[Ira]

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I have two of the Bowers.

Removed the clip to "permanently" mount them to M42 lenses.

Spent about a minute TRYING to mount the lens like this...couldn't get the effin thing to catch...and thought, "This CAN'T be good for my camera," and I stopped.

[tux]

I am now thinking this type of adapter is better for permanent mount to a lens. Reason why is because it is designed for permanent mount the a lens rather than the body. Also it looks wide enough to short out the auto pins on the body :

Screw M42 to for Pentax PK Mount Lens Camera Adapter - eBay, Lenses, Photographic Accessories, Cameras. (end time 26-Mar-10 15:07:37 AEDST)

the bower type & the type I own are not wide enough which seems to cause a problem with the video & liveview functions.

[Ira]

It's unbelievable but it's true in Finland too. I bought a genuine adapter back in 2008 for 24eur now I checked the same place (cyberphoto.fi) again and it's 88eur What gives?

Paid 30 bucks U.S. for it last week.

Do your high prices have anything to do with import duties, and that wacky VAT?

[ovim]

I am now thinking this type of adapter is better for permanent mount to a lens. Reason why is because it is designed for permanent mount the a lens rather than the body. Also it looks wide enough to short out the auto pins on the body :

Screw M42 to for Pentax PK Mount Lens Camera Adapter - eBay, Lenses, Photographic Accessories, Cameras. (end time 26-Mar-10 15:07:37 AEDST)

the bower type & the type I own are not wide enough which seems to cause a problem with the video & liveview functions.

Yeah it shorts the contacts but because of the flange you will most likely lose infinity focus. Depending on the lens it might be possible to readjust infinity though.

Paid 30 bucks U.S. for it last week.

Do your high prices have anything to do with import duties, and that wacky VAT?

I don't think so, the price has more than tripled in less than two years and there hasn't been any changes (that I know of) to import duties or VAT.

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Last edited by ovim; 03-06-2010 at 03:29 PM.

[Mike Cash]

Not sure about where you are but just recently the genuine adapters have risen dramatically here in the UK. THIS seems to be about the going price now.

£ converted to US$ = approx $100

You have my condolences.

It must be those wonderful European "value-added" taxes, because in the land of their manufacture they sell for around thirty bucks.

[tux]

Yeah it shorts the contacts but because of the flange you will most likely lose infinity focus. Depending on the lens it might be possible to readjust infinity though.

Bummer...so is there a product that has infinity & shorts the pins or is this impossible ?? I am using a helios M44-4

[GoremanX]

the bower type & the type I own are not wide enough which seems to cause a problem with the video & liveview functions.

I'm not sure what you're referring to. My Super Takumar works fine in video mode and live view. There's no need to short out any contacts.

edit: my K-7's movie mode and live view work fine without any lens attached too, it just looks horrible.

This is how my generic adapter fits onto my Super Takumar:

File Date

View Picture EXIF

Notice how the red dot and the diamond mostly line up, so the diamond is pretty much at the top when the lens is mounted. This is not a Bower adapter, I have no idea what brand it is. It came in a white box. The screw that holds the spring clip in place did not interfere with the threads, and I removed it altogether and attached the adapter to the lens using blue threadlocking compound.

[wlank]

You did not follow the basic rule for not-official-Pentax M42-PK adapters: Remove the screw and clip. NOW! I have about 10 such adapters. With the first, I had endless aggravation, and then I learned that rule. Now I keep those adapters attached to various M39/M42 lenses,

I have just spent part of the morning wandering around my house, re-shooting various Injun Stuff here (mostly pottery) with Kaf Pentax FA 50/1.4, and adaptered M39 Jupiter-9 85/2, M42 Isco-Westron 35/2.8, and M42 Vivitar 21/3.5. Slip'em on, shoot, slip'em off. The only difference is resetting from Av to M. The slightest snag: the M39-M42 adapter on the Jupiter isn't quite as snug as the Bowers, so I have to be mindful when close-focusing not to loosen the lens.



I also own an official Pentax adapter. It does not get much use. On the odd day when I intend to use only screwmounts (the ones I haven't fitted with their own adapters) on either the ZX-M or K20D, I insert the official Pentax adapter into that camera. The adapter stays there all day, because removing it is more trouble than just screwing lenses. And removing it allows more dust into the body.


Every adapter is a tool. Every tool has its purpose. It's a poor worker who blames their tools.
Learn to use the tools, and the world is bright and merry, tra la, tra la.

If it works for you, that is great. The way I use M42 lenses is entirely different than the way you do. You may have noticed in my Sig. that I'm the "Proud Owner" of a Spotmatic and that I have several M42 lenses. I use that camera rather regularly and I don't intend to permanently mount an adapter on any of those lenses. I notice that you do NOT mention an M42 body in your gear list.

As for removing the screw and clip, I say horsefeathers. My Pentax adapter has a screw and clip and functions as intended. Therefore I conclude that there should be no reason to remove the screw and clip from the Bower or any other 3rd party adapter. It is a good worker who examines the tool, finds that the tool is poorly designed and/or manufactured (a piece of crap) and then obtains the tool from the proper source like he knew to do in the first place.

Did I remember to mention that you should get a genuine Pentax adapter? NOTE: This opinion is not for RioRico

[stevebrot]

I will add my voice to the chorus:

Get the Genuine Pentax Adapter

If you live in Europe, order it from B&H. Even with shipping it will be cheaper.

My personal experience with the Bower involved:

• Adapter stuck on camera for 2+ hours until I finally managed to free it
• Damage to threads of formerly pristine Vivitar 135/2.8
• Mirror box of camera littered with metal filings that fell from inside surfaces of adapter.

As with Lowell, I have two M42 bodies and have no interest in permanently converting my M42 lenses to K-mount.

In case you didn't catch my drift...my earnest advice is to avoid damage to camera and lens and get the genuine Pentax adapter.

Steve

P.S. It may also be noted that these cheap Chinese adapters also tend to over-rotate in the mount...not good...

[little laker]

@little laker
In that case, Pentax could have turned the bajonet on bodies with a flash as well for use with K-mount lenses with aperture ring This would automatically have affected the M42 lenses as well, Might look a bit odd, though.

It wouldn't really work, unless they changed everything relating to the aperture. If they made Autofocus lenses before that time they'd have to change that entire setup as well

[Asudef]

I have my Super Tak 55/1.8 "permanently" mounted to the generic adapter but as I mentioned, I have to turn the camera portrait mode to read the focus marks which also leads me to believe the focus planes are off.

It's "permanent" because it likes to screw on tight which also makes it a pain to remove, I don't even need loctite for it to unscrew as a K mount.

It also likes to unmount when I push the switch from M to A, very annoying and possibility of dropping the lens is high.

Also, the "permanent" style doesn't work for my Macro Tak 50/4 preset, it won't engage so I have to take the adapter off and install as recommended.

So yes, thats 4 points off. I'm going to try a genuine adapter and possibly look into some generics for the "permanent" style. I do own 2 Spottys so they do get used as intended.

[RioRico]

Yeah it shorts the contacts but because of the flange you will most likely lose infinity focus. Depending on the lens it might be possible to readjust infinity though.

I often use a flanged adapter on my K20D, with no electric problems that I've noticed. Of course, an M42 lens won't be exchanging data with the body anyway.

I think "adjusting infinity" might be a non-trivial effort on most lenses. As I've mentioned, I use the flanged adapter on lenses and bellows where it's not an issue, or for portrait or close-up sessions where I don't *want* infinity in focus. I put the flanged adapter on a Helios-44M (58/2) today for just such usage. Far focus seems to be about 4m (13 feet). On a Jupitar-9 (85/2) far focus might be a little further, 5m (16+ feet). (I'm aiming at the far corner of my office right now.) Anything beyond there gets that nice wide-open bokeh, eh?

[ovim]

Bummer...so is there a product that has infinity & shorts the pins or is this impossible ?? I am using a helios M44-4

I don't think such a thing exists. The end of the lens should sit against the contacts. When you add something between the lens and the camera mount it acts as a very thin extension tube and you lose infinity (unless your lens focuses past infinty).

Only thing I can think of is to place a strip of aluminum tape over the contacts, perhaps the glue would have to be removed partially to short the contacts.

I've also got an old silver Helios-44 which has so small rear end it barely covers the genuine adapter and the contacts are left exposed. I don't know about LV or video but on my my K200D I get underexposure with M42 lenses in AV mode if the contacts are not shorted.

It's usually easy enough to fix it with EV compensation but now there's snow everywhere and I don't have enough +EV steps to get the snow properly exposed (white). So it's green button time.

[RioRico]

If it works for you, that is great. The way I use M42 lenses is entirely different than the way you do. You may have noticed in my Sig. that I'm the "Proud Owner" of a Spotmatic and that I have several M42 lenses. I use that camera rather regularly and I don't intend to permanently mount an adapter on any of those lenses. I notice that you do NOT mention an M42 body in your gear list.

My gear list says "Some other M42 bodies". Left unnamed are a Chinon-Argus CR-3E, 3 Prakticas, a Fujica ST-701, and some others. Of M42s, the advanced Argus gets the most use, then the prismless Praktica FX3 with its top viewfinder. I also don't name the non-M42's and the rest of my camera pile (around 40). I think my lens count is ~175, of which 7 are M39, ~60 are M42, and ~35 are PK of some sort. About 20 total are Pentax. That's just too much detail for my gear list.

By "permanently mount", I don't mean SuperGlue. I mean, screw it on snugly (using a rear lens cap as a grip) and leave it on until it's expedient to screw it off, rather than dicking around with the screwmount whenever I change lenses. Most of my shooting is with the K20D, then the ZX-M, so the dozen or so M42 lenses I use most get adapters (until it's time for a different lens). On a long drive I typically pack 4 SLRs, 25-30 lenses, and yet more cameras and stuff, in flux. The only thing permanent is change.

"If all you have is a hammer, every problem looks like a nail." My kit is more like that 57-pound got-it-all Swiss Army Knife, which includes an Official Pentax Adapter, and flanged adapters, and Bowers adapters. Different tools, different nails.

[wlank]

My gear list says "Some other M42 bodies".

My bad! I can only plead old eyes and reading too fast.

In my last post I said "NOTE: This opinion is not for RioRico" My meaning was that the opinion expressed in my post had no application to experienced users, but was meant for folks who had never mounted an M42 lens on a K Mount body.

My gear list says "Some other M42 bodies". Left unnamed are a Chinon-Argus CR-3E, 3 Prakticas, a Fujica ST-701, and some others. Of M42s, the advanced Argus gets the most use, then the prismless Praktica FX3 with its top viewfinder. I also don't name the non-M42's and the rest of my camera pile (around 40). I think my lens count is ~175, of which 7 are M39, ~60 are M42, and ~35 are PK of some sort. About 20 total are Pentax. That's just too much detail for my gear list.

Good Golly, Miss Molly. Worst case of LBA/CBA I've seen in a while. Last I heard our fearless leader Adam had 16 bodies (mas o menos) and 135 lenses. Kinda thought that was bordering on excessive. I'm up to 5 bodies and 14 lenses. Just nailed Peter Zack's Vivitar 28mm f2.0 M42 last night, but since I haven't received it yet, it doesn't count. Right?