[david94903]

My wife dropped her beloved Pentax FA-100mm Macro F2.8 recently, on our very hard concrete floor. The lens does not show any external damage but there is internal damage, the focus ring will no longer move. It has about a 1/4" play side to side (and it's not smooth), that's it. The aperture ring still works fine. She took it to a local shop that sells new and used cameras, they looked at it and said they could not repair the lens.

My question is - Is it worth repairing the lens or just moving on to a new 100mm macro? And if it's worth repairing, any thoughts on where to send it, where it won't cost more than the price of a replacement lens?

Thanks,

DAVE

[Lev]

First thing I would do is to check the lens for decentering.
STAR CHART DECENTERED LENS CHECKER | anankephi | Flickr

White circle should be evenly blurry. Test should be made when lens if out of focus which I bet it is right now.

if there's no immediate visible damage to the glass elements I think they will just fix the focusing gears which will cost a lot less than replacing glass elements.

[jddwoods]

My wife dropped her beloved Pentax FA-100mm Macro F2.8 recently, on our very hard concrete floor. The lens does not show any external damage but there is internal damage, the focus ring will no longer move. It has about a 1/4" play side to side (and it's not smooth), that's it. The aperture ring still works fine. She took it to a local shop that sells new and used cameras, they looked at it and said they could not repair the lens.

My question is - Is it worth repairing the lens or just moving on to a new 100mm macro? And if it's worth repairing, any thoughts on where to send it, where it won't cost more than the price of a replacement lens?

Thanks,

DAVE

You should check B&H and Adorama for what the latest price on the DFA 100 macro WR is selling for. Getting a quote on the repair of your FA macro may be harder to assess since it may require the repair facility to actually see it. You can check precision's website to see what their basic repair estimate is. This should help you decide. I do not have the FA version, but I do have the DFA 100 WR version and I really like it. Sorry to hear of the mishap with your FA lens but I would safely say if you get the DFA 100 WR version you will not be disappointed with it.

[BigMackCam]

Sorry to hear about your wife's lens, Dave

In this situation, I think you might be better off selling the lens - with full disclosure of the damage, of course - for spares or repair. You might be surprised how much you get for it. Then, put that money towards a new D FA 100mm f/2.8 Macro WR - or wait for a good FA 100 to appear on eBay. The newer D FA, whilst missing the focus limiter, is beautifully constructed and a lovely lens to use.

It's difficult to let go of a lens when you've grown attached to it, but I think this approach will present the least hassle, and might even be cheaper if you time your purchase of the new lens to coincide with discounts.

[kiwi_jono]

Oh dear thats not ideal!
Plenty of good advice offered already.
No doubt the DFA 100 WR is a great lens (and even has weather sealing!) - although you might miss the focus limiter and friction controls if you use them (I love them on my FA 100 anyway). Optically there is very little difference between DFA and FA from what I have seen from reviews.

[bkpix]

Another repair place to check out is KEH.com. I've had work done there on other Pentax lenses, and they were reasonable in price and quick to deliver.

[david94903]

Sorry to hear about your wife's lens, Dave

In this situation, I think you might be better off selling the lens - with full disclosure of the damage, of course - for spares or repair. You might be surprised how much you get for it. Then, put that money towards a new D FA 100mm f/2.8 Macro WR - or wait for a good FA 100 to appear on eBay. The newer D FA, whilst missing the focus limiter, is beautifully constructed and a lovely lens to use.

It's difficult to let go of a lens when you've grown attached to it, but I think this approach will present the least hassle, and might even be cheaper if you time your purchase of the new lens to coincide with discounts.

I'm thinking that this is probably the best choice, sell for parts and move onto a new lens. Probably good for her to move into the current millennium with her lenses. I've been upgrading my kit to more D-FA lenses, even prior to the K-1 release, with the K-1 in mind. And I think this is a good opportunity for her to start doing the same. The D-FA 100mm F/2.8 Macro WR seems like an excellent place to start

[mikesbike]

The newer D-FA 100mm f/2.8 WR has superior contrast according to some lab test reports. I have both it, and for many years, a classic Sigma 105 MM f/2.8 Ex with a limiter and aperture ring for my film bodies that require one.

Far more often I use the D-FA 100mm WR. It is more compact, very good handling, beautiful design- very much like a Limited prime, and its WR has been a real advantage. Drippy conditions often produce some great effects for macro shooting, when subject matter is wet with fresh raindrops. Often some great soft-effect lighting too. I do not hesitate to add my vote to sell the old lens as-is, and obtain a new D-FA 100mm WR as a replacement. If you have home-owners insurance, even if you rent, you might also check with your agent to see if this situation is covered. If so, your claim might cover most or much of the replacement cost. You might include mentioning the cost of the newer lens, since the old lens is discontinued.

[monochrome]

@david94903 Try Eric Hendrickson at Pentax Camera Repair He’ll offer a complimentary diagnosis and quote, and return the lens if you refuse the repair.

I dropped my FA43 yesterday on a marble floor resulting in some rough feel at the extended end of the focus throw. Emailed Eric and he said send it in. It is already packed for shipping to Eric Tuesday.

[TwoUptons]

Eric did my ‘bargain’ 50mm f1.7 after it hit something hard.

It is now much less of a bargain, but it works a treat.

Was it worth it? Definitely cheaper than a new one, and I know it works...

But impact damage is a funny thing. The tiniest little thing could make it not economical to repair...

-Eric

[david94903]

@david94903 Try Eric Hendrickson at Pentax Camera Repair He’ll offer a complimentary diagnosis and quote, and return the lens if you refuse the repair.

I dropped my FA43 yesterday on a marble floor resulting in some rough feel at the extended end of the focus throw. Emailed Eric and he said send it in. It is already packed for shipping to Eric Tuesday.

I appreciate the information on Eric. I'll shoot him an email. No matter the outcome on the repairability of the FA-100mm, I have feeling there's going to be a new D-FA 100mm Macro making it's way into either my wife's kit or mine, in the very near future