I can't tell you too much about buying used but don't count out the retailers right away. If there isn't a good one locally, there are great places with great prices where you can purchase via phone or on-line if you know what you want.If you aren't in a big hurry, remember that Canon usually has two rebate promotions a yearand last year they had a "Buy More Save More" promotion program where they doubled the rebates if you bought two or more items. (A friend of mine bought a 40D and70-200 F4L and got back $400.)I can tell you about some good places to shop in Canada and I'm sure other forum members can tell you where to buy in the U.S.