Yesterday, as I'm on the NELL NY Harbor cruise, my 18-135mm Nikon lens suddenly stops functioning. From what it seems, there's something jammed that's keeping the aperture blades and autofocus from working properly. It works somewhat well on manual focus mode, but still isn't perfect.

I think I have to send it in to Nikon for repairs. I only got it for Christmas 2007, so it's still under coverage. However, I don't think I ever sent the registration card in, and since it was a gift, I don't have a receipt. (I may be able to obtain it, though I think it was ordered online.)

Has anyone ever sent something in via Nikon for repair? If so, curious as to how it all works. Are there shipping charges? What's the turnaround time? Do they normally repair or replace? They say to remove all caps when shipping -- isn't this not a good idea?

Thanks for any help. Hopefully, I can get the lens up and running soon...

I have used Nikon's service for a lens repair. For warranty repair your lens must be a USA version. If it is grey market then you will need to pay for the repair. You need a sales receipt and Part 1 of the warranty form that came with the lens. You pay shipping to Nikon and they pay shipping back to you. Remove any filters you have on the lens but leave the caps on the lens when you ship it. If you don't have a receipt, call Nikon Support. Everything you need including contact information can be found at the Nikon support page at http://www.nikonusa.com/Service-And-Support/index.page

Can you see the blades "jamming", or you assuming they are malfunctioning? Try rubbing a pencil eraser over the connections on the lens, then reattach the lens to the camera and give it another try. It may just be a bad connection between the camera and the lens. If it still malfunctions, then it's time to send it to Nikon. Will the dealer you purchased the camera from take care of that for you?

Bob

I could see three of them stuck in the middle -- like they went to open up to a wider aperture and couldn't.

It's possible it's a connection thing. I've had problems with this lens since day one...it often doesn't connect with the body, and I get "F--" where the aperture reading should be displayed. A bit of twisting fixes it, but it's needed more of that lately.

I sort of wonder if I've had a bum lens from the beginning. Of course, I have it home. (Don't keep the D50 or the expensive equipment at school here in NYC with me --- just have a D40 that I use for shooting in the city, and get the other stuff from home for big events.)

It's very possible that the connections are the issue. As I said, it's been getting worse.