My last MF film camera had a diagonal split and this worked perfectly if there were any strong vertical or horizontal lines in the shot. The surrounding area, brightened by a fresnel screen, snapped in and out of focus sharply and worked well with most subjects. I'm sure the MX Super is equally capable. As John suggests, good eyesight is critical unless you have a supplementary viewfinder lens. I checked out a friend's old SLR a few weeks ago and told him the lens was buggered because it simply wouldn't focus properly. Then the penny dropped: if anything was buggered it was my eyesight. I don't think many (or any) SLRs of that era had a variable dioptre viewfinder.

Al

I bought a Yashica FR -- predecessor of the FR1 -- for my then girlfriend, who was a photo-journalist, and she loved it. The build quality and performance were outstanding. Always regretted not hanging on to it and giving her a bouquet of flowers instead.

I bought a Lenovo Yoga 8 tablet (with built-in 3G) a few months ago and have been very impressed. The build quality is up there with Apple and the performance is spectacular compared to my previous tablet. I'm sure their laptops are worth considering. A couple of friends have them and are delighted with their performance. Personally, I'm happy with my home-built desktop for serious work. It started life as a 286 more than 20 years ago and, like Trigger's brush, nothing remains of the original, not even the case.

Good luck in your search.

Al

A friend of mine had a similar but not identical problem with his X5 a few months ago. It was slightly out of warranty, but he sent it to Johnsons Photopia and they repaired it FOC. They said they'd replaced part of the zoom or focusing mechanism (can't remember which). I'd have it checked out ASAP.

Al

I used polarising filters regularly in my film days but haven't bothered/been able to justify the cost after switching to digital. An email from good old 7DayShop offered polarisers at what seemed like a ridiculously low price and I thought I'd try one out on my 16-45 (£3.99). First impressions weren't good -- the filter was loose in the mount because the retaining ring hadn't been tightened. Sorted this and everything now looks good. First shots show no discernable deterioration in sharpness and no colour cast. Haven't used it outside yet but I'll be interested in seeing the results. Might be worth a punt for anyone thinking of trying out a polariser before investing £60-odd. link. At first glance, you'd think these polarisers would be rubbish. Oddly, they're not, although some may have quality-control issues and I've just been lucky.

Al

I've found the Epson Stylus Photo series to be outstanding. My latest one is the R265, but this has been superseded by the P50, which I would expect to be just as good. The ink's pricey (almost £60 for a set of six) but compatibles are available. Oddly, the text output from word-processing files hasn't been in the same league as the photos they produce, but it's good enough unless you take a magnifying glass to it. This may have been tweaked in the latest offerings. The DTP output is top class. Coincidentally, I've just printed out some shots of a social function taken with my MX-1 and I wouldn't expect better results from a good lab.

Al

Ffordes have one for £59, incl caps and lens hood and described as in exc++ condition. It's here (unless it's been sold): link

I can't test this out right now because my 360 flash is in storage pending a move, but it may be worth your while picking up MattMatic's excellent guide to using Pentax flashes. It doesn't seem to cover the issue you raised but does give an overview of the capabilities of the equipment. You can buy it at MattMatic.co.uk (I will expect a small commission).

Good luck with your latest project.

Al

I've just come across a printed manual for the Pentax MZ-M. If anyone wants it, send me a PM and I'll pop it in the post.

Cheers

Al

I picked up one of these "safe" hotshoe adapters so I could put my Vivitar 283 back into action. Works a treat and is considerably cheaper than the Wein units. As a bonus, it'll also solve the problem of flashes with reverse polarity triggering, like my old Achiever TZ250.

Al