[Lowell Goudge]

Ok here is the issue. My K10D has had the lens locking mechanism fail resulting in not just the inability to lock the lens but also the AF screw no longer engages the lens (they are both tied to the release button)

30 months ago a new shutter cost me $300 and I would expect this will cost about the same , perhaps a little less but not much.

The K10D is my second body K7D is my main body. What should I do, fix the K10 or relegate it to M42 use only and vet a K5?

[ripit]

It sounds like a lot simpler repair than a shutter replacement. Of course there are typically minimum charges that are not always very cheap (and if it goes to the manufacture, some times they have high flat rate charges, not sure about pentax though). Normally I would say at least check out what it might cost and your options though. How much use has this camera had? If things like that and the shutter are failing and its because it has been used that much, it might not be worth pouring m ore money into it if it's used enough it might continue to have more problems.

[KJon]

ripit has made some good points, first and foremost that I can't imagine a simple mechanical repair would be as costly as a shutter replacement. I'm with him - I'd get a quote and go from there. I don't know that I'd sink 300 clams into my K10D at this point, although I am pretty attached to it and I feel like I'm intimately familiar with it. Would I drop $100 on it? Yeah. Much more than that, I don't know. Another option might be to find a lower mileage K10D if you're fond enough of the model. I'm inclined to think that's what I would do if the quote came in at $300. Particularly since I don't have the ching to upgrade to a K5 .

Good luck,
Kevin

[elho_cid]

We live in the wealthy and expensine part of the world. Labor is expensive and so is camera repair. Friend of mine broke his 5Dmk2 so much that he was told the repair isn't worth it and advised to buy a new camera (by official Canon service here in Prague). On Bali he found a service shop where they replaced the broken part of the camera for 1/10th of the quoted price here in Europe.
So next time you travel to SE asia...

[Steinback]

Seeing as a K10d body runs in the $300 range used I would very carefully remove the mounting ring on the body to see if there is an obvious mechanical jam keeping the locking pin and drive pin from returning to their normal positions. If that doesn't work or if a part has broken I would probably stick to using the body with manual lenses.

I have an exploded parts diagram of the K20d if you are interested in seeing what the lens release mechanism and lens mount look like before opening it up. The drawings came from somewhere on the forum a while ago.

With the current value of a K10d and the with a K20d available at around $400 I just don't see a point in handing Pentax money for a repair.

[Lowell Goudge]

I have pulled the lens mount thinking the pinight be jammed or something but that is not the case. The pin and also the screw drive retraction mechanisms are no longer attached to the release button

What ever is broken would require removing the body housing (at least the front half) to get accessZ

For the shutter replacement which included mount mirror and mirror assembly as well as the shutter it was $80 or there about in cost for parts. Pentax
Canada did a good job and also thoroughly cleaned the body etc.

My biggest concern is something falling into the shutter and really screwing things up as the camera otherwise works fine

[Lowell Goudge]

I do intend to call ps tax and the nice thing is I live about 20 minutes away from the Canadian repair center. But....... I hear the K5 calling

[Lowell Goudge]

OK so here is my decision based upon the points below

- Pentax canada would not offer any price over the phone, or without seeing the camera.
- my last repair (shutter mirror and lens mount was $325 in 2009)
- Pentax In Colorado said a typical repair, disassembly and cleaning was $250 US plus $10 return shipping fee.
- neither pentax Canada or pentax US could tell me what the linkages connected to, and / or whether they could possibly become displaced and freely moving within the body causing further damage over time, and did not recommend using the camera without service
- the market price for a K10D is about equal to the reapir cost.
- upon inspection, at least from the lens and mirror box, the parts seem to be contained, and nothing can get inside to jam the shutter or hit the sensor.

As a result, I have put my M42 to K adaptor into the body and will use as is. I might , in the future get it repaired, but when you consider that using M42 lenses in AV mode leads to no movement of the aperture activation mechanism, or AF drive and does not use the lens locking pin, there is not a lot that can go wrong. At least in my mind.

p.e. i also replaced the body with a K5D

[Lloydy]

It's actually a bonus that the camera can be used safely in manual - at least in theory, and what you said makes sense. I wonder if other manufacturers cameras would have an afterlife with similar failings between camera and auto focus lens' ?

[Lowell Goudge]

the only reason it is possible is because the pentax M42 adaptor design does not need the lens locking pin.

the AF failure is related to the locking pin failure because both are recessed when you press the release button.

all other cameras would not permit the use of tak's because, a) nikon's regestry distance is too long any way, and all other lenses have shorter regestry distances hence the adaptors all use the lens locking pin to stay in place. while it is nice I can still use it, I am sure pentax did not design things that way in 1976 so that you could still use taks when the locking pin failed. Just plain luck on my part, although there are a few others who are using bodies with failed AF on their MF lenses.