Hello from the Old Dumb Onion!

thewebgal · 04-04-2014, 10:20 AM

Just kidding! I'm a new member here. I worked for Argus US back in the 70s when i was in college (West Columbia, SC)
and bought a Pentax ME Super a few years later ... Like a lot of folks I stopped carrying that bag of equipment around
and didn't shoot many pictures for years ...

Then, with the advent of the digital cameras, I bought a series of pocket shooters and started carrying them around
and fell in love with taking pictures again. But I still have that bag of lenses and gear in the closet - and last night I bought a
blue Pentax K-x off ebay ... I gather my old lenses and such will still click into the K-mount, even if they are just in manual mode.
On reflection, I thought I should get at least one automatic lens to appreciate the camera's potential, so today I followed up
and bought the Pentax SMC DA 18-55 mm F/3.5-5.6 II AL Lens the seller had to go with it.
Seems like a good starting combo for not a lot of money ...

Also bought "Sanyo eneloop 8 Pack AA 2000mAh NiMH Rechargeable Batteries and Charger" from Amazon because I read they work well with that camera ...

I've been using a G7 with my Mac, and have been using iPhoto and photoshop for a number of years - so the Pentax should hook right up.!

Anyway - looking forward to working with the camera when it arrives late next week - hoping for lots of fun!

I'll read more and learn more here as time allows! Thanks for the site!

**TER-OR** · 04-04-2014, 10:58 AM

Welcome to the clubhouse!

**wtlwdwgn** · 04-04-2014, 12:34 PM

Welcome to the forum! Looking forward to seeing your images,

**savoche** · 04-04-2014, 12:58 PM

Welcome and thanks for the intro! Looks like you're off to a good start. Good luck with your reentry into the world of Pentax, and hope to see you around!

Jean Poitiers · 04-05-2014, 10:32 AM

Bonjour from France and welcome to PF, thewebgal ... hope to see some images soon ... Salut, J

**boriscleto** · 04-05-2014, 11:08 AM - **1 Like**

We can't bust heads like we used to, but we have our ways. One trick is to tell 'em stories that don't go anywhere - like the time I caught the ferry over to Shelbyville. I needed a new heel for my shoe, so, I decided to go to Morganville, which is what they called Shelbyville in those days. So I tied an onion to my belt, which was the style at the time. Now, to take the ferry cost a nickel, and in those days, nickels had pictures of bumblebees on 'em. Give me five bees for a quarter, you'd say.

Now where were we? Oh yeah: the important thing was I had an onion on my belt, which was the style at the time. They didn't have white onions because of the war. The only thing you could get was those big yellow ones...

**Kerrowdown** · 04-06-2014, 08:22 AM

Welcome to the forum, enjoy that new camera once you get your hands on her.

thewebgal · 04-06-2014, 08:27 AM

Got it yesterday, thanks! It was miserably packed (wrapped in newspaper (??!!)
but thank goodness it was a local sale/ & 1 day Priority mail - seems to have survived fine.
I'm just starting to see what it can do ... just amazing resolution!

**Kerrowdown** · 04-06-2014, 08:41 AM

Originally posted by thewebgal

Got it yesterday

That's good to know, get out there and enjoy it.

Remember to post an image or two on the forum, once you've calmed down from the initial excitement.

thewebgal · 04-06-2014, 10:36 AM

Yeah, the old Soligor 35-70 Zoom F 2:5/3:5 won't mount. Something off about it .
It worked fine with the ME-Super all those years ago, but it may be a slightly non-standard K-mount.
Perhaps back then the diff didn't matter, but i'm sure not going to force it !

The Pentax SMC DA 18-55 mm F/3.5-5.6 II AL Lens I got with the camera, and
the old Asahi Pentax lens and the Quantray zoom mount just fine - that'll do!

**boriscleto** · 04-07-2014, 05:12 AM

The Soligor likely has the 'Vivitar' aperture flange. The flange is longer than the standard Pentax flange and SDM power contacts prevent the lens from mounting.

There are probably 3 or 4 JIS screws holding it on. You can remove the flange and cut it down, or just leave it off.

thewebgal · 04-07-2014, 05:22 AM

Originally posted by boriscleto

The Soligor likely has the 'Vivitar' aperture flange.
The flange is longer than the standard Pentax flange and SDM power contacts prevent the lens from mounting.

There are probably 3 or 4 JIS screws holding it on. You can remove the flange and cut it down, or just leave it off.

Thank you!
I compared that lens to the Quantray and the pentax lenses and had a hunch that flange was the problem.
Its the fastest of my 2 older tele-zooms, and since it wouldn't work as is, I figured I didn't have much to lose!

I was afraid to dissemble it, so last night before dinner I wrapped the whole lens in a plastic bag,
and used duct tape or electrical tape to seal every opening, so no metal particles could get down into the lens.
I got my handy Dremel out, loaded a grinding disc and ground that flange off.
(In case this sounds way-funky, I had worked as a machinist before my college years,
did small appliance repairs for Sunbeam, and worked at Argus during college).

Just in case, I painted over any shiny metal with a black sharpy.
With the flange gone, the lens dropped right into place on the K-x!
Now, all 3 of my old lenses will mount up!

Thanks so much for the tip!

thewebgal · 04-13-2014, 09:53 AM

Finally, no snow and its warming - 13:00 hrs and its 83 already! I put the camera on a tripod for some outdoor images, and after 30 plus years (most unused in the camera bag), that darned Quantray Macro-zoom froze/seized today. SO, I put the equally ancient but shorter Soligor on to get more practice with a manual lens.

04-04-2014, 10:20 AM	#1
thewebgal New Member Join Date: Apr 2014 Location: Just a bit outside DC Posts: 9	Hello from the Old Dumb Onion! Just kidding! I'm a new member here. I worked for Argus US back in the 70s when i was in college (West Columbia, SC) and bought a Pentax ME Super a few years later ... Like a lot of folks I stopped carrying that bag of equipment around and didn't shoot many pictures for years ... Then, with the advent of the digital cameras, I bought a series of pocket shooters and started carrying them around and fell in love with taking pictures again. But I still have that bag of lenses and gear in the closet - and last night I bought a blue Pentax K-x off ebay ... I gather my old lenses and such will still click into the K-mount, even if they are just in manual mode. On reflection, I thought I should get at least one automatic lens to appreciate the camera's potential, so today I followed up and bought the Pentax SMC DA 18-55 mm F/3.5-5.6 II AL Lens the seller had to go with it. Seems like a good starting combo for not a lot of money ... Also bought "Sanyo eneloop 8 Pack AA 2000mAh NiMH Rechargeable Batteries and Charger" from Amazon because I read they work well with that camera ... I've been using a G7 with my Mac, and have been using iPhoto and photoshop for a number of years - so the Pentax should hook right up.! Anyway - looking forward to working with the camera when it arrives late next week - hoping for lots of fun! I'll read more and learn more here as time allows! Thanks for the site!

04-07-2014, 05:22 AM	#12
thewebgal New Member Join Date: Apr 2014 Location: Just a bit outside DC Posts: 9 Original Poster	Originally posted by boriscleto The Soligor likely has the 'Vivitar' aperture flange. The flange is longer than the standard Pentax flange and SDM power contacts prevent the lens from mounting. There are probably 3 or 4 JIS screws holding it on. You can remove the flange and cut it down, or just leave it off. Thank you! I compared that lens to the Quantray and the pentax lenses and had a hunch that flange was the problem. Its the fastest of my 2 older tele-zooms, and since it wouldn't work as is, I figured I didn't have much to lose! I was afraid to dissemble it, so last night before dinner I wrapped the whole lens in a plastic bag, and used duct tape or electrical tape to seal every opening, so no metal particles could get down into the lens. I got my handy Dremel out, loaded a grinding disc and ground that flange off. (In case this sounds way-funky, I had worked as a machinist before my college years, did small appliance repairs for Sunbeam, and worked at Argus during college). Just in case, I painted over any shiny metal with a black sharpy. With the flange gone, the lens dropped right into place on the K-x! Now, all 3 of my old lenses will mount up! Thanks so much for the tip! Last edited by thewebgal; 04-07-2014 at 07:02 AM.

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04-04-2014, 10:58 AM	#2
TER-OR Site Supporter Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Dundee, IL Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 6,699	Welcome to the clubhouse!

04-04-2014, 12:34 PM	#3
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04-04-2014, 12:58 PM	#4
savoche Master of the obvious Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: Lowlands of Norway Posts: 18,311	Welcome and thanks for the intro! Looks like you're off to a good start. Good luck with your reentry into the world of Pentax, and hope to see you around!

04-05-2014, 10:32 AM	#5
Jean Poitiers Pentaxian Join Date: Apr 2011 Location: Lost in translation ... Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 18,076	*Bonjour* from France and welcome to PF, thewebgal ... hope to see some images soon ... *Salut*, J

04-05-2014, 11:08 AM - 1 Like	#6
boriscleto Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: North Syracuse, NY Photos: Gallery Posts: 16,475	We can't bust heads like we used to, but we have our ways. One trick is to tell 'em stories that don't go anywhere - like the time I caught the ferry over to Shelbyville. I needed a new heel for my shoe, so, I decided to go to Morganville, which is what they called Shelbyville in those days. So I tied an onion to my belt, which was the style at the time. Now, to take the ferry cost a nickel, and in those days, nickels had pictures of bumblebees on 'em. Give me five bees for a quarter, you'd say. Now where were we? Oh yeah: the important thing was I had an onion on my belt, which was the style at the time. They didn't have white onions because of the war. The only thing you could get was those big yellow ones...

04-06-2014, 08:22 AM	#7
Kerrowdown PEG Moderator Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Highlands of Scotland... "Hold Infinity in the palm of your hand" - William Blake Photos: Gallery Posts: 57,816	Welcome to the forum, enjoy that new camera once you get your hands on her.

04-06-2014, 08:27 AM	#8
thewebgal New Member Join Date: Apr 2014 Location: Just a bit outside DC Posts: 9 Original Poster	Got it yesterday, thanks! It was miserably packed (wrapped in newspaper (??!!) but thank goodness it was a local sale/ & 1 day Priority mail - seems to have survived fine. I'm just starting to see what it can do ... just amazing resolution!

04-06-2014, 08:41 AM	#9
Kerrowdown PEG Moderator Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Highlands of Scotland... "Hold Infinity in the palm of your hand" - William Blake Photos: Gallery Posts: 57,816	Originally posted by thewebgal Got it yesterday That's good to know, get out there and enjoy it. Remember to post an image or two on the forum, once you've calmed down from the initial excitement.

04-06-2014, 10:36 AM	#10
thewebgal New Member Join Date: Apr 2014 Location: Just a bit outside DC Posts: 9 Original Poster	Yeah, the old Soligor 35-70 Zoom F 2:5/3:5 won't mount. Something off about it . It worked fine with the ME-Super all those years ago, but it may be a slightly non-standard K-mount. Perhaps back then the diff didn't matter, but i'm sure not going to force it ! The Pentax SMC DA 18-55 mm F/3.5-5.6 II AL Lens I got with the camera, and the old Asahi Pentax lens and the Quantray zoom mount just fine - that'll do!

04-07-2014, 05:12 AM	#11
boriscleto Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: North Syracuse, NY Photos: Gallery Posts: 16,475	The Soligor likely has the 'Vivitar' aperture flange. The flange is longer than the standard Pentax flange and SDM power contacts prevent the lens from mounting. There are probably 3 or 4 JIS screws holding it on. You can remove the flange and cut it down, or just leave it off.

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04-13-2014, 09:53 AM	#13
thewebgal New Member Join Date: Apr 2014 Location: Just a bit outside DC Posts: 9 Original Poster	Finally, no snow and its warming - 13:00 hrs and its 83 already! I put the camera on a tripod for some outdoor images, and after 30 plus years (most unused in the camera bag), that darned Quantray Macro-zoom froze/seized today. SO, I put the equally ancient but shorter Soligor on to get more practice with a manual lens.