[monochrome]

Yes. It was odd that Pentax made a KM Motor body. It was one of their low end cameras, basically a K1000 with self-timer and DOF preview.

Actually the reverse is true. The K1000 was introduced later and was a budget version of the KM with those features deleted.

Chris

It is remarkable how few people know the K1000 was a cheapened afterthought - merely a line-extender before introduction of the ME - and it’s success as an inexpensive, simple, learning camera was a complete surprise.

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Last edited by monochrome; 02-18-2018 at 08:50 PM.

[Lord Lucan]

It is remarkable how few people know the K1000 was a cheapened afterthought - merely a line-extender before introduction of the ME

Indeed. Someone in the reviews here of the KM says : "I just don't really feel like the KM has a reason to exist in the K lineup. The K2 and KX I get, totally, and the K1000 as well. But adding the fourth is kind of like having three thoroughbreds and, for fun, then getting a musk ox"

they think the KM was the fourth, an addition, and like a musk ox, in which case the K1000 would be a musk ox with its horns sawn off. In fact the K2, KX and KM were introduced simultaneously in 1975 and the K1000 was added about a year later. It followed a tradition of adding a self-timer-less cheapened model at the bottom of the range. The SP 500 was the cheap version of the SP II, [in]complete with the fastest shutter speed being blocked at 1/500 (for no technical reason AFAIK); then the Spotmatic 1000 was the cheapened version of the SPF. At least the Spotmatic 1000 retained the 1/1000 shutter speed, as did the K1000 - hence their names I guess.

I understand that a specific aim of the K1000 was to offer the cheapest "big name" SLR on the market. But I wonder how much omitting the self-timer and DoF preview really saved given that the tooling for it already existed. The lack of a ST rather undermined it's appeal as a "family" camera; I worked with a guy who had bought one and was disappointed afterwards to discover the omission.

[LesDMess]

I understand that a specific aim of the K1000 was to offer the cheapest "big name" SLR on the market. But I wonder how much omitting the self-timer and DoF preview really saved given that the tooling for it already existed. The lack of a ST rather undermined it's appeal as a "family" camera; I worked with a guy who had bought one and was disappointed afterwards to discover the omission.

Much like it is now, it was also common practice to meet "price points" by removing some functionalities like the MLU, self timer, memo holder, etc.

Of course back then add-on self timers were quite common so hopefully your friend was only disappointed for a short time before he found one like the Hansa Self Timer - "THE MOST ADVANCED SELF TIMER IN PHOTOGRAPHIC HISTORY".





Hansa may not have been aware that Spiratone had an ad for wireless remote tripper which arguably may be more advanced . . .



Those Spiratone ads were just epic!

[ChrisPlatt]

Those Spiratone ads were just epic!

That deer appears to be scheming to kick over my camera on its tripod...

Chris

[Lord Lucan]

I'm sure that stuff would cost more than the price difference between a KM and a K1000, and If that Spiratone timer works on an audible sonic whistle, it is likely to give the game away in the claimed "unobserved shooting". And if we see any selfies from the 1970's with a guy with a whistle in his mouth, we'll now know that he lost the original signal bulb

I remember a friend of my father's had a pneumatic actuator with a rubber bulb connected by a long flexible tube to the camera device. He used it for bird watching and the occasional family group shots - you could always see the bulb in his hand.

[womble]

I'm sure that stuff would cost more than the price difference between a KM and a K1000, and If that Hansa timer works on an audible sonic whistle, it is likely to give the game away in the claimed "unobserved shooting". And if we see any selfies from the 1970's with a guy with a whistle in his mouth, we'll now know that he lost the original signal bulb

I remember a friend of my father's had a pneumatic actuator with a rubber bulb connected by a long flexible tube to the camera device. He used it for bird watching and the occassional family group shots - you could always see the bulb in his hand.

I still have one of those long releases. It came in handy for triggering the camera on top of a long pneumatic pole. High level site images before the days of drones...

[ctrout]

Well, it sold with 1 bid the second time it was listed, for $278.99 + $13.35 shipping. Anyone here?