose. The only thing that it is really lacking is low light performance but for my needs a flash would always solve that problem. Of course f2.8 professionall zooms are better but are twice as expensive.

There is actually another thread in nikonians.org that discusses the whole Made in Japan vs. Made in Thailand issue. Just couldn't find it now. There was even a poll on zoom creep that tried to verify if there were differences from the ones made in Japan and ones made in Thailand and they found out that the issue didn't stem from where the lens was made.

I would not think twice in recommending this lens to you. Just don't expect it to do something that it was not meant to do :) .

Regarding the question about lenses made in Thailand, I've been reading the NikonCafe forums and there's a thread on that there. In general it seems the initial Japan version had its own share of problems (very loose zoom barrel, etc) that were actually resolved in the later Thailand versions.

http://www.nikoncafe.com/vforums/showthread.php?t=75777

It's always risky being the first users, you get to beta test the manufacturers' hardware. :)

It's always risky being the first users, you get to beta test the manufacturers' hardware. :)

I consider myself lucky then, that I have no problems with the one I got. :)

My lens is thailand-made... no problem whatsoever. I guess it's just an isolated case.

same here :)

My lens is thailand-made... no problem whatsoever. I guess it's just an isolated case.

i have no problems with it except for how gravity affects the barrel. however, i rarely find myself shooting in a horizontal position without my right hand on the barrel. so, im happy as can be..... until another great buy comes along. lol

i have no problems with it except for how gravity affects the barrel. however, i rarely find myself shooting in a horizontal position without my right hand on the barrel. so, im happy as can be..... until another great buy comes along. lol

based on my experience, just as long as you keep it at the 18mm end when you're not using it, the barrel won't slide down.

Zoom creep... when I first got my 18-200, I thought something was wrong but was told its normal.

Here's something I stumbled across in another forum:


From http://support.nikontech.com, (http://support.nikontech.com,/) Nikon USA:

Question
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What is Zoom Creep?
Answer
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Zoom Creep is the effect gravity can have on your zoom lens under certain circumstances. The 18-200 lens tends to slowly zoom in or out under its own weight if pointed straight up, straight down, or at a sharp angle and nothing is touching the zoom ring. Most of the creep occurs between 30mm and 130mm in the zoom range. This is normal and the zoom action can’t be tightened to eliminate creep.