[Outlander]

Reading through the posts looks like im not the only one that had or is having issues with there pentax 150 450mm lens , mine just recently stared to jam when retracing the lens barrel , it would stick around 200mm with a little jiggling i could get it to close fully , the lock also had stopped working , last time i had it out , it would not focus , the motor was running , i disconnected the lens and it appeared the rear optics had falling inside the lens casing , it would only sit in place when the lens was fully retracted , it was not jamming now but rattling , this lens is now 3 years old , I travel ( hike ) with this lens with a heavy strap . im thinking this is the reason it started to jam in the first place , with no warranty remaining , i removed the back lens plate for was curious what had broken inside ,from all the rattling . two round plastic cylinder type , with a screw in the middle fell out , im assuming this is what was holding the rear optics in place , how this came apart i can only guess from me trying to fully close the lens on several occasions , with last time being a struggle , when i tried to focus next time camera was powered up the focus motor strain must have snapped these tabs holding the rear optics in place , and from me trying to fully close it must have weakened the plastic tabs , only explanation i can come up with , I still don't know why then lens was jamming , I have dropped this off to my camera shop for return to supplier , but with no warranty i do not expect anything , only me being out the $3000.00 bucks , anymore then 500 bucks to repair i don't think is worth the risk , i think the parts to repair will be the problem , so my question is from reading all the posts on the issues with this lens , has it been corrected from the manufacture ? and if so is there any production date of the correction . i would hate to purchase another lens keeping the old one for parts , and finding out i have the same Friday production line ..... needless to say i'm very disappointed , being that i had saved and sold a few of my belongings off in order to buy this lens for wildlife photography , but anything with moving parts is always a gamble , wish there were more options with prime long lenes but they just dont exist in the pentax mount , nothing new at least . However one would think you would get more than 3 years out of a lens , if you own one of these lenes i would not recommend carrying it around on a tripod which i did do a lot of , and with the lock working half the time , i think this added to the problem for the lens would retract and extract on its own and not knowing this must have caused wear and damage internally , I don't think this is a work lens , after owning it and what has happened to it , keep it in is protective case until use , but then if your shooting wildlife with it like myself , animals don't tend to stick around long and wait for you to set up .

[Gio7779]

you found the right thread but start reading my posts starting back in July of 2019:


DFA 150-450mm needs repair - PentaxForums.com

the posts talk about my experience with my Pentax 150-450mm zoom when the screws stripped and the part containing the optics separated from the controls section

bottom line I suggest you call Phototronic in Topeka Kansas

http://www.phototronictopeka.com/


he was able to help me with my problem

mine was out of warranty

the cost of repair was less than $300 [ but I didn't have to pay for any shipping ]

no contact was made with Pentax because it had no warranty and I bought it from a previous owner a couple of years before the problem arose

Thank you so much for your help and detail that really helps me realize we had the same exact issue. I am a bit of a do it yourselfer whenever I think it’s not a huge problem or if it looks simple enough and I am almost keen to try and fix the issue myself but I can’t get a hand on the blueprint or a diagram of the whole lens assembly like I have found on other lenses. If anyone has found one I would really appreciate a point in the right direction. If I can perhaps fix it myself before going thru the route you pointed me on perhaps I can save other a huge trouble and cash. I am happy to be part of the Pentax community and it’s so great to see all the help provided this community is awesome.

[Outlander]

To give an update on my falling apart Pentax 150mm - 450mm, Sun Camera here in Canada would not touch it , $169.00 to ship it to Japan and i don't even know the cost of fixing it until it arrives , to say the least not impressed PENTAX

[aslyfox]

To give an update on my falling apart Pentax 150mm - 450mm, Sun Camera here in Canada would not touch it , $169.00 to ship it to Japan and i don't even know the cost of fixing it until it arrives , . . .

sorry to hear about your experience

[Outlander]

sorry to hear about your experience

thank you aslyfox if this lens cost any more than $500 Canadian dollor to repair they can toss it in the sea of Japan . Dont want to sound negative, but from the reviews i have read on this lens , where everyone loves it , noting but junk as far as I'm concerned , if repaired will be going up for sale ASAP .

[sergysergy]

I really hope the repair is not too expensive. I was in a similar situation in the past and it wasn't fun. Keep us posted!

[Outlander]

I really hope the repair is not too expensive. I was in a similar situation in the past and it wasn't fun. Keep us posted!

hey sergysergy thanks for the comments , i'm not getting my hopes up , i'm thinking ill never see this lens again , i'm lost without it , thinking of purchasing the DA 300 mm , but may just invest into a Nikon Body and build a kit from there for shooting wildlife , so much more available with the other brands used and new

[sindbad1]

I was thinking of buying that lens but reading that it can seperate into two pieces and can have issues with the af motor is not encouraging.

[aslyfox]

speaking as one whose lens did fall apart

I would say that there has not been a large number of such incidents as far as we can tell

so I wouldn't let that bother your

[sergysergy]

hey sergysergy thanks for the comments , i'm not getting my hopes up , i'm thinking ill never see this lens again , i'm lost without it , thinking of purchasing the DA 300 mm , but may just invest into a Nikon Body and build a kit from there for shooting wildlife , so much more available with the other brands used and new

Are they examining it in Japan?

[jpzk]

Problems with this particular lens seem to be "normal" nowadays!
My daughter experienced another sort of "failure" with hers: the lens collar attaching the lens to the camera broke. Withholding details ... she finally quit and, after much emailing back and forth all over the place, even to Japan, she left the lens "as is", sold it as a defective unit and moved on to another system altogether.

I hope the OP will be able to fix it without too much trouble.

[Outlander]

Problems with this particular lens seem to be "normal" nowadays!
My daughter experienced another sort of "failure" with hers: the lens collar attaching the lens to the camera broke. Withholding details ... she finally quit and, after much emailing back and forth all over the place, even to Japan, she left the lens "as is", sold it as a defective unit and moved on to another system altogether.

I hope the OP will be able to fix it without too much trouble.

jpzk I'm thinking the same now , switching to Nikon and purchasing a long lens new or a good used one for shooting wildlife , keeping what equip i have in Pentax , I was half considering picking up the pentax 300mm prime but that would kind of be going backwards after having the 450mm , think its time for me to jump ship , i feel so burnt on my 150 - 450 but i guess that could happen with any brand , my only advice to anyone considering the Pentax 150 - 450mm zoom , purchase lots of extra warranty with it . Havn't heard anything back on my lens repair , have sent out a few emails making inquiries , but so far only Crickets !!!

---------- Post added 09-14-20 at 02:20 AM ----------

Are they examining it in Japan?

yes sergysergy sent to Japan havent heard anything yet , just Crickets !!

[aslyfox]

Problems with this particular lens seem to be "normal" nowadays! . . . .

every one is free to make their own choices of course

but there are no facts, that I know, that with the amount of those lenses sold and the few reported to have had that problem to reach that conclusion

plus adding in the factor that the problem could be " user error " influence

compare the solenoid failure issues to this and you will see how rare this issue is

the cost of my out of warranty repair, not by Pentax, was less than $300

[Outlander]

aslyfox absolutely too each there own . What I can and will say about my lens is that it was used , I carried it around attached to camera with a heavy strap , I’m firm on believing this is where my issue started. With the weight of the lens on the lock system causing it not to work anymore followed by the lens not closing fully , then the rear optics falling inside the lens. , that being said I don’t believe this lens was meant to be carried around this way. And only mounted on a tripod stationary. The $3000 I paid for this lens Canadian. Is a lot of money to me In my opinion this lens is definitely not a Work Horse , I wish there where serial numbers on these lenses to match with a manufacturer build date ,

[aslyfox]

aslyfox absolutely too each there own . What I can and will say about my lens is that it was used , I carried it around attached to camera with a heavy strap , I’m firm on believing this is where my issue started. With the weight of the lens on the lock system causing it not to work anymore followed by the lens not closing fully , then the rear optics falling inside the lens. , that being said I don’t believe this lens was meant to be carried around this way. And only mounted on a tripod stationary. The $3000 I paid for this lens Canadian. Is a lot of money to me In my opinion this lens is definitely not a Work Horse , I wish there where serial numbers on these lenses to match with a manufacturer build date ,

I too carry the lens on a over the shoulder strap

But I would not engage the lock when doing so

mine was also purchased used


I always use mine without a tripod as many do
Good luck