Canon Lenses Without Date Codes?

[freehockey]

A am thinking about purchasing a used Canon 85mm f1.8 USM lens from an individual. When I asked him if he could provide me with the date code from the lens, her reported it to be 51800788.


I thought the date codes started with a couple of letters . . .does anyone have any information regarding Canon dates codes without any letters?

[Sinh Nhut Nguyen]

Only L lenses have date code, the 85 f/1.8 is not and L lens. However new Canon L lenses like some of the later copies of the 70-200 f/2.8 L IS II and the 70-300 f/4-5.6L IS don't have date code at all.

[neuroanatomist]

Only L lenses have date code

Not quite true, although the 85mm f/1.8 definitely does not have a date code. Date codes are on lenses initially released before 1990, and on some non-L lenses released later. So, for example, the EF 35mm f/2 lens has a date code, even if it rolled off the line last year.


The following Canon lenses have date codes:

• All L-series lenses except some produced very recently
• EF 15mm f/2.8 Fisheye
• EF 24mm f/2.8
• EF 28mm f/2.8
• <span style="color: #999999;"]EF 28-70mm f/3.5-4.5
• <span style="color: #999999;"]EF 28-70mm f/3.5-4.5 II
• EF 35mm f/2
• <span style="color: #999999;"]EF 35-70mm f/3.5-4.5
• <span style="color: #999999;"]EF 35-70mm f/3.5-4.5A
• <span style="color: #999999;"]EF 35-105mm f/3.5-4.5
• <span style="color: #999999;"]EF 35-135mm f/3.5-4.5
• <span style="color: #999999;"]EF 50-200mm f/3.5-4.5
• <span style="color: #999999;"]EF 50mm f/1.8
• EF 50mm f/2.5 Compact Macro
• <span style="color: #999999;"]EF 70-210mm f/4
• <span style="color: #999999;"]EF 100-200mm f/4.5A
• <span style="color: #999999;"]EF 100-300mm f/5.6
• EF 135mm f/2.8 Soft Focus
• MP-E 65mm f/2.8 Macro
• TS-E 45mm f/2.8
• TS-E 90mm f/2.8

The lenses in gray above have been discontinued. For the non-L lenses above that are still in production, I don't know if brand new ones have date codes or not. But, I can tell you that the early copies of the EF 70-200mm f/2.8<span style="color: #ff0000;"]L IS II lenses do have date codes (mine does), but recent copies reportedly do not, so at least for that lens the date coding was discontinued during production. On the other hand, my recently purchased EF 35mm f/1.4<span style="color: #ff0000;"]L and EF 135mm f/2<span style="color: #ff0000;"]L have date codes of UY10 and UY11, meaning they were date-coded after other lenses stopped having codes stamped on them.

[Sinh Nhut Nguyen]

That