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03-03-2016, 04:00 PM   #16
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QuoteOriginally posted by womble Quote
I have often thought about getting a K but searching ebay for "Pentax K" isn't very helpful.

That zebra lens is very drool-worthy...

K.
(Asahi, Pentax) +"K" -("K1000", "KM", "KX", "K2") - keep adding knock-outs as necessary - in Film Cameras filters out most of the bad stuff. There are three or 4 up on EBay right now, some with the proper A-T 55/1.8.

03-03-2016, 07:03 PM   #17
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QuoteOriginally posted by Asahiflex Quote
The 58mm f/2 Takumar is worth a small fortune these days ;-)
40 £ for Auto Tukmar /2 55mm '57 semi auto on SP spotmatic '70 - lens perfect optically apart from needing clean, body sadly corroded but works ok.
Tourist trap market Portabello Rd London UK.
03-04-2016, 12:43 AM - 1 Like   #18
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QuoteOriginally posted by TomB_tx Quote
The K is more rare than other early Pentax, and brings higher prices.
Hi
The K is not the rarest old model out there, I would argue that the original AP and of course the model S are much more scarce. Accoring to Frank Mechelhoff:
AP: 19 546
S: 4 900
K: 21 454

I do recommend his site, btw.

Value is hard, i would say that a K with the mentioned zebra lens, in working condition, would fetch some 150-250$. A lot are trying to sell the zebra lens by it self for 150-250$ and that is to high.

A really valuable zebra would be the Auto-Takumar 55mm f1,9 (!), only sold with the Sears rebranded version of K, sold as Tower 29 only in the US: Or of course a complete black camera with a special black version of the lens.

I would really recommend a service on the camera. The grease used gets stiff and things get stuck, espcially if it just sits in storage. And the shutter curtain dries and cracks. Eric is probably the best guy around to fix these old babies.

---------- Post added 03-04-2016 at 08:45 AM ----------

QuoteOriginally posted by monochrome Quote
should we have a 'k' club? There are about 2 dozen in the s/n database.
yes !!!
03-04-2016, 05:41 PM   #19
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Hey everyone. Thanks so much for your comments and interest. I think it looks like the K will need to be serviced in order to work properly. Sadly, for me, the K will be going to my wife's sister to keep. My wife and I will keep the S2 with the zebra lens and use it regularly. At some point when I get some good pictures I'll make an album and share it on here.

03-05-2016, 08:01 AM - 1 Like   #20
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I just picked up a nice old K with a zebra 55/2 and 105/2.8. No batteries, no exposure meter, just you and the camera. It's a jewel of a camera and feels even more solid than Pentax's later manual bodies like the SP, KX and MX. I'm on my third roll of film and simply can't see myself going back to the MX! Not to mention, early Takumar glass has a certain 3D quality about it that I find really attractive. Kinda makes my 90's Rikenon 55/1.2 look a little 'flat'.
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03-05-2016, 12:49 PM   #21
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QuoteOriginally posted by RR84 Quote
I just picked up a nice old K with a zebra 55/2 and 105/2.8. No batteries, no exposure meter, just you and the camera. It's a jewel of a camera and feels even more solid than Pentax's later manual bodies like the SP, KX and MX. I'm on my third roll of film and simply can't see myself going back to the MX! Not to mention, early Takumar glass has a certain 3D quality about it that I find really attractive. Kinda makes my 90's Rikenon 55/1.2 look a little 'flat'.
Beautiful. K.
03-05-2016, 08:33 PM   #22
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QuoteOriginally posted by RR84 Quote
I just picked up a nice old K with a zebra 55/2 and 105/2.8. No batteries, no exposure meter, just you and the camera. It's a jewel of a camera and feels even more solid than Pentax's later manual bodies like the SP, KX and MX. I'm on my third roll of film and simply can't see myself going back to the MX! Not to mention, early Takumar glass has a certain 3D quality about it that I find really attractive. Kinda makes my 90's Rikenon 55/1.2 look a little 'flat'.
This site is worse than playboy ( or play girl) for panographic photos!

03-06-2016, 03:39 AM   #23
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Haha, yeah she is a beauty.

I just realised that may have acquired a rare version of the 55mm f2 Auto-Takumar.. According to Frank Mechelhoff, only the 1.8 lens was released in zebra finish, with the 2 and 2.2 being completely black.

I've posted elsewhere on the forum about this as I'm quite curious.. Could it be a limited run?
03-06-2016, 06:23 AM   #24
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QuoteOriginally posted by RR84 Quote
Could it be a limited run?
There are other cases of transition lenses with mixed parts (SuperTak -> S-M-C Tak 50/1.4 IIRC). It is thought Pentax simply used up excess exterior old fittings on the new lenses. Alternatively someone has exchanged beauty rings for some reason.

Or maybe you've found the rumored lens
03-06-2016, 06:50 AM   #25
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QuoteOriginally posted by monochrome Quote
There are other cases of transition lenses with mixed parts (SuperTak -> S-M-C Tak 50/1.4 IIRC). It is thought Pentax simply used up excess exterior old fittings on the new lenses. Alternatively someone has exchanged beauty rings for some reason.

Or maybe you've found the rumored lens
So it could be a hybrid lens of sorts then? But the strange thing is that according to the serial number the lens dates mid-late 1959 on Frank's site. If Pentax were indeed using up old parts, why would they wait until a year later to do so? Doesn't quite make sense to me. In all honesty, I'm not sure what to think.
03-06-2016, 03:42 PM   #26
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QuoteOriginally posted by RR84 Quote
So it could be a hybrid lens of sorts then? But the strange thing is that according to the serial number the lens dates mid-late 1959 on Frank's site. If Pentax were indeed using up old parts, why would they wait until a year later to do so? Doesn't quite make sense to me. In all honesty, I'm not sure what to think.
Strange. Could you post some pictures of the lens?
03-06-2016, 04:41 PM   #27
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QuoteOriginally posted by Baard-Einar Quote
Strange. Could you post some pictures of the lens?
Edit: I have created a photo album of the lens on imgur. You can view all the photos here.



Last edited by RR84; 03-06-2016 at 06:11 PM.
03-07-2016, 01:37 AM   #28
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Strange.

The difference between your zebra version of the f2 and the known f1.8 version is that there are dots between the numbers on the f-scale. See the attachment. the dots are also found on the f1.9 sold with the Sears rebranded K-cameras.

Could it be that someone has actually created a zebra version by stripping the paint off? Or moved the ring from a zebra to this f2 version? or is it a mock-up from the factory, using parts available. I think that the optical formula for the 1.8, 1.9 and 2 are identical. Maybe even they are the same lens? But the market wanted a lower cost lens and that was solved by just modifying the text on the outside?

See enclosed photos. (borrowed from the net).
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03-07-2016, 05:28 AM   #29
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QuoteOriginally posted by Baard-Einar Quote
Strange.

The difference between your zebra version of the f2 and the known f1.8 version is that there are dots between the numbers on the f-scale. See the attachment. the dots are also found on the f1.9 sold with the Sears rebranded K-cameras.

Could it be that someone has actually created a zebra version by stripping the paint off? Or moved the ring from a zebra to this f2 version? or is it a mock-up from the factory, using parts available. I think that the optical formula for the 1.8, 1.9 and 2 are identical. Maybe even they are the same lens? But the market wanted a lower cost lens and that was solved by just modifying the text on the outside?

See enclosed photos. (borrowed from the net).
Yes I noticed the dots on the aperture ring, which make it consistent with the f1.9 and f2 Auto-Tak 55's.

I'm in the process of finding out a bit more about the history of this lens from the previous owner in Japan. He might be able to indicate if the focus ring had been swapped with that of a f1.8, or if it was an anomaly from Asahi-Pentax. I'm as bewildered as you are..
03-07-2016, 05:40 AM   #30
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QuoteOriginally posted by RR84 Quote
Yes I noticed the dots on the aperture ring, which make it consistent with the f1.9 and f2 Auto-Tak 55's.

I'm in the process of finding out a bit more about the history of this lens from the previous owner in Japan. He might be able to indicate if the focus ring had been swapped with that of a f1.8, or if it was an anomaly from Asahi-Pentax. I'm as bewildered as you are..
Did you aquire this just recently? Think I saw the eBay listing.

Fun with such findings, regardless. Part of the fun with old stuff like this
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