It's the standard SFX/SFXn grip. Pentax offered a slightly larger one to take 4 AAs as an optional extra, so it looks as though someone put the original grip in the box from the AA one and never swapped them back.

I have both and can take some photos of the SFX with the AA grip fitted if desired, it makes the grip about 3-4mm wider.

Exactly my thoughts

I'm really not interested in fiddling about in the GIMP, beyond cropping images or doing things like blanking numberplates in photos of vehicles. I'd rather get fundamentally good images by learning how to get the best from the camera and using the best quality lenses I can afford. Now, there is a trick in knowing which old lenses are worth buying - the Pentax-M 28mm f3.5 is better than the f2.8 version, for example. But the best glass on the planet is only a tool. A top of the range saw won't make you a brilliant joiner, but it will help you to get better results than a £5 cheapy from Tesco.

I'm not sure if this is the universally accepted reason why B&W is so revered as a way to learn photography, but I think the way that it forces you to look for texture and shadow rather than simply finding pretty colours helps a lot. Personally I use it for the chance to use old cameras and the fun of developing film at home, plus it's interesting to photograph some things (such as flowers) with the colour removed.

There is an old K 55mm f2 (same lens as the f1.8, just rigged so the aperture doesn't open right up for marketing reasons) on ebay for £25 buy it now at the moment. I'm not interested as I have the f1.8 version but someone is going to get a bargain there!

If you fancy a 55mm prime look at this, you'd easily sell it on for £25 or more if you decided you like the focal length and want to get your money back to put towards the DA 55mm.

It seems to be a good general rule that the wider the zoom range the more compromised the lens will be. The better zooms tend to have ranges like 35-70mm or 40-80mm. While modern lens technology has improved matters it still seems to be the case that shorter ranges equal better image quality.

Save your money and think about what end of that range you're after. There are a few Pentax zooms in the 75-300mm "ish" range which have been discussed in a recent thread, if you're after the shorter end then look at the old Pentax-F 35-70mm which is a very sweet compact zoom. The latter is readily available attached to old SFX/SFXn 35mm cameras, in fact it can be cheaper to buy the camera and lens than the lens alone, if you keep an eye out for buy it now prices.

Of course, if he'd been using a KM it would have read "Hanoi pavement dented by 1970s camera"

Yes, but then I'll do my usual searches of "Pentax ME" and "Pentax 135mm" (looking for interesting lenses bundled with a cheap buy it now ME and a K 135mm f2.5 respectively) and the whole cycle will start again!

Still trying to talk myself out of spending £50 on an ME SE, or making a similar offer on a K 135mm f3.5. I don't need any more film bodies, even if they do have rather spiffy brown leather, and I have the M 135mm f3.5...

But it's so tempting!

The genuine ones seem to have gone a bit silly. I have one (but I'm hanging onto it for now) and I also have a copy which works, but not quite as easily as the genuine one.

It seems as though the copy doesn't have quite the right thicknesses around the mounting flanges, although it allows infinity focus it doesn't clip in as easily as the genuine one and it needs a special tool (included) to remove it.

Yes you can

Assuming the retaining rings are the same as those you find holding lens elements in, with a couple of notches in a metal ring that screws into the body of the TC.

I'm all in favour of them keeping data on older models on the site, however I think the layout could be better. As things stand, when I click through to DSLRs and scroll down I see the K-m, K20D, etc. Could they not be moved to to a "legacy products" section, which would also have links to PDF versions of the manuals?

I have always been impressed that Pentax bother to offer manuals for very old gear like the original KM as free downloads, not many manufacturers go that far!