Steve wrote in message <6a3krm$rtq$1@nw003t.infi.net>...

>I have an N70 and have been considering the purchase of a used Nikon 300
>2.8 ED s/n 6068xx (manual focus) with a TC300 s/n 1850xx, and have some
>questions-
>1. Is the TC300 a good match for the 300 2.8?

Yes! Generally 2X converters are not wonderful, or require
considerable stopping down for good image quality, but
this combination is useable wide-open...

>2. Is the 300 2.8 a good lens?

Yes! About as good as long lenses get - it is really excellent, and even
better than the slower versions.

>3. The 300 has a scratch on the front, about 1 cm long. I think it won't
>affect image quality, but can try the lens (ten day return policy) to find
>out. Otherwise, both items are about 9.0 quality. What is the combo
>worth?

Dunno - but I have a mint late version 300mm f2.8 I am not using,
e-mail for details...;-)

>4. I want to mostly do bird and other wildlife photos. Is this a good
>setup, considering the manual focus?

Yes! I have little use for AF - and the 300mm f2.8 is VERY easy to
manually focus with cameras with sharp finders...

>5. Is there anything else I should look for/watch out for?


A not uncommon fault is a slight focus-plane tilt relative to
the film plane - most wouldn't notice it, but I am a fuss-budget
about such things...;-) (You may want to check out my Nikkor
evaluations on my site under "I babble"...)

--
David Ruether
http://www.fcinet.com/ruether
ruether@fcinet.com