[MicheleSignorini]

Dear all,
there is a mechanical issue with my 18-55mm WR kit lens: the front lens barrel has a large loosenes, which shows as an image lateral and focus shift in the viewfinder and live view while intentionally forcing the barrel / hood combination. You may see the amount of lens wobbling and image shift at this link: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/0w5vq89qvkxppj7/HjWUHC0mNL.
If you take the lens alone by the zoom and focus rings and shake it, you may hear a rattling rumor which stops when you lock the front barrel with the hand.
While this large mechanical tolerance seems to have no effects on the pictures, I wonder if it is normal or should I return the lens to repair under warranty. The guy at the shop where I bought the camera kit told me it is normal and most zoom lenses have this behaviour.
Do you have the same experience with this or other lenses?
Thanks for any comments!
Regards,

Michele

[Steve.Ledger]

Normal for a kit lens. Normal for a cheap lens.
You also have to account for hood wobble as well as lens barrel wobble in your clip as both have their own tolerances.
In normal use this movement is not an issue at all.

[stevebrot]

Hi Michele,
Welcome to the Pentax Forums! I have the older, non-WR version of the 18-55 and it has some degree of play in the front part of the lens similar to what you describe. My friend's 18-55 WR is pretty tight though. Yes, a certain amount of play is not unusual for AF zooms and what you are seeing is probably normal. Your best bet might be to go back to the shop where you bought the camera and compare the lens to one new on the shelf. If yours is wobbly by comparison and the purchase recent, I would suggest that the shop offer an immediate exchange.


Steve

[link81]

your lens has WAY more wobble then mine (same 18-55WR)
That is not, in any way normal. a little bit of "wiggle" might be normal, but nothing anywhere near that much.

[tibbitts]

Dear all,
there is a mechanical issue with my 18-55mm WR kit lens: the front lens barrel has a large loosenes, which shows as an image lateral and focus shift in the viewfinder and live view while intentionally forcing the barrel / hood combination. You may see the amount of lens wobbling and image shift at this link: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/0w5vq89qvkxppj7/HjWUHC0mNL.
If you take the lens alone by the zoom and focus rings and shake it, you may hear a rattling rumor which stops when you lock the front barrel with the hand.
While this large mechanical tolerance seems to have no effects on the pictures, I wonder if it is normal or should I return the lens to repair under warranty. The guy at the shop where I bought the camera kit told me it is normal and most zoom lenses have this behaviour.
Do you have the same experience with this or other lenses?
Thanks for any comments!
Regards,

Michele

I don't have this experience with my 18-55DA (don't have a WR), but absolutely do with the 16-45mm Pentax and the 28-105mm AF Pentax/Tamron. I have some wobble with my 50-200DA, somewhat less with the 55-300, and similarly little with the Tamron 70-300. I can detect degradation with the 16-45 and 28-105, but haven't tested the 50-200 extensively. It just doesn't make sense that you can throw lens elements together with various alignment and expect no effect on images, while so many posts on the forum will point out that the use of even a decent-quality, perfectly-aligned UV/clear filter will have a detectable detrimental effect on your images.

I don't understand why generations of both metal and plastic lenses managed to exist without wobble, and now we have wobble regularly.

You do have to test carefully to detect the damage from wobble - so, camera tripod-mounted, using a little force to move the barrel in opposite directions, and of course examining at at least 100%.