Lens or camera problem?

tjlaswell

Senior Member
I pulled out my Nikor AF 70-300G for the first time in a couple years to get a close up of the dog catching discs. Now I remember why I stopped using it. I think I the kit fell off my lap one day and the lens took the brunt of the fall. Now if I zoom out the Aperture display goes to F---. If I grab the base of the lens and twist it to tighten, it moves just a fraction then the aperture display goes back to normal. I don't have the problem with the smaller and lighter lens. I don't know of the mount of the lens or camera is damaged and the weight of the lens just makes it appear or if this just means my equipment is getting old.

Any ideas what to look for if I inspect for damage? I'm going to try and see if I can make the same error appear by twisting the base of the smaller lens.
 

Horoscope Fish

Senior Member
... I'm going to try and see if I can make the same error appear by twisting the base of the smaller lens.
That was going to be my suggestion. If this happens with multiple lenses, you can pretty much bet the problem lies with the mount ring on the body. If it doesn't you can pretty much bet it's a problem with the mount ring on the lens instead. In either case it clearly shouldn't be happening and will probably only get worse with time.

.....
 

Fred Kingston

Senior Member
What Paul said... If it is the lens, just so you're aware... a new mount for that lens is probably available on eBay for less than $20... and 5 minutes to unscrew the old and replace with a new one.
 

pforsell

Senior Member
If that lens is the old AF 70-300G, then the mount is plastic and probably the camera is okay. It is a useless lens anyway, a much much better AF-S 55-200 VR II is heavily discounted in Adorama at only $146 with free shipping.

If your lens is the AF-S 70-300G ED VR then it is worth repairing.

If you insist on 300mm but want to go cheap, there's a third 70-300 by Nikon, the AF 70-300D ED which is the predecessor to the VR version, discontinued but widely available used. Not as good optically as the 55-200 but obviously longer and about the same price now.
 

tjlaswell

Senior Member
Yep, took another look at it and it is the plastic mount AF 70-300G. The ?bayonets? are half the width of the 28-80G that came with the kit. It doesn't have any problems.

FredKingston - Thanks for pointing me to parts. The videos look like an easy fix but $20 and time might not be worth the cost of another lens pforsell pointed out. Hmm I forget if VR or Non G lenses works on the D50. I'm thinking they do but I never considered them years ago because of the prices when I was building the kit.
 

pforsell

Senior Member
... Hmm I forget if VR or Non G lenses works on the D50...

Yes they do. All AF, AF-S, G, D and VR lenses work with all features supported.

Also, to keep backward compatibility with all the above lenses, take care when/if you upgrade the body in the future. Stay clear of D3000 and D5000 series, because those lack the in-body focus motor.
 
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