K3 Owners with No Mirror Flap Problem

j2photos · 03-17-2014, 05:59 PM

S/N: 4886064 1800 Shutter actions, D-LI90 Pentax battery. Only Pentax lenses, other than the Tamron 90mm 2.8. No grip, no time lapse pictures taken. Dual Patriot extreme 16GB memory cards.

**jpzk** · 03-17-2014, 06:04 PM

Originally posted by Little Ray

Hello All,

After discussion with one forum member, the conclusion presented itself that perhaps it might be helpful for all K3 owners who do not have any issues to report their non-issue and include serial number, batteries (Pentax and third party), grip if owned, SD card info, lenses. It might be a bit much for people who are not having the issue to participate; but if everyone does, then this,along with information gathered by DRabbit, might help give some sense of how expansive the problem may or may not be. If you would like to participate then please respond just once.

Best,

Little Ray

Are you going to tally this all up when you have enough "references" and then make a comparison of some sort vs. those who did(do) have such a problem with their K3, including serial numbers, manufacture date, and grip/no grip used?
I am thinking of what happened way back when a K5 series had the notorious sensor stain issue ... remember ?

Thanks.

JP

**eaglem** · 03-17-2014, 10:12 PM

No mirror flap problems on my K-3 purchased on 13th of December 2013, serial number 4860605

danny09 · 03-17-2014, 11:21 PM

So this is my 2nd attempt at reproducing the mirror flap issue. Could not reproduce any odd behavior.

Run #1 ( 03/16/2014)

-Battery almost depleted (only 1 bar remaining)
-Activations ~700 within a span of I think 3 hours probably.
-300 of above activations happened using the Time lapse menu in non-live mode.
-Lens: DA 50mm 1.8
-TAv mode, AF-S, Center Point focusing, SEL1
-At the end of this test run, the battery depleted warning came on and the camera shut off.
-Had the battery grip attached which contained Eneloop and Harbor Freight AA batteries.

Run #2 (03/17/2014)

-Battery fully charged, left it charging well until the green light on the charger went off for quite a while.
-Activations 400 in all for this test, overall shutter count= 2702
-All 400 activations happened within a span of only 1 hour.
-Contains 2 time lapse with 100 pictures in each time lapse.
-Rest all were AF Tracking Test shots with about 100 shots in each sequence.
-Lens DA 18-135
-P Mode,AF-C, AF-9
-Battery level was still showing full i.e all 3 bars.
-No battery grip attached.

The camera worked flawlessly even after that. Took a couple of shots in AF-S to verify everything is ok.
I must have burnt through at least 1500 activations trying to reproduce this mirror flop/machine gun/overrun issue. It refuses to manifest. I will purchase the extra 2 years Pentax warranty anyway, for 20 bucks you can not go wrong! Any more shutter activations towards recreating this issue are not worth it IMO. I am just gonna keep shooting and have fun with my K3. :touches wood:

Last edited by danny09; 03-17-2014 at 11:40 PM.

rawr · 03-17-2014, 11:34 PM

No flap for me. Not once.
Purchased Oct 2013, serial 4832613. But I haven't tried time lapse,

Also a reminder for folks to add their serials to the camera serial database on PF, if they haven't already. It's a handy resource.

https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/pentax-serial-number-database/

**DRabbit** · 03-18-2014, 12:44 AM - **1 Like**

Unfortunately, I'm not sure it's going to stand as accurate for not having an issue just because you haven't run into it. I don't think we can clear a batch of serial numbers based on "no issues"... because really, this early in the camera's release, it's more accurate to say "no issue so far."

Put it this way... if I'm running into the issue, on average, every 3000-5000 shutter actuations, it could be a while for some people to have the issue crop up. Because we can't reliably reproduce it on command (unless you're willing to put some heavy actuations on your camera), and don't know what causes it, it's impossible to say that just because you haven't had a problem yet, you won't have it, or that your K3 is unaffected.

You could report here that you haven't had a problem and in a week or a month or two, suddenly you do.

I'm not trying to be a downer... and I really hope the people who haven't had problems never do... but reporting lack of problem, at least at this point, isn't really reporting anything at all... yet.

Doesn't mean not to collect the data, just understand the flaw in this method.

danny09 · 03-18-2014, 10:22 AM

Here is my serial # 483857127XXX. Dunno if that would help but sharing anyway. I bought my K3 with a 18-135 kit. Ordered late february, arrived early march 2014.

---------- Post added 03-18-14 at 10:29 AM ----------

Amy
I understand that you are not convinced and I would agree with you. The reason I posted is just for the sake of numbers, how many folks have NOT encountered the problem. Tally of both the 'have's and 'have nots' would give an idea of how widespread the problem really is.
However the issue with this approach is only the folks who have trouble with the 'mirror flap' report it and those who dont continue shooting merrily

. I also had an ulterior motive to reproduce the problem and if it does happen return the camera and get my money back. I guess I havent yet encountered the issue but I may encounter in future

Last edited by danny09; 03-18-2014 at 10:29 AM.

**stens** · 03-18-2014, 08:34 PM

S/N 4834196 purchased Jan. 2014. If it develops the problem, I'll shift it to the other thread.

Originally posted by DRabbit

Doesn't mean not to collect the data, just understand the flaw in this method.

Not sure that I'd refer to any of this as a "method". There's too little information available. Not everyone with the problem will post, but, having a problem, they are more likely to post. However, there would then be no information as to the denominator, to establish a rate for the issue. The main flaws with this thread are the one DRabbit points out, and the fact that the thread will probably underestimate the denominator more than the thread for the problem cameras will underestimate the numerator. However, the two errors will somewhat cancel out, but to an unknown extent. Therefore, this isn't really "data", just a limited sample from which no real meaningful statistics can be derived. Ricoh are the only ones with data, and that's only if the posters with problems are returning the purchase or having warranty repairs, so even their data are incomplete. Of course, even if they had all the data, they seem as wide open as Apple (whose products I also use every day).

I'm with DRabbit, post and pay attention. I'm prepared if this happens to me.

**Mikesul** · 03-19-2014, 06:11 AM

No problems. SN4838625 Purchased November 2013. No grip, pentax batteries, multiple DA* and limited lenses. 4506 shots.

Edit: Over 8000 shots and still no problems.

Knotmetoo · 03-19-2014, 06:07 PM

No problems here. SN 4834250. Purchased Nov 2013 with 10k+ shutter actuations. Don't have the grip and use both Pentax and off-brand batteries. Also have used just about every mode and setting, including interval and composite modes with no problems. Also use Pentax, Tamron, and other lenses with no issues.

NotaxPen · 03-23-2014, 08:22 PM

My K-3 has never flapped yet. I always have the grip attached. I always use only Pentax batteries, and the only non-Pentax lens I have is the Sigma 30/1.4 which I rarely ever use. Purchased Dec 2013 S/N 4851816

**Ahab** · 03-24-2014, 08:30 AM

No flap, old batteries, serial #4830058 bought Nov. 2013.

tram57 · 06-26-2014, 02:45 PM

I thought I was going to have a flap free k-3. About 500 shutter actuations. near fully charged pentax battery. had used for about 30 pictures yesterday and had full bars still per the camera. started flapping today - had to take out battery to make it stop. reinstalled and continued to shoot. worked fine after. No grip.

Battery:Pentax D-L190 201208 - 3 bar on k-3; charged and about 50 pics on battery with no flash
Camera K-3: SN 48303XX

dane.dawg · 06-26-2014, 04:22 PM

No problems yet
S/n 4830***
S/n 4851***
Sandisk 16gb-95ms extreme pro in slot 1
Sandisk 16gb-45ms extreme pro in slot 2
7 batteries
Too many lenses too list and I probably just jinxed myself.

normhead · 06-26-2014, 04:58 PM - **1 Like**

Originally posted by DRabbit

Unfortunately, I'm not sure it's going to stand as accurate for not having an issue just because you haven't run into it. I don't think we can clear a batch of serial numbers based on "no issues"... because really, this early in the camera's release, it's more accurate to say "no issue so far."

Put it this way... if I'm running into the issue, on average, every 3000-5000 shutter actuations, it could be a while for some people to have the issue crop up. Because we can't reliably reproduce it on command (unless you're willing to put some heavy actuations on your camera), and don't know what causes it, it's impossible to say that just because you haven't had a problem yet, you won't have it, or that your K3 is unaffected.

You could report here that you haven't had a problem and in a week or a month or two, suddenly you do.

I'm not trying to be a downer... and I really hope the people who haven't had problems never do... but reporting lack of problem, at least at this point, isn't really reporting anything at all... yet.

Doesn't mean not to collect the data, just understand the flaw in this method.

The flaw is actually in the failure reporting thread, if all K-3 owners were asked to report, it would have given us some idea how prevalent the problem is. As it is, I shouldn't have reported. I don't see it as a problem... I haven't even decided if I'll send my camera in for the fix, the problem would have to be a lot worse than it is for me to go a couple weeks without my camera.

Even then, people who have a problem are more likely to report than those who don't.

Pentax has acknowledged the problem, they are said to have a fix.... the big question for me now is, is this as bad as the Nikon D600 sensor stain problem, and unfortunately, we'll probably never know. Now we have all kinds of lunatics demanding that their be a user installable fix, and saying all kinds of crazy stuff Pentax should have to do.... the reporting thread has given the whiners and complainers something they feel is a legitimate beef. Myself, I know there can be issues with being the early adopter of a camera system. This is not a surprise at all. I paid to be a guinea pig... and I still have my k-5, because I'm not convinced this is the end of the "new camera bugs". There could still be more. For me, it's more a case of, I gambled and lost, and the crazy thing is, this bug hasn't cost me a frame or a cent, and really, it was kind of amusing and alarming at the same time. More of a "What the heck?" thing than anything else.

But I'd say to anyone, if you need a rock solid 100% reliable camera don't buy anything in it's first year, you're just asking to be let down. Reliable needs to be established, not assumed, sight unseen.

03-19-2014, 06:11 AM	#24
Mikesul Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Phoenix, AZ Posts: 7,594	No problems. SN4838625 Purchased November 2013. No grip, pentax batteries, multiple DA* and limited lenses. 4506 shots. Edit: Over 8000 shots and still no problems. Last edited by Mikesul; 06-26-2014 at 07:29 PM.

03-23-2014, 08:22 PM	#26
NotaxPen Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2011 Posts: 123	I'm a non-flapper My K-3 has never flapped yet. I always have the grip attached. I always use only Pentax batteries, and the only non-Pentax lens I have is the Sigma 30/1.4 which I rarely ever use. Purchased Dec 2013 S/N 4851816

06-26-2014, 02:45 PM	#28
tram57 Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2010 Photos: Gallery Posts: 176	no mirror flap until today I thought I was going to have a flap free k-3. About 500 shutter actuations. near fully charged pentax battery. had used for about 30 pictures yesterday and had full bars still per the camera. started flapping today - had to take out battery to make it stop. reinstalled and continued to shoot. worked fine after. No grip. Battery:Pentax D-L190 201208 - 3 bar on k-3; charged and about 50 pics on battery with no flash Camera K-3: SN 48303XX

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03-17-2014, 05:59 PM	#16
j2photos Veteran Member Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Manteca, CA Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 1,653	S/N: 4886064 1800 Shutter actions, D-LI90 Pentax battery. Only Pentax lenses, other than the Tamron 90mm 2.8. No grip, no time lapse pictures taken. Dual Patriot extreme 16GB memory cards.

03-17-2014, 06:04 PM	#17
jpzk Site Supporter Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Québec Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 8,251	Originally posted by Little Ray Hello All, After discussion with one forum member, the conclusion presented itself that perhaps it might be helpful for all K3 owners who do not have any issues to report their non-issue and include serial number, batteries (Pentax and third party), grip if owned, SD card info, lenses. It might be a bit much for people who are not having the issue to participate; but if everyone does, then this,along with information gathered by DRabbit, might help give some sense of how expansive the problem may or may not be. If you would like to participate then please respond just once. Best, Little Ray Are you going to tally this all up when you have enough "references" and then make a comparison of some sort vs. those who did(do) have such a problem with their K3, including serial numbers, manufacture date, and grip/no grip used? I am thinking of what happened way back when a K5 series had the notorious sensor stain issue ... remember ? Thanks. JP

03-17-2014, 10:12 PM	#18
eaglem Site Supporter Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Perth Western Australia Photos: Gallery Posts: 43,132	No mirror flap problems on my K-3 purchased on 13th of December 2013, serial number 4860605

03-17-2014, 11:21 PM	#19
danny09 Veteran Member Join Date: May 2008 Location: SF Bay Area Posts: 417	So this is my 2nd attempt at reproducing the mirror flap issue. Could not reproduce any odd behavior. Run #1 ( 03/16/2014) -Battery almost depleted (only 1 bar remaining) -Activations ~700 within a span of I think 3 hours probably. -300 of above activations happened using the Time lapse menu in non-live mode. -Lens: DA 50mm 1.8 -TAv mode, AF-S, Center Point focusing, SEL1 -At the end of this test run, the battery depleted warning came on and the camera shut off. -Had the battery grip attached which contained Eneloop and Harbor Freight AA batteries. Run #2 (03/17/2014) -Battery fully charged, left it charging well until the green light on the charger went off for quite a while. -Activations 400 in all for this test, overall shutter count= 2702 -All 400 activations happened within a span of only 1 hour. -Contains 2 time lapse with 100 pictures in each time lapse. -Rest all were AF Tracking Test shots with about 100 shots in each sequence. -Lens DA 18-135 -P Mode,AF-C, AF-9 -Battery level was still showing full i.e all 3 bars. -No battery grip attached. The camera worked flawlessly even after that. Took a couple of shots in AF-S to verify everything is ok. I must have burnt through at least 1500 activations trying to reproduce this mirror flop/machine gun/overrun issue. It refuses to manifest. I will purchase the extra 2 years Pentax warranty anyway, for 20 bucks you can not go wrong! Any more shutter activations towards recreating this issue are not worth it IMO. I am just gonna keep shooting and have fun with my K3. :touches wood: Last edited by danny09; 03-17-2014 at 11:40 PM.

03-17-2014, 11:34 PM	#20
rawr Veteran Member Join Date: Jun 2009 Posts: 11,913	No flap for me. Not once. Purchased Oct 2013, serial 4832613. But I haven't tried time lapse, Also a reminder for folks to add their serials to the camera serial database on PF, if they haven't already. It's a handy resource. https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/pentax-serial-number-database/

03-18-2014, 12:44 AM - 1 Like	#21
DRabbit Site Supporter Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: Long Island, NY Photos: Gallery Posts: 593	Unfortunately, I'm not sure it's going to stand as accurate for not having an issue just because you haven't run into it. I don't think we can clear a batch of serial numbers based on "no issues"... because really, this early in the camera's release, it's more accurate to say "no issue so far." Put it this way... if I'm running into the issue, on average, every 3000-5000 shutter actuations, it could be a while for some people to have the issue crop up. Because we can't reliably reproduce it on command (unless you're willing to put some heavy actuations on your camera), and don't know what causes it, it's impossible to say that just because you haven't had a problem yet, you won't have it, or that your K3 is unaffected. You could report here that you haven't had a problem and in a week or a month or two, suddenly you do. I'm not trying to be a downer... and I really hope the people who haven't had problems never do... but reporting lack of problem, at least at this point, isn't really reporting anything at all... yet. Doesn't mean not to collect the data, just understand the flaw in this method.

03-18-2014, 10:22 AM	#22
danny09 Veteran Member Join Date: May 2008 Location: SF Bay Area Posts: 417	Here is my serial # 483857127XXX. Dunno if that would help but sharing anyway. I bought my K3 with a 18-135 kit. Ordered late february, arrived early march 2014. ---------- Post added 03-18-14 at 10:29 AM ---------- Amy I understand that you are not convinced and I would agree with you. The reason I posted is just for the sake of numbers, how many folks have NOT encountered the problem. Tally of both the 'have's and 'have nots' would give an idea of how widespread the problem really is. However the issue with this approach is only the folks who have trouble with the 'mirror flap' report it and those who dont continue shooting merrily . I also had an ulterior motive to reproduce the problem and if it does happen return the camera and get my money back. I guess I havent yet encountered the issue but I may encounter in future Last edited by danny09; 03-18-2014 at 10:29 AM.

03-18-2014, 08:34 PM	#23
stens Site Supporter Join Date: Dec 2011 Location: Minnesota, USA Posts: 61	S/N 4834196 purchased Jan. 2014. If it develops the problem, I'll shift it to the other thread. Originally posted by DRabbit Doesn't mean not to collect the data, just understand the flaw in this method. Not sure that I'd refer to any of this as a "method". There's too little information available. Not everyone with the problem will post, but, having a problem, they are more likely to post. However, there would then be no information as to the denominator, to establish a rate for the issue. The main flaws with this thread are the one DRabbit points out, and the fact that the thread will probably underestimate the denominator more than the thread for the problem cameras will underestimate the numerator. However, the two errors will somewhat cancel out, but to an unknown extent. Therefore, this isn't really "data", just a limited sample from which no real meaningful statistics can be derived. Ricoh are the only ones with data, and that's only if the posters with problems are returning the purchase or having warranty repairs, so even their data are incomplete. Of course, even if they had all the data, they seem as wide open as Apple (whose products I also use every day). I'm with DRabbit, post and pay attention. I'm prepared if this happens to me.

03-19-2014, 06:07 PM	#25
Knotmetoo New Member Join Date: Nov 2013 Location: Port Orchard, WA Photos: Albums Posts: 10	No problems here. SN 4834250. Purchased Nov 2013 with 10k+ shutter actuations. Don't have the grip and use both Pentax and off-brand batteries. Also have used just about every mode and setting, including interval and composite modes with no problems. Also use Pentax, Tamron, and other lenses with no issues.

03-24-2014, 08:30 AM	#27
Ahab Site Supporter Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Arnold, Md. Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 762	No flap, old batteries, serial #4830058 bought Nov. 2013.

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06-26-2014, 04:22 PM	#29
dane.dawg Veteran Member Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: B.C. Photos: Gallery Posts: 1,436	No problems yet S/n 4830* S/n 4851* Sandisk 16gb-95ms extreme pro in slot 1 Sandisk 16gb-45ms extreme pro in slot 2 7 batteries Too many lenses too list and I probably just jinxed myself.

06-26-2014, 04:58 PM - 1 Like	#30
normhead Pentaxian Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Near Algonquin Park Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 40,449	Originally posted by DRabbit Unfortunately, I'm not sure it's going to stand as accurate for not having an issue just because you haven't run into it. I don't think we can clear a batch of serial numbers based on "no issues"... because really, this early in the camera's release, it's more accurate to say "no issue so far." Put it this way... if I'm running into the issue, on average, every 3000-5000 shutter actuations, it could be a while for some people to have the issue crop up. Because we can't reliably reproduce it on command (unless you're willing to put some heavy actuations on your camera), and don't know what causes it, it's impossible to say that just because you haven't had a problem yet, you won't have it, or that your K3 is unaffected. You could report here that you haven't had a problem and in a week or a month or two, suddenly you do. I'm not trying to be a downer... and I really hope the people who haven't had problems never do... but reporting lack of problem, at least at this point, isn't really reporting anything at all... yet. Doesn't mean not to collect the data, just understand the flaw in this method. The flaw is actually in the failure reporting thread, if all K-3 owners were asked to report, it would have given us some idea how prevalent the problem is. As it is, I shouldn't have reported. I don't see it as a problem... I haven't even decided if I'll send my camera in for the fix, the problem would have to be a lot worse than it is for me to go a couple weeks without my camera. Even then, people who have a problem are more likely to report than those who don't. Pentax has acknowledged the problem, they are said to have a fix.... the big question for me now is, is this as bad as the Nikon D600 sensor stain problem, and unfortunately, we'll probably never know. Now we have all kinds of lunatics demanding that their be a user installable fix, and saying all kinds of crazy stuff Pentax should have to do.... the reporting thread has given the whiners and complainers something they feel is a legitimate beef. Myself, I know there can be issues with being the early adopter of a camera system. This is not a surprise at all. I paid to be a guinea pig... and I still have my k-5, because I'm not convinced this is the end of the "new camera bugs". There could still be more. For me, it's more a case of, I gambled and lost, and the crazy thing is, this bug hasn't cost me a frame or a cent, and really, it was kind of amusing and alarming at the same time. More of a "What the heck?" thing than anything else. But I'd say to anyone, if you need a rock solid 100% reliable camera don't buy anything in it's first year, you're just asking to be let down. Reliable needs to be established, not assumed, sight unseen.