[jumbleview]

I go to Advance Camera near Portland, Oregon. They have a Pentax specialist.

I did not send them any film camera for repair so cannot comment about that. But I made the query regarding converting Pentax K-01 to infra-red. I was rejected because they do not convert cameras with shake reduction sensor. Means they will not convert any Pentax DLSR (apart probably of very first release). But it would be nice to hear if people had experience with them for film Pentax camera service.

[Not a Number]

Before I acquired my Pentax K10D I used to hang out on the Minolta MF Yahoo Groups. There were people there that swore by Garry's and others that swore at them for botched repairs. There are people that swear the KEH does a great job but there was one PF member that said they totally trashed his 645/6X7 film camera (pour oil or something in it).

The point being that your mileage may very with any repair shop or even repair.

Nice to have alternatives.

You could try Picture Perfect here in Southern California. At one time they were an authorized Pentax repair center. They may still be, but I haven't been able to determine that. They don't list anything older than the K1000 but it never hurts to ask. They repaired my brother's LX back when they were officially Pentax repair. He had good things to say about their service.

Picture Perfect Unlimited - camera repair and sales of Pentax cameras

They claim this on the website: "Picture Perfect Unlimited is an Authorized Service Center offering warranty repair service on Pentax & Ricoh equipment and out-of-warranty service on most makes and models." but the site doesn't look to have been updated since 2009 (copyright).

[UncleVanya]

I gave up on Eric a long time ago due to attitude and customer service issues I had dealing with him pre-repair.

[monochrome]

I think tomorrow I’ll send Eric an Asahiflex lla, an AP and a mint MIJ K1000 just to see what happens.

[LesDMess]

I did not expect a lifetime warranty, and Eric admitted in his email . . .

It is entirely possible you are representing everything factually. However, I have a completely opposite experience then you did and in another thread (Pentax repair by Eric Hendrickson) apparently there are many others who do too as well as other not so perfect experiences.

[dadipentak]

I used Eric for years. The only problem I ever had was when I had a buyer send the lens directly to him: he did the work but the lens was basically totaled in transit from him to me. I think it's fair to say his packing was inadequate. More recently I've had dcshooter work on my lenses--he's close by so I deliver and pick up personally.

[photolady95]

I just sent three cameras to Eric. Not for repair but for him to use as parts. I'm never going to shoot film again and they were just taking up space here. Two of them were K1000s one with desilvered prism and one with non working meter and missing covers on buttons.
The other was a ZX-7 with a scratched prism, with the battery grip attached. I have to tell him twice I didn't want them fixed, that all I was doing was sending them to him for parts only.

Right now he's asking that people hold off until December.

[pentaxus]

As far as complaining about "simply not having parts on hand" you have to realize that you can't buy the parts new from anywhere. If he doesn't have the parts and can't get them, why would he bother doing anything with the camera. Parts cameras can be a good source, but there are some parts that are the ones that fail ( like K1000 prisms). Also, assuming that if you are good enough you should spend time trying to fix the camera. Unlike ctrout, Eric only gets paid if he fixes the camera. If it is going to take too long to make the repair it is also not worth it for him. It doesn't make sense for him to make less than minimum wage.
That being said, at least there seem to more places to get old and new Pentaxes repaired now.

[ChrisPlatt]

Pentax hasn't manufactured a film camera in over 15 years. The models I like and use are far older than that.
New replacement parts are unavailable. IMO any repair on these old cameras is now on a "best effort" basis.

A Nikon F6 or Leica M-A or MP are the only 35mm film cameras said to be still in production; I presume factory repair is still available.
But I can't afford their prices for what is just a hobby, so I'll keep sending my old Pentax cameras to Eric.

Considering the age of these old cameras and lack of spare parts Eric's success rate with my numerous repairs has been exemplary.
I still recommend him without reservation.

Chris

[boriscleto]

A Nikon F6 or Leica M-A or MP are the only 35mm film cameras said to be still in production

All of those have been out of production for years.

[abruzzi]

All of those have been out of production for years.

There is some discussion on photrio that a recent factory walkthrough connected to the new Nikon mirrorless launch mentioned off hand that the factory was also currently used for other models including the F6. I didn’t watch the video so I don’t know exactly what was said.

EDIT: found the thread: https://www.photrio.com/forum/threads/official-nikon-statement-f6-remains-in.../#post-2113328

[boriscleto]

There is some discussion on photrio that a recent factory walkthrough connected to the new Nikon mirrorless launch mentioned off hand that the factory was also currently used for other models including the F6. I didn’t watch the video so I don’t know exactly what was said.

EDIT: found the thread: Official Nikon statement: F6 remains in production | Photrio.com Photography Forums

The F6 still sells for $2500 new. At that price I can't imagine there being enough demand for a production line. The FM10 can still be bought new for $500, and I don't think Cosina has made any new for a few years...

Canon ended production of the EOS 1v and Leica ended production of the M7. B&H says the MP .72 is backordered...The M-A (Type 127) is available for $4700 in black. The silver is "More on the way". Again, at those prices I can see a few made a year...

[Driftwood]

While all of my experiences with Eric have been positive, and the cameras I have sent came back to me in good time and excellent working order, I guess I can see where -on the customer service end- folks could be disappointed. He is usually fairly curt in his responses and that could rub one the wrong way. I always took that as an indication that he'd rather be doing his work than fielding emails and such. I get it. I guess I will continue to depend on his services and expertise until I have a personal reason not to... I hope that day never comes.

[UncleVanya]

While all of my experiences with Eric have been positive, and the cameras I have sent came back to me in good time and excellent working order, I guess I can see where -on the customer service end- folks could be disappointed. He is usually fairly curt in his responses and that could rub one the wrong way. I always took that as an indication that he'd rather be doing his work than fielding emails and such. I get it. I guess I will continue to depend on his services and expertise until I have a personal reason not to... I hope that day never comes.

I have no animosity towards him and wouldn't fault anyone for using him. However I will vote with my $ and send my business to others who understand a small modicum of friendly discourse with a customer can make the difference. Given his location is 30 mins from my dad, I would be well served by him as I visit that area frequently. But after three tries on different items and rude responses I gave up. I may just be an annoying customer lol. I suspect most will be happy with him and that's ok.

[bjolester]

I have only used Eric Hendrickson once. Some years ago I sent one KX and two K2 cameras to him for CLA. The three cameras were very well packed, using lots of bubble wrap around each camera and a bomb proof doublesided cardboard box. When I after some months received the cameras from CLA, the three cameras had been packed in a cardboard box filled with styrofoam pieces, each camera in a plastic bag. The cameras had thus been able to move freely around inside the box, and my black K2 had ended up with the prism against one of the sides of the cardboard box. This K2 was severely damaged by impact damage. When I contacted Eric H. about this he suggested I could send the camera back to him to see if he could repair the camera. I did not have the time and energy to go through the hassle of sending the K2 from Norway to the US a second time, this involves a lot of paperwork to prevent problems with Norwegian customs when the camera is returned from repair, and also postage is expensive, so I ended up with just getting rid of it.

The other two cameras were undamaged and in excellent working order, but I have since this experience been reluctant to send any more cameras to Eric Hendrickson. Luckily we have a brilliant Pentax technician here in Norway who has established his own repair workshop in Oslo, so in the future I will send my cameras to him.