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I just tried the focus ring out on my 17-55mm f/2.8 IS, and it sounded a little "gritty" too. It's never been buttery smooth...but time has taken its toll. Personally, I wouldn't try to take the focus ring off (it just sounds too risky to me). The 17-55 is simply too expensive for me to experiment with disassembling it. :-)
I wouldn't call mine 'gritty' but I agree with Sean that it's not and has never been 'buttery smooth'. By comparison, the 24-105mm focus ring is buttery smooth, but then again the much costlier 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II is a bit rough (there was a thread on that a while back). Still, those sensations seem to be constant - that little bit of roughness in my 17-55mm is there every time I turn the focus ring.
I would think there's a difference between the 'normal' feel of the focus ring and what you describe as feeling a grinding every once in a while. The latter suggests that there may be a small particle of some sort trapped under the ring or in the mechanism somewhere. I did notice that with one lens I had, the 70-300mm DO (which I bought used about 3 months ago and sold just yesterday) - most of the time it was smooth, but every once in a while there was something I'd have to call a grinding feel, that was only as I rotated past one spot. It would grind once or twice like that, then stop. To me, that sounds like a particle caught in the mechanism that works its way into a tight spot then slips back into a nook or cranny.
Personally, I agree with Sean - I would not try a DIY repair!
Alex....I
I feel bad. Mine was smooth. I also heard folks talking about the noise the IS made. Mine was whisper quite. It was a recon though and prolly went through it prettty good the second time.
Words get in the way of what I meant to say.
<div>Originally Posted by andnowimbroke
Don't feel bad - smooth is good! It's also relative - when I got it, I thought it was smooth. Then I started using L lenses. There's smooth, and there's 'buttery smooth' and some L lenses just feel silky. The 17-55mm (mine at least) is by no means rough - it's similar to the 70-200 II in feel (but the L zoom is more solid since more glass is being moved). But the 24-105mm is definitely silky.
IS noise is also relative - the 17-55mm is similar to the 24-105mm, where you can hear the start and stop in a quiet room, and have to put an ear near the lens to hear the operation, if you even can. On the other hand, the 300mm f/4L IS that I had made a 'clunk' at start/stop and the operation was audible even outdoors on a windy day.
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I might, not sure yet. Heading out in a few minutes for some outdoor portraits with my daughter - was hoping for some broken clouds instead of the clear blue skies, though. But I'll find some trees for foliage in the shots, so it should be ok. Might head into Boston this afternoon. Parking is a bear, I hear, but I work about a 15 minute walk from BU so I'd just leave the car at work and walk over, if we go.
Are you going? If so, have fun!
I was comparing it to my 100mmL which has a similar IS I think. The big reason I feel bad is I had to return it. Quite possibly the best 17-55.. and I returned it. Still felt cheap and the zoom turns backwards.
Words get in the way of what I meant to say.
Zoom turns backwards?? Are you simply used to Tamron zooms?
? It turns the same direction as every other Canon zoom lens that I have...
Yep. I rarely ever turned my 70-200. It was always to the max
Words get in the way of what I meant to say.
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