Originally posted by kiwi_jono 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.