[boriscleto]

I'm surprised no one mentioned this thread about a broken DAL 55-300mm plastic lens mount.

https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/pentax-k-30/232711-broken-lens-mount.html

Because there has been one thread about a broken DA L mount since I've been here...

I've had the DA L since 2010, it basically lives on my camera.

[tomwil]

Because there has been one thread about a broken DA L mount since I've been here...

Doing a quick search, there are several threads about broken plastic lens mounts:

https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/general-technical-troubleshooting/228163-...tic-mount.html
https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/pentax-slr-lens-discussion/127674-pentax-...placement.html
https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/pentax-slr-lens-discussion/230792-k30-hel...55mm-lens.html
https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/pentax-slr-lens-discussion/199100-problem-dal-50-200-a.html
https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/general-technical-troubleshooting/190481-...nt-broken.html
https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/pentax-slr-lens-discussion/105721-can-pla...ml#post1321763
https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/pentax-slr-lens-discussion/112307-lens-br...ken-mount.html

[atarget]

Doing a quick search, there are several threads about broken plastic lens mounts:

https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/general-technical-troubleshooting/228163-...tic-mount.html
https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/pentax-slr-lens-discussion/127674-pentax-...placement.html
https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/pentax-slr-lens-discussion/230792-k30-hel...55mm-lens.html
https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/pentax-slr-lens-discussion/199100-problem-dal-50-200-a.html
https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/general-technical-troubleshooting/190481-...nt-broken.html
https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/pentax-slr-lens-discussion/105721-can-pla...ml#post1321763
https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/pentax-slr-lens-discussion/112307-lens-br...ken-mount.html

I saw digital filter called "toy camera" ( never used it, though)
Just wondering if there's one called "toy lens" ( that one I know I definitely WILL NOT use but I'm asking of pure curiosity)

[boriscleto]

Doing a quick search, there are several threads about broken plastic lens mounts:

https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/general-technical-troubleshooting/228163-...tic-mount.html
https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/pentax-slr-lens-discussion/127674-pentax-...placement.html
https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/pentax-slr-lens-discussion/230792-k30-hel...55mm-lens.html
https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/pentax-slr-lens-discussion/199100-problem-dal-50-200-a.html
https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/general-technical-troubleshooting/190481-...nt-broken.html
https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/pentax-slr-lens-discussion/105721-can-pla...ml#post1321763
https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/pentax-slr-lens-discussion/112307-lens-br...ken-mount.html

Almost all of those are related to lenses/cameras being dropped. In almost all of those cases if the lens had had a metal bayonet it would have ended up with a broken mount instead of a broken bayonet. It is also a rare enough event that I, whom spends way too much time here, couldn't remember but 1 of those threads...

[stillshot2]

I have a dal 55-300 and it seems the mount is getting scratched up where the tabs are after a few lens changes. I don't want any plastic shavings getting into the mirror box, so I am thinking about putting a metal mount from a 35-80 F4-5.6 SMC F as mentioned above. But, comparing mounts shows the 35-80 F4-5.6 SMC F is missing at least 2 gold contacts that the dal 55-300 has. One of the tabs is shaped like a tombstone and the other is very small and almost opposite the side from where the screw drive is. Would these contacts require a direct replacement part?

[Eriol]

I own the DAL version of this lens and I am indeed very much satisfied whenever I use it. I would certainly prefer this lens over the DA-version. Why? Well, indeed the lens is not focusing very fast, but I got used to this very quickly and in case of shooting moving objects I pre-focus constantly to reduce the "focus hunting" of the internal AF. Quick Shift focusing is certainly nice, but you may even switch to manual focus and then back to AF while keeping the camera at your face. In my opinion it's not woth the extra money but - as others have written before - this depends on your budget and use of the lens. I would rather replace the 18-55 by a better one and then you cover 16-300 mm with 2 zoom lenses, and could then get decent fixed focus lenses (someting between 10-20 mm, 35 mm and something between 135 and 300 mm).

Oh, and regarding the borken lens mount: Well, I wonder how a DA-lens would look like after the same incident! You should not let the lens fall down. Fullstop. If this happens, I would not so much care for the lens mount being plastic or metal, there are a lot of other things that may be damaged, e.g. the lenses ;-)

Eriol

[sergysergy]

I have had the DAL version for 3 years now. 0 problems.

[JimJohnson]

I have a dal 55-300 and it seems the mount is getting scratched up where the tabs are after a few lens changes. I don't want any plastic shavings getting into the mirror box, so I am thinking about putting a metal mount from a 35-80 F4-5.6 SMC F as mentioned above. But, comparing mounts shows the 35-80 F4-5.6 SMC F is missing at least 2 gold contacts that the dal 55-300 has. One of the tabs is shaped like a tombstone and the other is very small and almost opposite the side from where the screw drive is. Would these contacts require a direct replacement part?

Two years and counting with my DA L 55-300 and no problems. As it is mostly a secondary lens, it gets mounted, used, unmounted, remounted, .... no problems. @stillshot- I suspect any scratches you might be seeing are superficial marks, but if you are really truly worried about shavings, just push in your lens release button while mounting the lens. This will retract both the locking pin and the AF pin which are the only things that could cause scratches. Turn the lens to the stops (but not with force), release the lens release button and turn the lens back a tiny bit until you hear the pins click as they engage the lens.

Likewise, I am of the firm belief that any impact strong enough to damage a DA L mount is also highly likely to damage other parts of the lens regardless if the lens is a DA L or DA version. Optically, the two versions are identical.

[Alizarine]

the quick-shift is the best feature of DA lenses DAL ones don't have. I'm fine with the plastic mount, but full-time manual option is really handy. Optically I don't think there's a difference between the two

[JimJohnson]

the quick-shift is the best feature of DA lenses DAL ones don't have. I'm fine with the plastic mount, but full-time manual option is really handy. Optically I don't think there's a difference between the two

The only other significant difference between the DA and DA L versions, is the DA version ships with a hood. However you can purchase a near twin to the DA hood through Amazon very inexpensively.

As for Quick Shift, yes it can be a very desirable feature if you frequently need to override the AF. If, like me, you already have the DA L version, you can emulate Quick Shift by either switching your body from AF to MF after using AF. OR, simply press and hold the lens release button. This disengages both the lens locking pin AND the AF drive from the lens.

My sequence is to use AF.S, half-press the shutter using my index finger to AF and hold. Sneak my middle finger over to the lens release, press and hold. use my left hand to manually tweak focus, release the lens release button, fully depress the shutter release. Yes, it takes practice, but it does work. If I found myself doing this more frequently than I do, I would either move AF to the AF/AE-L button so I didn't have to hold the half-pressed shutter, or sell my DA L lens and buy the DA version.

[bass3587]

I'm still using my DA L version for the past 2 1/2 years and I'm quite happy with it. It came as a kit lens when I purchased my K-x and DA L 18-55mm lens which I don't use anymore. I do wish it had the Quick Shift feature but since it doesn't I've learned to live without it. Hey you can't really miss what you've never had . As for the hood I bought one on Ebay for less than retail price for an OEM version so I'm happy. It will hunt in low light situations but you know that going in so you can't expect this lens to act like a super fast prime lens. Either one will surprise you with the quality it produces for the price paid. I frequently take it when there is an event happening in town in favor of my Tamron 70-200 2.8. Enjoy!

[starbase218]

Quick-shift is very handy with this lens. Last year I was taking photos with the DA 55-300 at an airshow (Farnborough). When I lost track of an airplane, the lens would start hunting, and a hunting 55-300 will take several seconds going back and forth through the focus range. Even worse, the airplane would not become visible through the VF until just before it would lock focus. So I had no idea if I was even pointing the camera at the airplane. With quick-shift, I could continue to look through the viewfinder, quickly adjust the focus manually to at least get a blurry airplane, and let the AF take it from there to start tracking again.

[stillshot2]

@jimjohnson: thanks for the useful tip. I think as the lens ages and wears it will get scratched less. I haven't noticed any shavings getting on the sensor when taking a photo of the sky at f22 so I think I'm ok. And I never thought about using the lens release button to quickly manual focus. I've always worried I may wear out the AF selector switch on my K30 from a lot of switching back and forth, and this tactic would prevent that