[wlank]

A good CLA may cost you $100 but it is well worth it.

I think Erik Hendrickson just lowered his price to $63.00 including return shipping. I'm too lazy to find the link this morning at 5:57 AM.

He will be getting my NEW K1000 when it arrives in my hands.

[geauxpez]

You're right -- he does have very reasonable prices...but I have decided to get rid of the camera. No point in having it CLA'd and then selling it for less than the cost of repair. I have decided to sell off the M42 lenses and bellows and such as well to fund a new lens for my k10d (there's a $90 rebate on the Tamron 90mm macro until the end of the month).

[ms7]

I had this situation a few days ago. The battery door of my ME Super was jammed beyond repair, i.e. the slit for the coin was severely damaged. I took off the bottom cover like you did, then took a copper coin and a mid-size soldering iron (50 Watts). Then I soldered the coin to the door and opened it. Alternatively, you may try to drill two tiny holes into the door and use a campus to open it.

The door thread was still intact and I took another door from a broken camera. It looks like Pentax battery doors from different models are interchangeable. I have also seen replacement doors on Ebay.

Update: Took the bottom cover off this evening. There's no obvious leakage in the bottom workings...but even after freezing the baseplate and risking destroying the thing, the battery cover wouldn't budge.

My assessment of the camera: Rough. Brassing, scratches and bubbling paint. Jammed battery cover preventing testing the meter. Dirty but usable viewfinder. It desparately needs bumpers for the mirror. the good: the stupid thing works (or seems to). Low shutter speeds are low, high speeds are high and bulb works fine as does cable release. It's a mechanical camera -- what else do you need?!?! The leather is in surprisingly excellent condition, though it does smell like menthol cigarettes. The clencher: It's black. I just like black cameras. If it was silver, it would have been listed for sale last night.

[titrisol]

You're right -- he does have very reasonable prices...but I have decided to get rid of the camera. No point in having it CLA'd and then selling it for less than the cost of repair. I have decided to sell off the M42 lenses and bellows and such as well to fund a new lens for my k10d (there's a $90 rebate on the Tamron 90mm macro until the end of the month).

Why don't you keep the M42 glass and bellows, you can use them in the K100d
Sell the camera, it should go for 50-75 bucks

[mehanikaloptikal]

sorry for bringing this thread up, but I have similar problem on my latest purchase - Spotmatic II. after spending few hours thinking what to do with jammed battery door, I came across this thread. is it possible to change the battery if the base plate is removed?

[geauxpez]

When I had that issue I removed the baseplate, but it didn't give me any leverage. I also tried the suggested trick of freezing the baseplate to see if that would loosen things, but it didn't help. Ultimately, the camera went to Eric for CLA and he worked his magic.

[woof]

Take the bottom cover off, and soak it in white vinegar for a few hours. If that doesn't do the trick then you need pro assistance or will have to shoot meterless.

This has worked for me.

woof

[geauxpez]

This has worked for me.

woof

Yep -- tried that one too. No dice.