Nikkor 18-200mm after the drop

Last year, I wrote about removing a dented filter from my Nikkor 18-200mm lens (see:  Photon Farmers: Stuck filter on lens.)  I thought I'd write a bit about the lens after one and a half years later.

You gotta give it to Nikon.  They do make a really solid lens, even if it's mostly plastic!  The force of the impact from the drop dented the filter enough that its rim is warped.  The filter does not thread into the lens barrel easily now, although I could still use it.  Immediately after the drop, I could feel something was not right with the lens.  The focus ring felt a bit gritty.  Whenever I use it, it feels as if there are tiny bits of sand inside.  It does not seem to affect much anything anyway so I do not care much about the gritty feel.  However, there is something I noticed on one camping trip while I was shooting the stars at night.  The lens used to be able to focus to infinity without a problem.  My shots of the stars were all blurry.  All the images were out of focus.  Also, when I turn the focus ring manually, the focal length indicator inside the lens does not turn sometimes.  I never had this problem before the drop so I guess there was some damage.  Besides that though, everything about the lens is working fine.  The VR is still working smoothly.  The zooming is fine too.  The lens is still my primary go-to lens.  I use it for almost everything I do these days, whether it's for a party or for a hike.  So, hats off to Nikon for building such a solid lens!