K100D not working

Bad luck Errol - I`ve just bought one from Fleabay for £142 - with only 918 actuations registered - the cost seems ridiculous for a replacement.

Good luck with a diagram - I`m of the generation that always "fixed" things myself but everything is getting smaller and less manageable now.

Regards

Tony

I am sure Stefan will be along any time now

Hi Tozza
That sounds like a bargain. I've had mine since they came out - here anyway - in 2006 (20th of August, to be exact). It cost me R7400 (£645) at the time, plus R2480 (£215) for the Sigma 70-300, which are the kind of prices we pay. I haven't used it very much though, probably not more than a couple of thousand exposures, so it's pretty disappointing that this has happened, but I don't really have any realistic option but to have it fixed. I can't dump the camera, and it's too late in the day for me to switch brands now - I've been using Pentaxes since my first Pentax S3 in 1962 or so. Man, what a camera that was! There's no way its Aperture Control Unit or whatever would simply have packed up from lying quietly on the desk.

Hi Mike,
Thanks. Will keep a look out for Stefan.

Best wishes,
Errol

Why not get a sencond hand K20D instead?

Hi Felix
I hadn't thought of getting another camera yet, but maybe it is worth considering. But which one? How does the K20D compare vis-à-vis the K100D? Any idea where I can see the two lined up side by side?
And then, especially, am I likely to find one at a reasonable price anywhere in this country (bearing in mind I'm in South Africa)? I'm definitely going to start scouting around though, just to get a feel of the market. What kind of price should I be thinking of?
Regards,
Errol

Hi Errol,

The K100D is about 2 years older than the K20D and its features are so much better. Its sensor is CMOS compared to the K100D's CCD. THe K20D runs on a lithium battery and it can last for almost 1500 frames on my usage (without flash).

Price wise I am no help as I am from Singapore but a 2nd hand K20D here would set one back about SGD$900.00

A brand new one is now not found anymore but a few months ago it was selling for SGD$1050 for body only.

Hi Errol,

gotta be the K20D - beautiful piece of kit and very powerful - I got mine 2nd hand from ebay including 18-55 AL II lens,all boxed and original stuff for £400 - probably about 2500 shutter actuations.

Tony

Hi Felix

Thanks for the information. I have looked at some prices, but unfortunately it looks as if the K20D is going to be a bit of a costly option for my present requirements - if one could even get it, that is! Because basically all I need is a relatively inexpensive back-up camera until such time as my K100D is (hopefully) back in operation.

The K20D sounds very nice, I must say, and is clearly superior to the K100D, but I don't take many pics these days, and it wouldn't make sense for me to presumably end up with two good cameras in a few weeks' time.

Now, why couldn't I find the digital equivalent of the Ricoh KR10M that I used to use in tandem with my Pentax Z1 in the film days? That would be ideal. The Ricoh was a cheaper standby (and actually a jolly nice camera in itself) that took all the Pentax-mount lenses. The two together worked like a bomb.

I see there are some of the earlier Pentaxes (ist, I think) available. They would perhaps be more like what I'm after, but I notice that they're actually pretty expensive too, so I'm not sure what would be the best. Perhaps I should just sit it out and wait.

Cheers,
Errol

Hi Tozza

£400! That's pretty good. But, as I said above, they seem to be in rather short supply. And especially out here, you can't even seem to find one. Long-distance overseas shopping hardly seems worth it. First, the cost of sending the camera such a long way is usually quite steep, and then there's always the (very strong) likelihood of not receiving it anyway. Then your troubles really start. However, that doesn't mean that there's always a possibility of me finding one somewhere. It does sound very nice.

Errol