K-30 mount confusion! is it not the 'K' mount?

I bought a K-30 few days ago and its my first Dslr.. while researching I read what a great thing it was that all Pentax K mount lenses will fit all Pentax K Dslr cameras... but now its getting confusing... I do know the the Q series is four thirds so it has its own lens.. and I also know the the older m42 screw mount is different from the 'K' mount so it'll need an adapter.. but I thought that [although some lens with some function restrictions] all K mount lenses should fit the K-30. but when i look up lens on ebay or other places some of the lens that say 'K fit' or 'PK mount' or 'pentax fit' and also say they are for k20d, k5 etc.. and when i e-mail the seller to confirm, they reply saying no it won't fit my k-30.... What? how come? isn't k5 also a K? if the lens is a K mount and the camera is K30 then what am i missing here?

They will fit, k mount is k mount. There were some oddities where there was a long flange on some 3rd party stuff but that can be carefully machined off.

If you would like some reassurance, you could post a link the item you are looking at so the forum members can comment directly.

I have a K-30 and have had no issues compatibility with k mount lenses. Perhaps the sellers aren't fully familiar with all the Pentax models. The K-30 and the K-5 and mostly every other Pentax DSLR all share the same mount design.

You're missing nothing but seem to understand perfectly - all K or PK mount lenses will fit the K30. Just be careful of Ricoh lenses (called RPK I think)which are also compatible but have an extra pin that on any Pentax body can jam unless it is removed.

It might be a bit overwhelming at first, but this link may help a little with understanding the K-mount : http://kmp.bdimitrov.de/technology/summary/index.html

Table 1. probably summarises it best.

Hope it helps a bit

All K-mount lenses will fit the K30. The only problems you will encounter are the Ricoh pin (on some old Ricoh lenses) and the extra-long flange (on some old Vivitar and possible other brand lenses). You can look up the details of these on the internet or on these forums, but they're quite rare.

The M42 mount is sometimes referred to as the Pentax screw mount (or something similar) and these lenses can be used very well with K-mount SLRs using an adapter.

The Q does not have a micro 4/3 mount, it has a Q-mount.

I had a very old Tokina 28mm lens from my film days that had the long flange, I cut it off and it fit fine after that although the lens still didn't work properly because the iris wouldn't stop down. Any reasonably new lens will be fine though and probably 99% of older ones too.

As others have suggested, some old K-mount third-party film camera lenses (and not just Ricoh) might have the Ricoh pin, which can get jammed on a DSLR, so they are best avoided (unless you have the confidence to remove the pin).




Philip

No, third party K mount lenses will not have the pin. Third party Ricoh mount (R-K) lenses may.

I suppose you are correct but I wrote that "...some old K-mount third-party film camera lenses (and not just Ricoh) might have the Ricoh pin..." because I took the photo of that lens after freeing it when it jammed on my camera. I had bought it because it was advertised as a "Pentax PK fit" lens, so I assumed that it had a K-mount, and it did not have the Ricoh name - it was labelled "Clubman 28mm f2.8". I did not want someone else without your detailed knowledge to make the same mistake that I made.

Philip

The likely suspects for the Ricoh pin are K/P/R (slashing varies-sometimes it's not there) mount lenses...I very nearly bought a 35mm? one a few months ago. Unfortunately I have a knack when trying to disassemble stuff of only end up with the part I don't want being the only bit that does work

There are some 'A' lenses that were specifically designed to mount on both the Pentax and Ricoh mounts - such as the Sigma 24mm f/2.8 Superwide II. They do have the "Ricoh" pin but are usually (always?) OK.

Andrew

This sounds like the sellers are not 100% confident themselves and worried about backlash or poor Ebay feedback. So feel its safer to warn you off. I've had this with PC components in the past.
I just find out the lens model and google it. Normally there is a link to this forum or the US one, and plenty of info or reviews. Amazing just how many obscure lenses you can find relevant information for.

That's a fair point Russ. It's better in one sense to under-state an item, then the buyer will find it exceeds their expectations. If it's the other way round, or perhaps we like something ourselves and get carried away then disappointment results.

It's because the balance has been shifted strongly in favour of the buyer, except it doesn't work that way.

In a similar fashion, when postage rates are capped the starting price has to go up...nobody wins.

It seems I failed to make the point that the lens I bought (shown above) was advertised as "Pentax PK fit", so no warning-off there, and I assumed it was a normal Pentax K-mount lens. I did not know about the Ricoh pin until I searched the Web for the cause of the lens getting stuck on the camera. It would also seem quite likely that some sellers will have no knowledge about the Ricoh pin. So buyers beware.

Philip