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01-26-2012, 03:15 AM   #16
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QuoteOriginally posted by excanonfd Quote
Only the genuine Pentax Adapter is safe to use with the leaf spring in place
Awhile back there was another, heated thread on this. A few had this opinion, but I've yet to hear what makes the Pentax adapter so magical that a decent spring can't be implemented by any other maker. It seems a totally unsupported assertion, based on a relative few having issues with crappy Bower adapters, or really cheaply made Chinese ones. It also sounds like a case of people making blanket judgements of products they've never actually used. Unless you can say "That particular adapter is trouble", it's just a worthless generalization.

01-26-2012, 11:52 AM   #17
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QuoteOriginally posted by Philoslothical Quote
It seems a totally unsupported assertion, based on a relative few having issues with crappy Bower adapters, or really cheaply made Chinese ones.
You're contradicting yourself I agree that it's a generalization but I'd rather play it safe; and I personally only need one adapter.

QuoteOriginally posted by Philoslothical Quote
Unless you can say "That particular adapter is trouble", it's just a worthless generalization.
I would rather turn it around. Give me the make and model number of those that are safe and I will buy it / them. See, it does not help to tell me not to buy A because it is crap as I will guaranteed end up with B or C that is equally crap. And by the time I've found one that is good (probably Z), I've spend just as much as what I would have spent on an original.
01-26-2012, 01:49 PM   #18
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QuoteOriginally posted by sterretje Quote
You're contradicting yourself
I'm not. I meant that saying "all" is unsupported when only a few are a problem.

I agree, knowing which ones are safe is more useful than which to avoid, which is why I link to the same seller I got mine from when this comes up. It was the cheapest I dared to try, and seems just fine. I've been using it fairly frequently for months now. I'll also say I'm basing my opinion on a sample of one, so YMMV.
01-26-2012, 05:14 PM - 1 Like   #19
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OK, my turn. I know of 4 types of M42-PL adapters:

1) Official Pentax. Safe, tedious, not cheap. Everyone with at least one screwmount lens should own just one IMHO. I own one. Apply adapter to camera and it becomes a non-auto-aperture M42 camera, with however much lens (un)screwing is needed. Swapping lenses becomes tedious.

2) Fotodiox M/A type. This has an inner flange to hold down the M42 auto-aperture pin. I cannot find a source for this adapter, have never owned one, so I can't comment further.

3) Bower-type clone. Many of us with many screwmount lenses buy these in bulk for about US$5 each. Such clones have the notorious screw+spring assembly, and a dismounting tool. Remove the screw+spring or YOU WILL GO APESH!T! Then use a PK rear lens cap as a wrench to (un)tighten the adapter on the lens screwmount. I have had such adapters on some lenses for so long that I've almost forgotten they're not native PK. I've had no problems. Nervous folks might put a drop of contact cement on the threads for security, or even cut a slot or hole in the lens base for the PK lens-lock pin to engage.

The above are not 'flangeless' -- they all have a thin, narrow flange. For some lens adaptations, even that flange is too thick for infinity focus. So I've taken a couple Bower-type clones and ground away some of that thin flange. Tape a piece of rough sandpaper to a very hard flat surface like a kitchen tile. Use a rubber or wood block as a grip to press the adapter against the sandpaper. Do NOT grind away the flange entirely or it won't seat on the mount.

4) Wide-flange no-infinity-focus (NIF) adapter. Safe and cheap. I use these with macro tubes and bellows, for portraits and close-up work, for anything where infinity doesn't matter. If the adapter is anodized or painted, file or sand away down to bare metal in the appropriate place so it safely shorts the electrical contacts to allow catch-in-focus (CIF). I also use these on some longer (>100mm) lenses with very narrow bodies that won't normally short those contacts. An NIF adapter on a 200mm lens may drop far-focus to ~150m, but infinity may still be in focus when stopped down.
_____________________________________

Since I'm on a roll here, I'll also discuss M39 adapters. I note four types of lenses with 39mm mounts:

* M39, which have the same register (flange focal distance) as M42 and PK. These are almost entirely Russian AFAIK, made for Zenit SLRs; I've seen no others.
* LTM (Leica threadmount) which have a register much shorter than PK. These lenses CANNOT be used (without surgery) on Pentax dSLRs except for closeups.
* L39, common on enlarger lenses. These have no register. With the right extension (tubes and/or bellows) lenses longer than 60mm can reach infinity focus.
* A kind I've never encountered, don't know the name, not sure how they're used: 39mm thread, 0.75mm pitch. All the M39-LTM-L39 lenses have 1mm pitch.

OK, so what are the M39 adapters with 1mm pitch?

5) M39-M42 ring. This is a thin band threaded 39mm on the inside and 42mm on the outside, the band being about 6mm deep. I buy these in batch lots for about US$3 each shipped, for adapting M39 and L39 and some other lenses. With M39s, I've had no problems with infinity focus. I also non-destructively adapt Exakta-mount lenses. Glue an M39-M42 ring around the Exakta bayonets; screw on a ground-down Bower adapter I mentioned above. Voila! Infinity focus!

6) M39-PK adapter. Safe and pretty cheap. This a wide- and thick-flanged adapter, like the M42-PK NIF adapters I mentioned above, but thicker. I use these for close-up applications only.
_____________________________________

There's my overview. Which is 'best'? That depends on one's needs and budget. If you're doing close work, you can go even cheaper. Just get a PK body cap, the thick black generic sort that cost a buck or two, not the thin white one supplied by Pentax. Cut a round hole in the center of the body cap. Screw the lens in. Voila! Cheap and easy! This is also how I adapt thin lenses with odd mounts, like my Argus C3 glass. But that's another subject.


Last edited by RioRico; 01-26-2012 at 05:55 PM.
02-02-2012, 03:36 PM   #20
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New Pentax,new prices on M42 screw mount

QuoteOriginally posted by Adam Quote
Make sure you use a flange-less adapter. Your best bet is the genuine pentax one.



Also here is a good generic one: General Brand Pentax-K Body to Universal Lens Adapter ABPKS B&H
I noticed something very interesting.
The prices for M42 screw mount adapter with the Pentax K-01 launch get really crazy!
The same shop had 2 weeks ago a price for just one M42 screw mount adapter 15 dollars.
Now the same M42 is 25 dollars..."We wish to see as many launches as possible...so we can rise a M42 screw mount to the ultimate price.. may 100 dollars to the be a prime[/B] price"
I am really disappointed with that shop ..
Glad that is not the only one: lol: shop.
No chance to buy from that guys anymore, ever.
In place of the actual name I would call it from now on …Opportunist&Huge
02-02-2012, 04:29 PM   #21
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It won't have anything to do with the K-01 announcement, it's not even going to be available til March sometime. I just clicked the link you quoted, and it showed $15.95 for me, which I'm pretty sure it was when the thread started.

I did suggest another earlier on that's a bit cheaper.
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