[lotech]

Hi there,

Couple years ago I dropped my K5 with the 16-50 DA* onto hard concrete floor from waist level and ruined both, the sensor shifted out of place and the SDM motor doomed, last week I dropped my K3 with the HD 55-300 from the same height while carry in a sling belt, the thing bounced and rolled on the floor I thought it was the end of it, but thanks God miraculously the palm strap cushioned the drop, and the battery grip absorbed the shock, only caused some dent and scratches on the body. I shoot handheld low speed with the 300mm and still can get very sharp pic so I guess the SR module is not damaged, the Pentax is quite heavy in it's class with a strong metal framework, every camera should built like that !

[Stavri]

That's good to hear, I'd love for all dslr to be designed so they survive the dreaded "waist level" drop test....

[JinDesu]

I actually fell onto my k-3 with battery grip last year while hiking. The battery grip has a nice rub on the plastic, and that's about it.

Lesson learned, branches don't always hold your weight while crossing gaps.

[kiwi_jono]

Glad to hear your K3 and lens are still working!
Pentax does a great job with ruggedness (I know from a nasty incident that my K-x + 55-300 100% survived a few years back). With any drop though, there is risk and always a bit of luck involved (i.e. exact circumstances + butterfly effect on top).

I think it could happen to nearly anyone (there always has to be an exceptions due to unusual use cases), because there are so many scenarios that could lead to a drop. All you can do is minimise the chance of it happening and hopefully you will never drop a particular camera / lens. And I'm not just saying that because I experienced a drop once - sure I hoped that because I was so careful, I could avoid it but I knew it was a possibility (even if it was a trip / fall, faint, or emergency situation).

[alamo5000]

Remind me to never let you borrow my camera

[fwwidall]

When I saw the title I recalled this https://www.flickr.com/photos/arena5/sets/72157606119049987/

[Stavri]

When I saw the title I recalled this https://www.flickr.com/photos/arena5/sets/72157606119049987/

The K10D making it to the stratosphere deserves its own first page thread....

[jeallen01]

May have said this before, but, a couple of years ago, I slipped on some cobbles in Kyrenia in N. Cyprus and went headfirst on to them - with the K-R and Sigma 10-20 between the cobbles and me! No damage to the camera body or the lens - but I had a few bruises!

[reeftool]

Pentax DSLR's are rugged. I was a bit concerned when I laid my Harley down at around 40mph last fall with my K5 and several lenses in the saddlebags. All survived intact despite over $4K damage to the bike. I hit the road fairly hard but due to riding gear with the body armor in critical places, I walked away with just a few bruises.

Anytime you drop your camera or anything for that matter, it depends on the surface it hits and also the angle as to how much damage occurs. The best thing is to be careful not to drop any of your gear.

[grhazelton]

My only "experiment" in this area was having my K 5 with battery grip fall off my shoulder and hit a concrete floor, only partially cushioned by a threadbare rug. Ouch! No apparent damage; I think the camera landed squarely on the battery grip. That was over a year ago, and many, many sharp pictures ago.

[narual]

When I saw the title I recalled this https://www.flickr.com/photos/arena5/sets/72157606119049987/

It made me think of this:

You Tube

You Tube

[arkav]

Pentax does a great job with ruggedness

A few years back, there was a situation where I borrowed a tripod for some shooting ( long story ). I thought I had everything locked securely, but while fiddling with the controls on my K200D, the quick release plate popped out of the tripod mount and the camera fell to the flagstone floor. Luckily it landed on a corner of the camera and not the lens. I think I caught it on the first bounce. For a while, the camera was stuck in manual focus mode ( or was it auto? ) - the switch on the body had no effect. At the time, I was mostly shooting with manual lenses anyways, so it didn't seem like the end of the world. I debated trying to take the camera apart to see if I could re-align the switch. Some time later, I bumped the camera again, and it started working properly. It went through a phase where putting it down the wrong way might cause it to relapse, but eventually, I think I might have given it a really good bump ( fell while clambering over rocks ) and it has never exhibited the problem again. ( Uncle! ) A couple of years back, I had another fall - this time in the Alps, and I had the camera in my hands at the time and I pitched forward with no time to shield it. The lower edge of the lens hood took the brunt of the impact, and it pried the front element out on that side. I was able to snap everything back together, but the lens has never been the same. That was a shame, because it was a pretty good copy ( better than the one I've got now ). I continued to use the K200D for another year or so before I got a K30. The K200D still works fine, but doesn't see much action now. Given what it's been through, I can't really sell it to anyone, not in good conscience anyway.

The K30 has some big shoes to fill in the ruggedness department.

[pakinjapan]

May be i was lucky, I dropped my K-5, 3 times in total! and it is still working as nothing ever happen.
The first time was about 1.5+ meters from ground. That was the scariest drop. Slip out of hands by the rain land on one corner of the bottom part on a wet stone road in Rome lol. Lucky it was landed bottom first, i guess. See it bounce one, land on its side and roll a couple of time down the road, flash pop up and my heart drop with it too! Another two was in my apartment, dropped side way, concrete floor, waist level. extremely lucky, the lens never land first.

When this thing happen, strap never be on neck, right?

Hi there,
Couple years ago I dropped my K5 with the 16-50 DA* onto hard concrete floor from waist level and ruined both, the sensor shifted out of place and the SDM motor doomed,..!