K1000 on ebay

SP500 made in China!?? - News to me! - I don't think that can be right. The SP500 dates from a time when the Chinese were proper Communists and didn't want much to do with the west, and decadent Capitalist consumerism. All different now... They're more capitalist than we are now. Didn't want to do the democracy bit, tho'.

I always thought from what I read/heard they were made in China, but I can't find anything confirming that on the web, so I'm not sure. They did however have the following:

1973: The company opens its first foreign manufacturing plant
in Hong Kong.

1975: A manufacturing plant in Taiwan is opened.

Source:
http://www.answers.com/topic/pentax-corporation

So what were they making there? They could also have
used sub-contractors in China.

Unless you find an SP500 with a "Made in China" sticker I think it'd be hard to prove either way. Some of the Spotmatic tooling undoubtedly ended up in Hong Kong as the K1000 was eventually made there and the two cameras pretty much share their mechanism.

They could well have used Chinese plants to make the straps, or the boxes, or cases, or lens caps. I know I have a push-fit rear cap for a lens with "Taiwan" on it, it must date from the K or M era as it lacks the wide flange to protect the A contacts.

I'm currently selling a Takumar (Bayonet) 135/2.5 on eBay which is marked "Made in Taiwan" - so lenses for starters.

I think that was later Hefty. They had a pile and I mean pile (about 1m x 1m x1m) of them in Macro in plain white boxes circa 1978/80 (£29.95+VAT) and I would think they were made by a subcontractor. The coloured lettering wasn't even Pentax like.

My SP500 purchased new in Canada in 1971 was made in Japan and lasted until 1998,

I bought a Black Spotmatic II the same year in the UK. They were both released in 1971. The price between the silver models was only about £25 and I'm sure they were all MIJ at that time. Oddly the Spotmatic II wasn't sold in Japan until 1974.

Later it would seem that even some the Spotmatic II and SP1000 were made or assembled in Hong Kong so I'm sure the SP500 would have been as well, even though people on the web don't seem to have picked this up properly. This site:
http://www.mail-archive.com/pdml@pdml.net">target="blank">http://www.mail-archive.com/pdml@pdml.net/msg66254.html
mentions a SP1000 assembled in Hong Kong.

This site
http://www.mail-archive.com/pdml@pdml.net">target="blank">http://www.mail-archive.com/pdml@pdml.net/msg297361.html
mentions lenses made in Taiwan.

Because some Spotmatics were (at the end of their lives) being assembled in Hong Kong it would be logical for the K1000 to also be assembled there, because it was a budget model. All information on the web though seems to point initially to Japan, so the magazine article/test I read may have been inaccurate.

There is some doubt over whether the SP500 and SP1000 should be called Spotmatics. They don't have the word Spotmatic on the front like the others do, but Pentax have always been strange with Camera names

Quite a lot of Pentax cameras don't seem to have any mention of Japan on them: Mx, MEF, Super-A etc. It re-appeared on the SFX.

Edit: Sorry the forum software won't accept the links.
You may need to copy and paste into your browser.

Let us not confuse Hong Kong and Taiwan, with China. In the early to mid seventies, China was being run by Chairman Mao and was a very different place to the China of today. Very hostile to the west, especially Japan, from whom it suffered greatly during World war 2. China, back then, was not very industrialised, and I seriously doubt that foreign companies would have been allowed to set up factories there. Taiwan, on the other hand, was free, industrialised and pro western. Hong Kong, was then a British colony and also highly industrialised.

My original ME Super had the gold Made in Japan checked sticker on it.

K.

My MEF (almost certainly MIJ) which I've had since new still has the gold JCII Passed sticker on it. No other marks indicating origin on the camera though. On all the K cameras they seem to have just printed Asahi Opt. Co., Japan not Made in Japan. On an Olympus OM20 and RD that I've got it actually says "Made in Japan" and on a Chinon just "Japan". I used to have a Mamiya 6 with "Made in Occupied Japan" on it.

It used to be a requirement in the UK that all foreign goods had to display where they were manufactured although at one point they could just put "Foreign". A label was acceptable for this. Not sure when it was abolished.

Hi,
I'm about to buy a K1000 from eBay, and came across this forum so thought i'd double check with all those who are experienced if this is a valid seller and a good buy.
Please take a minute to check this link and let me know if there's anything 'dodgy'.
Thank you so much!

http://www.ebay.com.my/itm/Pentax-K1000-SLR-35MM-Film-Camera-SMC-Pentax-A-1-2-50...
Takumar-A 1:3.5-4.5 28-80mm Lens - is this lens good to buy?

http://www.ebay.com.my/itm/PENTAX-K1000-SLR-CMAERA-W-PENTAX-M-1-2-50-mm-LENS-/26...

Or is this a better buy?

Much appreciated.

Please only post a query in one section of the forum - I've removed the other thread created to avoid duplication. Your links aren't working by the way, you need to copy and paste what appears in your browser window.

Sorry about that, new around here, and wasn't sure where exactly to post.
These are the links which appeared in the browser window:

Pentax K1000 SLR 35MM Film Camera & SMC Pentax-A 1:2 50mm Lens & Bag & MORE

http://www.ebay.com.my/itm/Pentax-K1000-SLR-35MM-Film-Camera-SMC-Pentax-A-1-2-50...

and

PENTAX K1000 SLR CMAERA W/ PENTAX-M 1:2 50 mm LENS

http://www.ebay.com.my/itm/PENTAX-K1000-SLR-CMAERA-W-PENTAX-M-1-2-50-mm-LENS-/26...

Thanks again.

Sorry - I just realised how old this thread is!!
Myles