Experiences with KEH ratings?

[Sirius Glass]

I was told by one of their sales people that if they take an order from you for a piece of equipment of a certain grade and if when they go to forfill the order and that level quality is not there, they will take one from the next higher level. If they have to go up two levels they will call you and ask if you want that one for more cost. A bump of one grade has happened to me twice for Hasselblad lenses.

[rdtaylor_sea]

I've always been very happy with what I've bought from KEH.

I recently decided to take a gamble and ordered an "UG" Rolleiflex 3.5e (Xenotar) from them, knowing that I could return it if it was too bad. Paid $220 for it, including two-day shipping.

Well, the description was accurate as far as the leather goes. The optics, however, were almost pristine - only a couple of small tea marks that can only be seen under direct bright light and do not affect image quality at all - and the film advance and shutter both work fine. The camera cleaned up well and I've got a new set of leather ordered. While it probably deserves a full CLA, I've ended up with a fully functional Rolleiflex that's in very good shape for $300.

An E-bay seller would have rated it as "excellent." KEH grades on cosmetics and is always conservative. With their return policy it's definitely worth it to try "BGN" or even "UG" rated items. You'll generally be happy with what you get. And sometimes you hit the jackpot.

[E76]

My experiences with KEH have been great as well. Their ratings do seem to be conservative, and most of the stuff I have gotten in EX condition looks almost brand new! I have ordered several lenses and camera bodies from them and they have all worked fine and continue to do so to this day. The BGN Hasselblad back I ordered from them was in rough shape cosmetically—the chrome and darkslide holder are scratched up—but it was functional since day one and I haven't had to rebuild it.

[pentax4ever]

The BGN lenses I have bought from KEH may have had cosmetic issues but have been fine optically. I recently bought a BGN Pentax SF1 that had a loose rubber grip. I glued it back into place and was delighted to have a perfectly functioning autofocus SLR for $19.

[ContaxRTSFundus]

I have bought a number of their BGN items - most recently a Contax 167MT + P5 Power Adapter + D-7 DataBack for less than the typical price for a D-7. I can't see any issues with the camera or P-5 cosmetically or operationally and the only problem with the D-7 is that the tiny rear door-flap is missing its magnet so it pops open. That's not even an issue as it has no impact on use and I put a bit of Blu-tak in the hole for the magnet and it's fine. I also bought a BGN lens for my Mamiya RZ67 which was slightly marked on the barrel, again a true bargain. Apart from the occasional Contax camera body, my best BGN buys have been the high-end Contax flash units - TLA360 and RTF540 - less than a quarter of the UK price, even after shipment and our extortionate Customs Duty & 20% VAT charges. For me, KEH is a BGN hunters heaven.

[SFC]

Keh has been great for me. However, just keep in mind 3 things:
1. They do not necessarily test equipment or run film through the cameras
2. You have 14 days to return, but FROM DATE OF PURCHASE! That might mean only 1 week or less for most people because they can be very slow to ship. Test immediately.
3. You MAY get a better deal by NOT buying an outfit. I discovered I could have assembled a Hasselblad kit myself from their separate listings and had a better screen for the same $ as the outfit--and saved the $215 I now have to spend to get a decent Accu Matte screen (they were unwilling to just swap the screen).

[lxdude]

Keh has been great for me. However, just keep in mind 3 things:
1. They do not necessarily test equipment or run film through the cameras
2. You have 14 days to return, but FROM DATE OF PURCHASE! That might mean only 1 week or less for most people because they can be very slow to ship. Test immediately.
3. You MAY get a better deal by NOT buying an outfit. I discovered I could have assembled a Hasselblad kit myself from their separate listings and had a better screen for the same $ as the outfit--and saved the $215 I now have to spend to get a decent Accu Matte screen (they were unwilling to just swap the screen).

Regarding #2: The 14-day return policy is a no questions asked, return for any reason type of thing. There is a 60-day return for defective merchandise.

[jermaineB]

I've always trusted KEH over the years and look to them first before eBay. Although the last lens I bought, a Leica 90 Elmar 2.8 has me questioning the rating which was EX but the aperture ring seems to rotate a little more loosely than other Leica lenses I've tried. Other than that the lens did look brand new so I guess it couldn't have been a BGN lens.