Canon EF Orphan lens repair

I contacted Canon via email and was instructed to send mt 17-35/2.8 L lens to Irvine, CA for repair. The manual focus ring refused to turn. I boxed the lens and sent it off to Irvine. When the folks at Canon opened the box, they declared that they no longer supported the lens as of December, 2008. I purchased the lens new in December, 1999. Dismay. Shock. Etc. Fill in the blanks.

The lens is on it's way back to me. Can anyone provide a reliable repair source for orphaned EF "L" lenses? I bought the 70-210/2.8 L in the same order. I'm holding my breath that it isn't an orphan also.

Thanks for any help you can provide.

Wayne

Sorry, I don't have an answer to your question but I just wanted to comment
that I've had similar problems with Canon service. That is, being told to send
a camera for a free covered repair and then, after sending it, being told
something quite different. It has had a strong impact on my future buying
decisions.

I have owned various and sundry Canon products continuously since 1964. I agree with you.

Welcome to Canon World. They have a long and deep history of stranding customers, including heavily invested professionals. I am sorry that you had that experience, but to tell the truth, this is not an uncommon story with Canon, which is why I don't support that company by purchasing their equipment unless its absolutely essential for the project, and even then I liquidate that gear as soon as possible afterwards. You may want to do a search on the site 'Sportshooter' for an independent repair shop, those guys have had plenty of experience with long tele's that are not supported. I mean can you imagine getting a 400mm 2.8 or 600mm f4 and not being able to fix it? Makes a nifty paperweight.

RidingWaves said:

Welcome to Canon World. They have a long and deep history of stranding customers, including heavily invested professionals. I am sorry that you had that experience, but to tell the truth, this is not an uncommon story with Canon, which is why I don't support that company by purchasing their equipment unless its absolutely essential for the project, and even then I liquidate that gear as soon as possible afterwards.

Click to expand...

Or Nikon/Minolta/Olympus.

Since you're dragging other brands in, Nikon's are made better in the first place, and spare parts/service are more available. The older Minoltas are mechanically quite good, electronically they have their problems but I've revived a few with a choice solder or two. Don't be messing with Oly, other than the OM-4 they are robust. And if you doubt me I urge you to find any junked non-working Canon lens/body (lots around, should be easy to find) and proceed to dismantle it. You'll quickly see where you're hard earned money went.

So are there any excellent, independent repairmen who specialize in Canon auto-focus cameras and lenses? Or is the official Canon channel the best option?

Well try these. Pro Camera Repair in California, Midstate Camera Repair, Camera Repair Japan in Georgia and maybe even KEH in Atlanta. They all may have some spare parts.
This all really comes down to how each company views service/repair. You'd think a pro lens like the 17-35 would have a lot of spares, but my understanding is that Canon in particular only creates around 2-4% more spare parts to service most lenses (all parts) whereas Nikon is more like 5-8% and perhaps closer to 10% for higher use pro lenses. Then there is the fact that if that particular lens model has a higher rate of failure and a higher percentage of users send in the lens for repair then the parts Run Out, and they don't make any more parts. The smaller repair shops perhaps did not have many repairs on that lens model, so still could have some new parts and often have used part lenses to draw from as well.