James Of Tucson wrote:

A used non-IS will cost nearly as much as a new IS.
I'm not likely to *ever* be in the market for such a thing, but,
just for curiosity's sake, is the IS so bad, or is it that the
older lens is so much better?

My experience is the opposite. After I purchased my second-hand 300/4
IS lens for $825, I was able to sell my 300/4 (non-IS) for only $500.

-Dave