Thank you all for congratulations and great sample images. I have no doubt that this lens was worth waiting for, and as CarlG says,
now the time has come for me to explore!!!
Originally posted by barondla ......Interested in the special order aspect. Is this lens not distributed in your country and retailer ordered it from Pentax Japan?Thanksbarondla
Well, offerings for Q cameras and accessories here in Denmark from serious retailers have been non-existing for a while, and supplies throughout Europe seem to be dwindling rapidly now. So, I have become quite acustomed to self-import Q-stuff from dealers in Japan. After domestic VAT and post office fees for customs handling, there is no financial advantage to that and one further gets the goods without a European Warranty.
But then I saw this 'Special Order' offering on Pentax Q high-performance lenses from SRS Microsystems in the UK - an excellent supplier of a good deal of my Pentax Gear. SRS did warn that there would be an extra delivery time, (B&H Photo has a similar offering currently) but the price was fair, and I jumped. SRS then confirmed the order to me and ordered the lens from Pentax Europe. Pentax Europe then confirmed to SRS and ordered the lens from Pentax Japan......
......anyway, I now have my lens with a valid, European warranty and I think I got it slightly cheaper than if I had imported it myself from Japan.