To all Canon EF-S 17-85mm f/4-5.6 IS USM Owners - Question about Date Code

Hi all EF-S 17-85 owners,

I owned my 17-85mm lens for about 4 months, and found it a pretty decent walk-around lens. When stopped down and not shooting at wide end the resulting images are quite sharp. At the price point ($570 + taxes when I bought it) I think it is OK.

One question, though: does any user notice the absence of date code on the lens mount? I bought it online in Canada from http://www.Blacks.ca (a reputable retailer in Canada), so I think the chance that it's a scam (i.e. deliberately selling refurbished items as new ones) is pretty low.

Any comments are welcome.

Cheers,

Alan Li