Win a Pentax Limited Lens: Raffle Now Live!

JohnKSA · 06-02-2011, 07:26 AM

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Hi all!
After months of vacillation and hovering around this forum, watching prices and exchange rates I have finally committed. I just hope the unit I receive is as reliable as my K20. Not going to be easy (or cheap) sending a defective unit back to the US for warrenty issues. I would have purchased locally in South Africa but there was a 25 % difference in price. Through another thread here, I obtained the 'phone number of the Pentax rep for South Africa and, despite assurances to meet me regarding the price, he did not come back. The uncertainty regarding the various issues some have experienced with the K5 puts a bit of spice into the equation. I have also purchased the Sigma 8-16 and the Pentax 18-135 WR to spread the shipping cost load. It would be realy good if the package arrives before I leave on a trip to Botswana next weekend. I know this is not going to make me a better photographer but at least the itch will be relieved.

Regards,

John K

yusuf · 06-02-2011, 07:34 AM

Congrats...I can relate the itching

**Ash** · 06-02-2011, 07:42 AM

Welcome to the forum John.
I can attest to the K-5's reliability (so far). It's a decent step up in every way to the K20D, except perhaps the SD card door mechanism (which I preferred on the K20D) but is a minor issue to all the other benefits of the camera.
Look forward to seeing your results from Botswana.

altopiet · 06-02-2011, 07:51 AM

Hi John, I hope you get a mint copy without problems as it seems from recent discussions on the forum, there might be problems with, or confusion about international warrenty for Pentax products bought online and shipped to destination outside USA. I am also looking at getting one from USA, but am still wating to see what happens. I don't want something that I can't get replaced under warrenty, even if I can save 25% or more. Prices difference between RSA and USA is absurd

https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/ask-b-h-photo/143550-pentax-guarantee-iss...al-buyers.html

JohnKSA · 06-02-2011, 10:42 PM

Hi Christo, I am also concerned about the warrenty issues but life is not without risks! I hope you can resolve the issues for yourself and get the camera.

Hi Ash, My trip to Botswana is only to Gaberone for a Rotary conference so not going to be much in the way of wildlife opportunities. Need to get a group together again to do the Swamps and the Delta again! Last time was fantastic!

By the way I see from the tracking that my parcel has just left Cologn in germany so should be in RSA tonight. Then the customs clearing (and payment) will have to happen - supposedly after the weekend. UPS have already contacted me but I am still waiting to find out how much I must pay.

cheers,

John K

JohnKSA · 06-04-2011, 11:37 PM

Hi,
It is very frustrating to know that my parcel has been sitting in Johannesburg for 2 days waiting for paperwork to be completed! I have done something that I have never done in my life before and that is I have downloaded the user manual from Pentax and read it from cover to cover and this is before I even have the item in my hands! Normally I live by the motto -"if all else fails then read the instructions" I hope it lives up to my expectations!

Regards to all,
John K

JeffJS · 06-04-2011, 11:49 PM

Welcome to the Club!

downunderman · 06-05-2011, 04:54 AM

Pentax K-5 Body

Item condition:NewTime left:27d 15h (Jul 02, 201120:22:01 PDT)Price:US $1,200.00Buy It NowBuy It NowBuy It Now
Add to list
Start of panel

Add to a new list
End of panel

Added to your Watch list
Shipping:$46.00 Economy Int'l ShippingSee more services See shipping discounts | See all shipping detailsDelivery:Varies for items shipped from an international location

Seller ships within 2 days after receiving cleared payment - opens in a new window or tab.

Returns:7 day money back, buyer pays return shipping |<A rel=nofollow>Read return policy details
K5 on ebay for $1200+$46.00 P+H Waiting to hear from local retailers if they will match

JenniPest · 06-05-2011, 07:20 AM

Originally posted by JohnKSA

Hi,
It is very frustrating to know that my parcel has been sitting in Johannesburg for 2 days waiting for paperwork to be completed! I have done something that I have never done in my life before and that is I have downloaded the user manual from Pentax and read it from cover to cover and this is before I even have the item in my hands! Normally I live by the motto -"if all else fails then read the instructions" I hope it lives up to my expectations!

Regards to all,
John K

Hi John - I have just, after 3 weeks of reading all the manuals of the cameras I had shortlisted, decided that the K-5 is for me. Looking to order from Cybertrek or Cameraland as I am worried about buying from US website. Please let us know the outcome of your order. How long it took, what the customs and shipping costs were.
Thanks
Jenni

JohnKSA · 06-07-2011, 02:06 AM

Hi Jenni,

Sorry to the rest of the forum members as this should probably have been done as a PM but I thought that other South African members might learn something from this.

To answer your questions:
1. It will have taken 8 days to receive the camera from order date (I hope to get it tomorrow Wednesday 8/6/2011). It probably could have happened within a work week had I placed my order on a Monday.
2. Shipping cost me $80-42 if I apportion, by value, the shipping across my entire order. If I had bought just the camera body it would have been $125-00
3. The clearing and import taxes etc came to exactly 20% of the Rand value including shipping costs.
4. The credit card company charged me an exchange rate of 7.00 when the TV quoted rate was on the day was 6.85.

If you do import be wary to keep the value of the shipment (including shipping costs) to below R20 000 otherwise you will need an import permit. I was very lucky in that I was not aware of this and my shipment came in at R19683.17 so it just scraped below the threshold.

If you do buy locally be wary of buying "grey" goods as you will most probably not be covered by Pentax SA (New Teltron). If you want to contact Teltron speak to Alistair Chambers on 079 739 9764 to make sure. If you do buy from a direct importer make sure about guarantees and shipping costs to send the item back to the country of origin. I may be mistaken but I believe that Pentax SA will help if the camera has the "string of pearls" problem - I hope not to have to put them to the test!
As far as I know and stand to be corrected Cybertrek do their own importing (grey goods). Cameraland (if it is the one I am thinking about) is part of a brick & mortar store and should probably be selling legit products.
The cheapest quote I received was from Stax in Dunkeld, Johannesburg, at
R14899-00.
My effective landed cost was R11 146.57- a saving of 33.66%. It would not have been quite as big a saving if I did not reuce the proportional shipping cost by including a few lenses and memory cards etc. Had I bought the body only the landed cost would have been R12 201-00 ($1743-00).

I have now also read Yvon Bourque's book on the K5 as well as the entire owners' manual so all I have to do now is to get my grubby little paws on the camera.:

.

All the best,

John

downunderman · 06-09-2011, 06:13 AM

John so hows the camera going in your grubby hands lol

06-02-2011, 07:26 AM	#1
JohnKSA Inactive Account Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Pietersburg, South Africa Posts: 26	Just did it Staff note: This post may contain affiliate links, which means Pentax Forums may earn a small commission if a visitor clicks through and makes a purchase. If you would like to support the forum directly, you may also make a donation here. Hi all! After months of vacillation and hovering around this forum, watching prices and exchange rates I have finally committed. I just hope the unit I receive is as reliable as my K20. Not going to be easy (or cheap) sending a defective unit back to the US for warrenty issues. I would have purchased locally in South Africa but there was a 25 % difference in price. Through another thread here, I obtained the 'phone number of the Pentax rep for South Africa and, despite assurances to meet me regarding the price, he did not come back. The uncertainty regarding the various issues some have experienced with the K5 puts a bit of spice into the equation. I have also purchased the Sigma 8-16 and the Pentax 18-135 WR to spread the shipping cost load. It would be realy good if the package arrives before I leave on a trip to Botswana next weekend. I know this is not going to make me a better photographer but at least the itch will be relieved. Regards, John K

06-05-2011, 04:54 AM	#8
downunderman Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2011 Location: Port hedland Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 294	Pentax K-5 Body Item condition:NewTime left:27d 15h (Jul 02, 201120:22:01 PDT)Price:US $1,200.00Buy It NowBuy It NowBuy It Now Add to list Start of panel Add to Watch list Add to Gift Ideas Add to Research Add to Wish List Add to a new list End of panel Added to your Watch list Shipping:$46.00 Economy Int'l ShippingSee more services See shipping discounts \| See all shipping detailsDelivery:Varies for items shipped from an international location Seller ships within 2 days after receiving cleared payment - opens in a new window or tab. Returns:7 day money back, buyer pays return shipping \|<A rel=nofollow>Read return policy details K5 on ebay for $1200+$46.00 P+H Waiting to hear from local retailers if they will match

06-07-2011, 02:06 AM	#10
JohnKSA Inactive Account Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Pietersburg, South Africa Posts: 26 Original Poster	Hi Jenni, Sorry to the rest of the forum members as this should probably have been done as a PM but I thought that other South African members might learn something from this. To answer your questions: 1. It will have taken 8 days to receive the camera from order date (I hope to get it tomorrow Wednesday 8/6/2011). It probably could have happened within a work week had I placed my order on a Monday. 2. Shipping cost me $80-42 if I apportion, by value, the shipping across my entire order. If I had bought just the camera body it would have been $125-00 3. The clearing and import taxes etc came to exactly 20% of the Rand value including shipping costs. 4. The credit card company charged me an exchange rate of 7.00 when the TV quoted rate was on the day was 6.85. If you do import be wary to keep the value of the shipment (including shipping costs) to below R20 000 otherwise you will need an import permit. I was very lucky in that I was not aware of this and my shipment came in at R19683.17 so it just scraped below the threshold. If you do buy locally be wary of buying "grey" goods as you will most probably not be covered by Pentax SA (New Teltron). If you want to contact Teltron speak to Alistair Chambers on 079 739 9764 to make sure. If you do buy from a direct importer make sure about guarantees and shipping costs to send the item back to the country of origin. I may be mistaken but I believe that Pentax SA will help if the camera has the "string of pearls" problem - I hope not to have to put them to the test! As far as I know and stand to be corrected Cybertrek do their own importing (grey goods). Cameraland (if it is the one I am thinking about) is part of a brick & mortar store and should probably be selling legit products. The cheapest quote I received was from Stax in Dunkeld, Johannesburg, at R14899-00. My effective landed cost was R11 146.57- a saving of 33.66%. It would not have been quite as big a saving if I did not reuce the proportional shipping cost by including a few lenses and memory cards etc. Had I bought the body only the landed cost would have been R12 201-00 ($1743-00). I have now also read Yvon Bourque's book on the K5 as well as the entire owners' manual so all I have to do now is to get my grubby little paws on the camera.:. All the best, John Last edited by JohnKSA; 06-07-2011 at 03:23 AM. Reason: corrent spelling

06-02-2011, 07:34 AM	#2
yusuf Pentaxian Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Palo Alto, CA Photos: Gallery Posts: 2,497	Congrats...I can relate the itching

06-02-2011, 07:42 AM	#3
Ash Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Toowoomba, Queensland Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 23,920	Welcome to the forum John. I can attest to the K-5's reliability (so far). It's a decent step up in every way to the K20D, except perhaps the SD card door mechanism (which I preferred on the K20D) but is a minor issue to all the other benefits of the camera. Look forward to seeing your results from Botswana.

06-02-2011, 07:51 AM	#4
altopiet Veteran Member Join Date: Sep 2010 Location: The Gem of the Karoo, South Africa Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 2,307	Hi John, I hope you get a mint copy without problems as it seems from recent discussions on the forum, there might be problems with, or confusion about international warrenty for Pentax products bought online and shipped to destination outside USA. I am also looking at getting one from USA, but am still wating to see what happens. I don't want something that I can't get replaced under warrenty, even if I can save 25% or more. Prices difference between RSA and USA is absurd https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/ask-b-h-photo/143550-pentax-guarantee-iss...al-buyers.html

06-02-2011, 10:42 PM	#5
JohnKSA Inactive Account Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Pietersburg, South Africa Posts: 26 Original Poster	Hi Christo, I am also concerned about the warrenty issues but life is not without risks! I hope you can resolve the issues for yourself and get the camera. Hi Ash, My trip to Botswana is only to Gaberone for a Rotary conference so not going to be much in the way of wildlife opportunities. Need to get a group together again to do the Swamps and the Delta again! Last time was fantastic! By the way I see from the tracking that my parcel has just left Cologn in germany so should be in RSA tonight. Then the customs clearing (and payment) will have to happen - supposedly after the weekend. UPS have already contacted me but I am still waiting to find out how much I must pay. cheers, John K

06-04-2011, 11:37 PM	#6
JohnKSA Inactive Account Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Pietersburg, South Africa Posts: 26 Original Poster	Hi, It is very frustrating to know that my parcel has been sitting in Johannesburg for 2 days waiting for paperwork to be completed! I have done something that I have never done in my life before and that is I have downloaded the user manual from Pentax and read it from cover to cover and this is before I even have the item in my hands! Normally I live by the motto -"if all else fails then read the instructions" I hope it lives up to my expectations! Regards to all, John K

06-04-2011, 11:49 PM	#7
JeffJS Inactive Account Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Michigan, USA Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 7,484	Welcome to the Club!

06-05-2011, 07:20 AM	#9
JenniPest New Member Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: Strubensvalley, South Africa Photos: Gallery Posts: 6	Originally posted by JohnKSA Hi, It is very frustrating to know that my parcel has been sitting in Johannesburg for 2 days waiting for paperwork to be completed! I have done something that I have never done in my life before and that is I have downloaded the user manual from Pentax and read it from cover to cover and this is before I even have the item in my hands! Normally I live by the motto -"if all else fails then read the instructions" I hope it lives up to my expectations! Regards to all, John K Hi John - I have just, after 3 weeks of reading all the manuals of the cameras I had shortlisted, decided that the K-5 is for me. Looking to order from Cybertrek or Cameraland as I am worried about buying from US website. Please let us know the outcome of your order. How long it took, what the customs and shipping costs were. Thanks Jenni

06-09-2011, 06:13 AM	#11
downunderman Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2011 Location: Port hedland Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 294	John so hows the camera going in your grubby hands lol

Just did it

Win a Pentax Limited Lens: Raffle Now Live!