[MikeMcE]

That... doesn't even make sense. I'm going to spare you and stop replying now because you're starting to embarrass yourself.

WHOA....... I repaired cameras and lenses for 20 plus years.
Impact damage breaks things. That’s the cause.

Why did it work afterwards? Because the piece/pieces that were floating around didn’t jam anything.

As to their “service” that would embarrass me. Sometimes an individuals name works better, who is the service manager?


Hang up and DRIVE!

[eyespywithmyi]

WHOA....... I repaired cameras and lenses for 20 plus years.
Impact damage breaks things. That’s the cause.

Why did it work afterwards? Because the piece/pieces that were floating around didn’t jam anything.

As to their “service” that would embarrass me. Sometimes an individuals name works better, who is the service manager?


Hang up and DRIVE!

yes, dropping things can cause damage, agreed. I'll avoid naming names until I have my lens back in hands, I'm adding my experience for other's information.

[david94903]

sorry to hear about your problems

and this is too late for you

but if anyone is looking for a possible repair for a 150-450mm or another lens

Phototronic here in Topeka repaired mine when it separated



https://phototronic.biz/

Mike at Phototronic has my D-FA 150-450 right now. Mine did the separation thing.

Mike also has a repair solution for the dreaded aperture block issue for the K-30 (and possibly other models) for a very reasonable cost. So I sent him my wife's K-30 to be repaired too. If you're interested in knowing how Mike fixes the aperture block issue (and it's not replacing the solenoid), give him a call. As his website says, he does like to talk cameras.

[aslyfox]

Mike at Phototronic has my D-FA 150-450 right now. . . .

Mike also has a repair solution for the dreaded aperture block issue for the K-30 (and possibly other models) for a very reasonable cost. So I sent him my wife's K-30 to be repaired too. . . . .

glad Mike thinks he can help you out

[david94903]

glad Mike thinks he can help you out

I called him after you'd recommended him. Thank you for that. He was quite familiar with the issue needless to say, and was very confident he could repair it. The aperture block subject just came up in random conversation, so that was a big bonus to learn about.

[aslyfox]

I called him after you'd recommended him. Thank you for that. He was quite familiar with the issue needless to say, and was very confident he could repair it. The aperture block subject just came up in random conversation, so that was a big bonus to learn about.

a fellow forum member had used him in the past but had moved from the area

then when I asked in the forums for help with finding someone to help with my problem with the 150-450mm the member told me about him

funny thing is that his shop is right next door to the dog care center where we board our dogs but I had never gone into it

PF is a great place for knowledge and friendly members

[eyespywithmyi]

Mike at Phototronic has my D-FA 150-450 right now. Mine did the separation thing.

Sorry about your lens but that's awesome that he's able to fix it!

---

Last edited by eyespywithmyi; 12-04-2020 at 08:00 PM.

[DeadJohn]

They are Sony's exclusive repair service as well.

Sony has a 2nd location but I don't shoot Sony.

If I were to change systems from Pentax (no plans to do so), I'd consider building my new system around Sigma lenses. Their USA headquarters is near me, they do repairs in-house, with good communication and walk-in service available.

You should be grateful that these guys fixed your lens. The only one that made a mistake was you.

WHOA....... I repaired cameras and lenses for 20 plus years.
Impact damage breaks things. That’s the cause.

Why did it work afterwards? Because the piece/pieces that were floating around didn’t jam anything.

As to their “service” that would embarrass me. Sometimes an individuals name works better, who is the service manager?


Hang up and DRIVE!

Objection, irrelevant. The fact that impact does cause damage has nothing to do with a situation in which a warranty repair was denied for specious reasons. I thought it was clear that there had been no impact, and that the phrase, "impact damage" was used as a fraudulent basis for the refusal to honor a written warranty. I've had the same experience myself with Precision, on two separate occasions.

[MikeMcE]

About a year ago my lens rolled off a table and sustained a relatively minor crack to the housing above the focus indicator window. The window cover popped out but I was able to put it back in and a sliver of electrical tape hid and "protected" the crack, or at least made me feel like it did. Thankfully the lens functioned perfectly after this


I looked for any and all places that repair Pentax lenses and I couldn't find any, besides Precision, that would take a Pentax zoom lens, some took Pentax lenses but not zooms, so I went with Precision.

[LIST][*]I filled out the form and paid the flat rate fee, it said it was $389 and included shipping to return the lens to me, I insured it, shipped it, and it was received by Precision on October 20th.[*]For two weeks it sat and I received no communication, when I called I was told they would call me when they'd analyzed the issue.[*]On November 3rd, exactly two weeks after receipt, I called again and they told me that they couldn't fix it and had sent it to the factory in Japan and that I'd get a call to advise if I wanted them to fix it or not once they knew how much it would be. I explained that I'd paid ahead for the flat fee with the form and she told me I would still have to approve the repair.[*]On December 1st, 6 weeks from when Precision had received it, I got an invoice in my email for $804.36, which included a $45 shipping fee. The reason for the repair was given as "Impact Damage....

Impact damage is impact damage .

Overruled............


Hang up and DRIVE!

[aslyfox]

time for my rant, sorry about that

we live in the age of replace, not repair

that is true of most things including camera equipment

regardless of how strong the material is inside these delicate instruments that are our camera and lenses,

they are subject to damage when things they are not designed for occurs

regardless of why it occurs

I have dropped cameras and lenses, both my fault and based on design failures of the system I was using to carry the camera and lens

I have had good luck, with no apparent damage occurring ( knock on wood )

and bad luck with significant damage occurring immediately and noticed some time afterwards

again, you do the best you can do to protect your investment

and plan on replacing what is essential if the worse happens

cost of repair too great - sorry, that is part of the facts of life

[GregL564]

You should be grateful that these guys fixed your lens. The only one that made a mistake was you.

Merely the fact that the original poster is not "super happy" means the business made a mistake in how they dealt with him. Had they not made that mistake, he wouldn't have posted here about his dissatisfaction, cautioning all of us about using Precision going forward, and causing others to come forward with other options to get our Pentax gear repaired.

[tibbitts]

Sony has a 2nd location but I don't shoot Sony.

If I were to change systems from Pentax (no plans to do so), I'd consider building my new system around Sigma lenses. Their USA headquarters is near me, they do repairs in-house, with good communication and walk-in service available.

Well, for me Sigma (USA) was good to communicate with, but we couldn't come to terms on acceptable performance for what I felt was a fairly severe case of decentering. But I still have several Sigma lenses and have been mostly pleased with them. Several are f2.8 and outside of live view, AF is hit or miss. I don't have any similar Pentax f2.8 lenses to compare them with, but my longer-focal-length f4 Pentax zoom is similar - I've come to use live view to focus more and more. Sigma does include a long warranty period for lenses bought new, which is appreciated.

Precision did adjust the AF on one of my Pentax lenses under warranty fairly quickly, and I was pleased with that service. It was definitely improved upon return.

---------- Post added 12-06-2020 at 09:37 AM ----------

Merely the fact that the original poster is not "super happy" means the business made a mistake in how they dealt with him. Had they not made that mistake, he wouldn't have posted here about his dissatisfaction, cautioning all of us about using Precision going forward, and causing others to come forward with other options to get our Pentax gear repaired.

I don't think it's realistic to expect all customers to be "super happy." I do think Pentax undervalues the importance of the ecosystem surrounding their products a bit but it's not like some other companies don't do that as well. As for other repair solutions for Pentax products, it's great that they can apparently sometimes help out, but I don't think any of them can be considered Precision competitors unless Pentax somehow cooperates with them (in terms of parts and tech availability) more than it seems to have been inclined to up to now.

[eyespywithmyi]

Guy, I dropped the lens. It sucked. It worked for a long while after, then it stopped behaving as expected. I have no idea if the impact of the drop resulted in the issue that caused me to send the lens in for repair, could it have? Of course! And I never stated I didn't think it could have caused the issue, I stated that it worked and then it randomly stopped working and that Precision called it "impact damage." I clearly stated that I let that go because it did sustain impact damage! A little "housekeeping" here: I very clearly stated all the factors upfront in the first post, I didn't obscure any part of the situation so I'm uneasy with the victim blaming. Did I cause the problem because I dropped it? MAYBE? But does that mean I should accept ... sub-optimal level of service from a business that is tasked with repairing things that don't work for whatever reason? Look, I was a retail manager for years, I am a product manager now, I talk with users and customers all week long about their experiences using the products I develop. I don't believe the customer is always right, customers can suck, you have to seek out the ones who are happy and you mostly only hear from the ones who are not happy. Do I have a right to be unhappy -- yes, I do.


I want my lens back. I want to go take pictures of small and faraway things; life is hard right now, taking pictures of things, especially little birds, makes me happy. I shared my experience in case it helps anyone else when they're trying to decide which business to trust their equipment with.

[stevebrot]

I very clearly stated all the factors upfront in the first post, I didn't obscure any part of the situation so I'm uneasy with the victim blaming. Did I cause the problem because I dropped it? MAYBE? But does that mean I should accept ... sub-optimal level of service from a business that is tasked with repairing things that don't work for whatever reason?

Well stated. You have suffered from a thread hijack.


Steve