Originally posted by Quartermaster James Does Sigma actually make any lenses for K-mount? Seems that they make mostly Canikon lenses and begrudgingly slap a K-mount on a few. Why else would we have to pay the same for a K-mount lens without stabilization as costs a Canikon with it? Sigma has been ringing the death knell for Pentax a long time. And now, with the advent of the K-1, they are caught with their pants down.
They make a generic lens body adaptable to multiple platforms. So, the short answer is that they make K-mount the same as they make Nikon F and Canon EF. They even provide a mount change service. Example: If you bought a lens in Canon EF that was also available in Pentax K and you later switch from Canon to Pentax, Sigma offers to change the lens over to Pentax K for a fee. That being said, whether they sell a lens in a particular mount depends on economics and cost to manufacture. For example, Sigma has complained that the K
AF2 mount requires more care in manufacture due to the aperture control implementation. Nikon presents similar manufacturing challenges, but sales volume makes up for the trouble. K-mount sales volume is a bit less spectacular and less worthy of the resources to make/sell (poor ROI).
Another consideration is projected penetration where a market segment is contested. Up until recently Sigma sold their 70-200/2.8 in K-mount where it was considered to be the upscale and better-performing competition to the Tamron product. Judging from posts on this site, that lens has seen reasonable sales success among Pentaxians willing to spend a bit (quite a bit) more money. About the same time that Pentax confirmed FF camera development as well as a 70-200 lens to complement the camera, Sigma pulled its offering from the market knowing that they would likely see a sales drop of at least 30% with release of the new lens. Will they offer their 70-200/2.8 again? I guess it depends on the strength of the K-mount FF market going forward.
Steve