My k3 is now Manual.... but weirdly so!

brewmaster15 · 10-19-2019, 09:03 PM

Long story sort of short here but I had a k3 that had issues with metering and switching modes.Sent to repair shop under extended warranty.They could not fix it without sending to Precision and replacing the whole top of the camera..and the quote for repair from them was higher than the warranty by New Leaf would cover.So they paid out $400 and washed their hands.I was able to also get back my "non functioning" camera and have been tinkering. Its stuck in Manual mode now. The mode dial does not function but even in Manual mode the camera will not recognize any apertures or shutter speeds I set...so it was largely worthless at that point. I decided to try live view and that worked sort of. It will work in "A" set on the lens.If I set the lens to "A" it will allow me set by dial the aperture, shutter ratio. It will not work on any other aperture setting.... by work I should clarify it will focus but I can not adjust the shutter or aperture so it exposes incorrectly..

After noting this I went back to normal view and tried setting the lens to A. Doing this gives me a lens that acts as a manual lens..I can use dials to change aperture and shutter speed for proper exposure just like in live mode. This test was with a smc f 35-70 lens

I figured I would try using a DA 50 I had here as it has no aperture ring and that too works as a manual lens as far as setting exposure through setting various Apertures and shutter speeds....

weird huh?

Lastly though I keep saying the camera is manual now and I have to physically set aperture and shutter values in "A" or using a DA lens but Auto Focus still works...

I rarely used this camera. It was not abused, has 2700 clicks ..it was my back up and never left the bag for most its life.

So hows that for a very semi working weirdly camera. I think given its limited functioning I can still use it with AF lens provided I remember to treat it like its an old film age camera pre-AF, lol. Im hopingnto be able to figure out a way to use it with m42 glass, possibly with an Af teleconverter(with or without its glass). Haven't tried that yet.

Im hoping to find a DOA or badly damaged K3 to tinker some more but thought Id share this. Maybe theres a market for dslrs like this that force you to think about your aperture to shutter ratio all the time ?

Im glad its got at least some functionality but its definitely working weirdly!
Al

Last edited by brewmaster15; 10-20-2019 at 02:51 AM.

Kozlok · 10-20-2019, 05:30 AM

The moral to the story for me is not to buy a new leaf warranty. The whole point of those for a consumer is to reduce the risk of a broken camera.

brewmaster15 · 10-20-2019, 05:36 AM

So my K3 has some additional functionality though I have no clue why. I tried a bunch of lenses on it.. most lenses with "A" setting on aperture ring work if set to "A"... just need to manually set aperature to shutter ratio.I tested pentax, Tamron,Tokina lenses not expecting some to work but not others but I did find one tokina that did not... my Sd 70-200 .
I tested my pentax k 135 2.5 and it did not work.. didnt think it would but wanted to test. The camera will not even take a picture with a non "A"lens.

Then I tested M42 glass with adapter and amazingly the camera works! I can use the stop down/green button method just fine.. and the camera fires just as it should which is confusing as can be to me. I can only guess that what ever is going on has something to do with communication to the contacts on the k-3. When using m42 glass and adapter this isnt an issue.

Though I hate that a relatively unused babied camera is defective I am pretty happy that I can use it still . I have a pretty sizeable collection of m42 glass that I shoot with a dedicated k20d.. now I have a k3 as well for that glass. Its just about the best happy ending I could hope for. I will still try and fix it though if I ever come across a parts camera.

Al

Post added 10-20-19 at 05:44 AM ---

Originally posted by Kozlok

The moral to the story for me is not to buy a new leaf warranty. The whole point of those for a consumer is to reduce the risk of a broken camera.

Amen...They were not easy to work with and when I asked if they worked with an authorized pentax repair shop they did not.. they work with Adams Electronics in California that could not get the parts from Pentax and was told to get them from Precision. Precision would not sell them the parts and instead wanted them to send them the camera.. or so I was told by Adams.

Customer service at Adams was fine but the limitation of getting parts from Pentax made repair impossible under my remaining warranty time.

I cannot recommend New Leaf warranties...but at least they paid out fair market value .. but communication with them was horrible
Al

**reduno** · 10-20-2019, 05:55 AM

Are you seeing any change in the camera settings when you rotate the mode knob (even incorrect for position), or is it always stuck in the same mode? 2,700 shots seems low for failure of the switch, unless it was being changed on every shot, or suffered an impact.

The switch is basically a set of fingers that run over a pattern of contacts, to make different connection combinations in each position. There is not a single connection for each position but a group of fewer lines that are encoded (e.g. pos#1 0000, pos#2 0001, pos#3 0010, etc.). If a contact was having a problem, I would expect some changes to be seen when the mode dial was rotated.

If the mode is stuck in one position, it is also possible the flex circuit has somehow become disconnected. This seems unlikely if a repair house looked at it (hopefully they would have spotted it). The flex circuit for the mode switch is also shared with the hot-shoe adapter, so that would also not work.

One of the flex circuits could also have a broken connection, that may behave similarly to a bad switch. The other scenario is a bad main board but the repair house indicated the top assembly of the camera needs to be replaced, so that seems unlikely.

brewmaster15 · 10-20-2019, 06:05 AM

Thanks for the comments. Turning the mode dial makes no difference, the camera still shows it in M.. and it will not fire or recognize any aperture settings but "A"
Al

**reduno** · 10-20-2019, 06:16 AM

Originally posted by brewmaster15

Thanks for the comments. Turning the mode dial makes no difference, the camera still shows it in M.. and it will not fire or recognize any aperture settings but "A"
Al

Was this the exact behavior before it was sent in for repair? Even with no lens attached you should see some mode change on the status display (note: some modes will show as Av).

brewmaster15 · 10-20-2019, 06:34 AM

The camera was actually sent back to me once as they said it was repaired. They were wrong about that so I sent it back a second time. The initial problem was it was not metering correctly and was stuck in manual. The first repair they blamed the problem on dirty contacts on lens mtd.. which they said they fixed... its not possible though as the camera was always attached to a lens and stored in a bag.

When they got the camera back a second time they said it was the mode dial that was the problem but would not give me specifics except that pentax would not sell them the parts and that Precision would only do the work and would only do so by replacing the top of the camera.. the guys at Adams thought that was excessive.

Its very likely in the "repair"process more damage was done. I think the aperture issues are from the first "repair"

Al

**reduno** · 10-20-2019, 06:41 AM

Originally posted by brewmaster15

The initial problem was it was not metering correctly and was stuck in manual.

So the camera was not changing mode in anyway (even if incorrect) prior to the first repair attempt? At present it sounds like the mode switch is completely non-functional, so it's possible they didn't reconnect something during the second repair attempt.

brewmaster15 · 10-20-2019, 06:56 AM

I agree thats a possibility. I could easily enough open it up and see if anything stands out but I havent done surgery on a k3 yet so unless I have a DOA in hand to practice on Im a little hestitant to do so. At this point I at least have a k3 capable of limited AF use and perfectly functional for m42 lens... Thats more than I thought I would have when I talked the repair shop into sending me the camera back for parts.Their contract with New leaf lets them keep the scrapped paid out gear.

Al

Im hearing Kenny Rogers Gambler playing in my head tight now..

Quote:

You've got to know when to hold 'em
Know when to fold 'em
Know when to walk away

**reduno** · 10-20-2019, 07:04 AM - **1 Like**

Originally posted by brewmaster15

I havent done surgery on a k3 yet so unless I have a DOA in hand to practice on Im a little hestitant to do so.

Fully understood. If you do decide to give it a try, there are several of us on the forum willing to guide you. At least is sounds like you have a somewhat functional camera at the moment, plus some money in the bank ready for that new flag-ship model.

brewmaster15 · 10-20-2019, 07:09 AM

Thank you very much for the offer of help! I will definitely keep it in mind!
Al

Not a Number · 10-20-2019, 11:36 AM - **1 Like**

Try sending it to KEH or Advance Camera in Oregon for an estimate. Advance is and Authorized Repair facility. Should be no problem for them to get parts. They're repairs are usually much lower than Precision's and if they have to send it to Precision you sill pay the lower price.

KEH, Advance Camera and others are listed:
Pentax Repair Facilities (Wordwide listing) - PentaxForums.com

brewmaster15 · 10-20-2019, 01:29 PM

Originally posted by Not a Number

Try sending it to KEH or Advance Camera in Oregon for an estimate. Advance is and Authorized Repair facility. Should be no problem for them to get parts. They're repairs are usually much lower than Precision's and if they have to send it to Precision you sill pay the lower price.

KEH, Advance Camera and others are listed:
Pentax Repair Facilities (Wordwide listing) - PentaxForums.com

Thank you for the suggestion here. I may give that a try.Have to think on it. Its a tough choice with K'3s going for $350-400 right now Im ahead of the game right now since I was paid $400 for the camera. No matter where I send it will probably cost a few hundred(guessing).. Of course if the numbers right I could have another perfectly functioning K-3 to sell or keep which would be a win also. If I wait patiently and come across a cheap or Doa K-3 I could also fix it possibly for less.

Choices choices choices..

Thanks again,

Al

Aaron28 · 10-20-2019, 04:08 PM

does anything change pressing the green button? wonder I some type of debris is preventing change of mode.....have you taken the top cover of yourself?

Not a Number · 10-21-2019, 07:00 AM

Originally posted by brewmaster15

Choices choices choices..

It is a tough call, but at least you have a $400 make or break criterion. If you can get a used K-3/K-3ii with a low shutter count for close to $400 I would go for it. I'm not sure of the manual function on your existing K-3 but perhaps you can dedicate it for use with screwmount or other MF lenses. If the K-3 can be fixed for say $300 or less you would come out ahead of the game

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10-19-2019, 09:03 PM	#1
brewmaster15 Veteran Member Join Date: Jan 2015 Location: CT Posts: 1,860	My k3 is now Manual.... but weirdly so! Long story sort of short here but I had a k3 that had issues with metering and switching modes.Sent to repair shop under extended warranty.They could not fix it without sending to Precision and replacing the whole top of the camera..and the quote for repair from them was higher than the warranty by New Leaf would cover.So they paid out $400 and washed their hands.I was able to also get back my "non functioning" camera and have been tinkering. Its stuck in Manual mode now. The mode dial does not function but even in Manual mode the camera will not recognize any apertures or shutter speeds I set...so it was largely worthless at that point. I decided to try live view and that worked sort of. It will work in "A" set on the lens.If I set the lens to "A" it will allow me set by dial the aperture, shutter ratio. It will not work on any other aperture setting.... by work I should clarify it will focus but I can not adjust the shutter or aperture so it exposes incorrectly.. After noting this I went back to normal view and tried setting the lens to A. Doing this gives me a lens that acts as a manual lens..I can use dials to change aperture and shutter speed for proper exposure just like in live mode. This test was with a smc f 35-70 lens I figured I would try using a DA 50 I had here as it has no aperture ring and that too works as a manual lens as far as setting exposure through setting various Apertures and shutter speeds.... weird huh? Lastly though I keep saying the camera is manual now and I have to physically set aperture and shutter values in "A" or using a DA lens but Auto Focus still works... I rarely used this camera. It was not abused, has 2700 clicks ..it was my back up and never left the bag for most its life. So hows that for a very semi working weirdly camera. I think given its limited functioning I can still use it with AF lens provided I remember to treat it like its an old film age camera pre-AF, lol. Im hopingnto be able to figure out a way to use it with m42 glass, possibly with an Af teleconverter(with or without its glass). Haven't tried that yet. Im hoping to find a DOA or badly damaged K3 to tinker some more but thought Id share this. Maybe theres a market for dslrs like this that force you to think about your aperture to shutter ratio all the time ? Im glad its got at least some functionality but its definitely working weirdly! Al Last edited by brewmaster15; 10-20-2019 at 02:51 AM.

10-20-2019, 05:30 AM	#2
Kozlok Pentaxian Join Date: Jun 2012 Location: Albuquerque Photos: Gallery Posts: 3,148	The moral to the story for me is not to buy a new leaf warranty. The whole point of those for a consumer is to reduce the risk of a broken camera.

10-20-2019, 05:36 AM	#3
brewmaster15 Veteran Member Join Date: Jan 2015 Location: CT Posts: 1,860 Original Poster	So my K3 has some additional functionality though I have no clue why. I tried a bunch of lenses on it.. most lenses with "A" setting on aperture ring work if set to "A"... just need to manually set aperature to shutter ratio.I tested pentax, Tamron,Tokina lenses not expecting some to work but not others but I did find one tokina that did not... my Sd 70-200 . I tested my pentax k 135 2.5 and it did not work.. didnt think it would but wanted to test. The camera will not even take a picture with a non "A"lens. Then I tested M42 glass with adapter and amazingly the camera works! I can use the stop down/green button method just fine.. and the camera fires just as it should which is confusing as can be to me. I can only guess that what ever is going on has something to do with communication to the contacts on the k-3. When using m42 glass and adapter this isnt an issue. Though I hate that a relatively unused babied camera is defective I am pretty happy that I can use it still . I have a pretty sizeable collection of m42 glass that I shoot with a dedicated k20d.. now I have a k3 as well for that glass. Its just about the best happy ending I could hope for. I will still try and fix it though if I ever come across a parts camera. Al Post added 10-20-19 at 05:44 AM --- Originally posted by Kozlok The moral to the story for me is not to buy a new leaf warranty. The whole point of those for a consumer is to reduce the risk of a broken camera. Amen...They were not easy to work with and when I asked if they worked with an authorized pentax repair shop they did not.. they work with Adams Electronics in California that could not get the parts from Pentax and was told to get them from Precision. Precision would not sell them the parts and instead wanted them to send them the camera.. or so I was told by Adams. Customer service at Adams was fine but the limitation of getting parts from Pentax made repair impossible under my remaining warranty time. I cannot recommend New Leaf warranties...but at least they paid out fair market value .. but communication with them was horrible Al Last edited by brewmaster15; 10-20-2019 at 07:01 AM.

10-20-2019, 05:55 AM	#4
reduno Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Central NY, USA Posts: 965	Are you seeing any change in the camera settings when you rotate the mode knob (even incorrect for position), or is it always stuck in the same mode? 2,700 shots seems low for failure of the switch, unless it was being changed on every shot, or suffered an impact. The switch is basically a set of fingers that run over a pattern of contacts, to make different connection combinations in each position. There is not a single connection for each position but a group of fewer lines that are encoded (e.g. pos#1 0000, pos#2 0001, pos#3 0010, etc.). If a contact was having a problem, I would expect some changes to be seen when the mode dial was rotated. If the mode is stuck in one position, it is also possible the flex circuit has somehow become disconnected. This seems unlikely if a repair house looked at it (hopefully they would have spotted it). The flex circuit for the mode switch is also shared with the hot-shoe adapter, so that would also not work. One of the flex circuits could also have a broken connection, that may behave similarly to a bad switch. The other scenario is a bad main board but the repair house indicated the top assembly of the camera needs to be replaced, so that seems unlikely.

10-20-2019, 06:05 AM	#5
brewmaster15 Veteran Member Join Date: Jan 2015 Location: CT Posts: 1,860 Original Poster	Thanks for the comments. Turning the mode dial makes no difference, the camera still shows it in M.. and it will not fire or recognize any aperture settings but "A" Al

10-20-2019, 06:16 AM	#6
reduno Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Central NY, USA Posts: 965	Originally posted by brewmaster15 Thanks for the comments. Turning the mode dial makes no difference, the camera still shows it in M.. and it will not fire or recognize any aperture settings but "A" Al Was this the exact behavior before it was sent in for repair? Even with no lens attached you should see some mode change on the status display (note: some modes will show as Av).

10-20-2019, 06:34 AM	#7
brewmaster15 Veteran Member Join Date: Jan 2015 Location: CT Posts: 1,860 Original Poster	The camera was actually sent back to me once as they said it was repaired. They were wrong about that so I sent it back a second time. The initial problem was it was not metering correctly and was stuck in manual. The first repair they blamed the problem on dirty contacts on lens mtd.. which they said they fixed... its not possible though as the camera was always attached to a lens and stored in a bag. When they got the camera back a second time they said it was the mode dial that was the problem but would not give me specifics except that pentax would not sell them the parts and that Precision would only do the work and would only do so by replacing the top of the camera.. the guys at Adams thought that was excessive. Its very likely in the "repair"process more damage was done. I think the aperture issues are from the first "repair" Al

10-20-2019, 06:41 AM	#8
reduno Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Central NY, USA Posts: 965	Originally posted by brewmaster15 The initial problem was it was not metering correctly and was stuck in manual. So the camera was not changing mode in anyway (even if incorrect) prior to the first repair attempt? At present it sounds like the mode switch is completely non-functional, so it's possible they didn't reconnect something during the second repair attempt.

10-20-2019, 06:56 AM	#9
brewmaster15 Veteran Member Join Date: Jan 2015 Location: CT Posts: 1,860 Original Poster	I agree thats a possibility. I could easily enough open it up and see if anything stands out but I havent done surgery on a k3 yet so unless I have a DOA in hand to practice on Im a little hestitant to do so. At this point I at least have a k3 capable of limited AF use and perfectly functional for m42 lens... Thats more than I thought I would have when I talked the repair shop into sending me the camera back for parts.Their contract with New leaf lets them keep the scrapped paid out gear. Al Im hearing Kenny Rogers Gambler playing in my head tight now.. Quote: You've got to know when to hold 'em Know when to fold 'em Know when to walk away

10-20-2019, 07:04 AM - 1 Like	#10
reduno Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Central NY, USA Posts: 965	Originally posted by brewmaster15 I havent done surgery on a k3 yet so unless I have a DOA in hand to practice on Im a little hestitant to do so. Fully understood. If you do decide to give it a try, there are several of us on the forum willing to guide you. At least is sounds like you have a somewhat functional camera at the moment, plus some money in the bank ready for that new flag-ship model.

10-20-2019, 07:09 AM	#11
brewmaster15 Veteran Member Join Date: Jan 2015 Location: CT Posts: 1,860 Original Poster	Thank you very much for the offer of help! I will definitely keep it in mind! Al

10-20-2019, 11:36 AM - 1 Like	#12
Not a Number Moderator Join Date: Mar 2012 Location: Venice, CA Posts: 10,526	Try sending it to KEH or Advance Camera in Oregon for an estimate. Advance is and Authorized Repair facility. Should be no problem for them to get parts. They're repairs are usually much lower than Precision's and if they have to send it to Precision you sill pay the lower price. KEH, Advance Camera and others are listed: Pentax Repair Facilities (Wordwide listing) - PentaxForums.com

10-20-2019, 01:29 PM	#13
brewmaster15 Veteran Member Join Date: Jan 2015 Location: CT Posts: 1,860 Original Poster	Originally posted by Not a Number Try sending it to KEH or Advance Camera in Oregon for an estimate. Advance is and Authorized Repair facility. Should be no problem for them to get parts. They're repairs are usually much lower than Precision's and if they have to send it to Precision you sill pay the lower price. KEH, Advance Camera and others are listed: Pentax Repair Facilities (Wordwide listing) - PentaxForums.com Thank you for the suggestion here. I may give that a try.Have to think on it. Its a tough choice with K'3s going for $350-400 right now Im ahead of the game right now since I was paid $400 for the camera. No matter where I send it will probably cost a few hundred(guessing).. Of course if the numbers right I could have another perfectly functioning K-3 to sell or keep which would be a win also. If I wait patiently and come across a cheap or Doa K-3 I could also fix it possibly for less. Choices choices choices.. Thanks again, Al

10-20-2019, 04:08 PM	#14
Aaron28 Pentaxian Join Date: Jan 2015 Location: Huntsville, Al Posts: 7,131	does anything change pressing the green button? wonder I some type of debris is preventing change of mode.....have you taken the top cover of yourself?

10-21-2019, 07:00 AM	#15
Not a Number Moderator Join Date: Mar 2012 Location: Venice, CA Posts: 10,526	Originally posted by brewmaster15 Choices choices choices.. It is a tough call, but at least you have a $400 make or break criterion. If you can get a used K-3/K-3ii with a low shutter count for close to $400 I would go for it. I'm not sure of the manual function on your existing K-3 but perhaps you can dedicate it for use with screwmount or other MF lenses. If the K-3 can be fixed for say $300 or less you would come out ahead of the game