[NicoleC]

any word on how long the new repair center is taking to do their "fix"?

Mine took 5 weeks.

[bschafer]

I sent mine in on 11/25 Precision received it on Friday Nov 28th. I had the camera back in my hands on Dec 5th. Pretty much a 1 week turnaround! I have written them seeking some additional information about what they did but have not received a response. I will post when I receive one,

[philbaum]

When i called in to Pentax Imaging in the US, they knew instantly what the problem was and told me quickly how to get it to Precision. I like my K3 a lot, and 6 weeks would be okay by me. Hope to use it for a long time. By the way, if you are boxing it yourself - it needs to be double-boxed per what my local UPS store said.

[Dave L]

My camera was manufactured on June'14 and came with 1.11 pre-installed. I'm curious how it came with a fw released in August. In any case, my serial no. is 6035911 and I'll post here if I come across any issue. Hope none of it occurs.

Me too, K-3 arrived today with a s/no. of 6081xxx and firmware 1.11 already installed. For some reason PhotoME doesn't show the manufactured date. I will report any issues but don't expect any, except that the manual provided is a K-50 manual!

[philbaum]

I sent mine in on 11/25 Precision received it on Friday Nov 28th. I had the camera back in my hands on Dec 5th. Pretty much a 1 week turnaround! I have written them seeking some additional information about what they did but have not received a response. I will post when I receive one,

Pretty much same here.

One can sign up for $7 for 2 day shipping after repair when you send it in/register.

They received my camera on 12/16. Had it repaired for flopping on 12/17. It should be received at my West Coast house on 12/19.

If the only repair is flopping - they do it very quickly - yea!!!!

Phil

[aaalegre]

Pretty much same here.

One can sign up for $7 for 2 day shipping after repair when you send it in/register.

They received my camera on 12/16. Had it repaired for flopping on 12/17. It should be received at my West Coast house on 12/19.

If the only repair is flopping - they do it very quickly - yea!!!!

Phil

Was This a warranty ?

[philbaum]

Was This a warranty ?

Yes, about 11 months into the warranty.

[Kameraten]

Got a K-3 Limited which exhibited small problems like empty frames from Day 1 getting successively worse – excessive shutter noise, no live view – so I sent it in for repair after a week. According to the repair shop the front housing assy was replaced, that's the whole mirror drive unit. It took only a couple of days and now everything seems to be fine. Warranty covered, of course.
The s/n 25785XX was within the range of suspects.

[gjtoth]

Well, my K-3 has just started the runaway mirror stuff. I called Pentax. They said send it to Precision. $305 That is just the base price without any repairs! Surely, there is someone else doing this repair at a REASONABLE price. Anyone know?

[ofer4]

gjtoth... I would try to make a strong case to Pentax/Precision that this issue is a known flaw in the camera and should be covered by them, even if it's beyond warranty.

[gjtoth]

gjtoth... I would try to make a strong case to Pentax/Precision that this issue is a known flaw in the camera and should be covered by them, even if it's beyond warranty.

Just curious: How many here have had their out-of-warranty K-3 fixed for free by Pentax? As most here know, Precision charges $309 just to open the box. That's WITHOUT repairs! And, they are the ONLY ones doing this fix!? Can you say "price gouging"? Kickbacks? From what I've gathered so far, this is a firmware fix that is only done at an "authorized Pentax repair facility". Guess who that is?

[awaldram]

Just curious: How many here have had their out-of-warranty K-3 fixed for free by Pentax? As most here know, Precision charges $309 just to open the box. That's WITHOUT repairs! And, they are the ONLY ones doing this fix!? Can you say "price gouging"? Kickbacks? From what I've gathered so far, this is a firmware fix that is only done at an "authorized Pentax repair facility". Guess who that is?

What firmware are you running as 1.11 should not give mirror runaway though may mis fire 1 image.?

If you are not running 1.11 then update and see how you go.

If you are and your camera is flopping then Pentax may argue your issue is not the mirror flop as mentioned in this thread.

Either way your at the mercy of your countries consumer protection laws .... In the UK you'd be protected for 6 years for a manufacturing fault.

[gjtoth]

What firmware are you running as 1.11 should not give mirror runaway though may mis fire 1 image.?

If you are not running 1.11 then update and see how you go.

If you are and your camera is flopping then Pentax may argue your issue is not the mirror flop as mentioned in this thread.

Either way your at the mercy of your countries consumer protection laws .... In the UK you'd be protected for 6 years for a manufacturing fault.

I've managed to get the attention of one (or more) of the hierarchy. Ricoh have contacted me by phone and they are willing to fix the camera free of charge. Even pay shipping both ways. I did inform them that I updated to FW v1.11 and that the issue SEEMS to have been taken care of. They state that the firmware DOES NOT address the issue and that letting repairs go can further damage the camera should the runaway mirror fault happen again. I'm arranging to have the camera delivered as I type this.

Thanks for your response.

[MJSfoto1956]

well my misbehaving K-3 arrived at Precision on Friday February 6th and it is being shipped out today Monday Feb 9th -- either they are incredibly fast or they didn't "find" anything wrong and are shipping it right back. I should get it in two days. I will report as to whether or not they fixed it.

Michael

[gjtoth]

well my misbehaving K-3 arrived at Precision on Friday February 6th and it is being shipped out today Monday Feb 9th -- either they are incredibly fast or they didn't "find" anything wrong and are shipping it right back. I should get it in two days. I will report as to whether or not they fixed it.

Michael

Spoke with Ricoh again today. They wanted to verify my shipping information. I, again, reiterated that I had upgraded the FW. They said the fix is, indeed, a FW fix. HOWEVER, the FW is not available to the general public. Tells me that if you screw up THIS one, the camera becomes a doorstop. So, I'll let THEM screw it up and let them provided me with a refurb. But, that's why the fast turnaround time. The time it takes to flash an upgrade is not all that much and it doesn't take a lot of knowledge. So, even if they get swamped with buggy K-3s, K-5s, etc., all they need to do is hire a temp to sit there all day and flash FW.