What brand of memory card are you using?

It seems that some budget ones struggle to keep up in continuous shooting. I've never had this problem but then again I don't tend to shoot more than three or four photos in quick succession.

Make sure that your gear is fully insured - I wouldn't fancy taking my DSLR into an environment like that. I'd probably go for something like an MX instead as they're virtually indestructible. Good luck!

Not all of those dedicated scanners are built the same. I have an Ion one which can operate stand alone (built in screen for preview, saves results as JPEGs to an SD card) and which I'm very happy with. I wouldn't claim it produces museum-quality results, but I was after something that could handle black and white negatives (for eventual printing) and also cope with old family slides - my Dad has boxes of them dating from the late '70s through to the 1990s.

The results have been pretty decent so far - here's a completely untouched scan of a mid '90s negative:

[IMG]http://i183.photobucket.com/albums/x21/Kingofthemountains/PICT0053.jpg[/IMG]

Subject is of limited interest, as I was about 14 at the time and had yet to grasp such concepts as "composition"!

I'm now planning to buy a couple of rolls of slide film and run them through my MX over the summer, as a bit of a nostalgia trip.

It depends on the lens and how much you need to dismantle. On the two types I've dealt with (50mm f1.7 and f2) it was a simple case of unscrewing the finishing ring and then unscrewing the front element group. No adjustment was needed, I simply screwed the parts back into the lens a little more than finger tight.

I wouldn't be worried about buying something rarer such as an f1.2 or f1.4 with the same problem now, assuming it was cheap enough.

I really don't know how the Chinon is assembled however, so it may not be so simple. With my approach to the 50mm lenses there were no small loose parts

The only sub-£20 50mm lenses I've ever found have been ones with a mould problem. Usually this is simple enough to clean out, it tends to be on the front of the rear element group. Simply set the lens to the widest aperture and use a cotton bud dipped in vinegar to swab the mould off, then follow up with lens cleaner.

The hard part is reassembling without too much dust. You will never get the lens back as it was when it left the Pentax factory, however you can usually get most of the dust and any hairs out with a blower. This photo was taken while testing a Pentax-M 50mm f2 that I paid £5 for and cleaned out:

[IMG]http://i183.photobucket.com/albums/x21/Kingofthemountains/Landscapes/PICT0022.jpg[/IMG]

Not bad, I feel! Currently testing a 50mm f1.7 that had the same treatment. A few brief test shots on digital confirmed that it's focussing and stopping down properly, just waiting for the chance to give it a good workout with my MX.

I have read that exposing lenses to strong UV can kill the yellow tinge. The site suggested leaving them on a windowsill in sunlight, however I'd be a bit worried about the magnifying effect of the lens burning items below it!

Not sure what you can do about the radiation however - lead-lined lens cases maybe?

The main appeal for me is the quality of the old manual primes. I can't afford new primes, in fact the only new lens I've ever owned was the 18-55mm that came with my K-m. The 55mm f1.8 cost me £8.50 and is superbly sharp even wide open.

Wear and tear really doesn't seem to be a problem with the old manual lenses, providing that they haven't been abused. My 55mm is still superbly smooth focussing even though it dates from 1975-77. My 80-200mm has a bit of paint wear around the aperture ring and lens hood but works perfectly. I plan to put it on my MX and try it on film at some point, as it doesn't see much use on digital due to my owning the 200mm prime and a couple of AF zooms covering the same range.

Just bought a cheap Pentax-A 28-80mm. I'm not expecting wonders from it, hence waiting for a £12 example to come along rather than spending £30+. However, I've never found a Pentax lens that made me wonder why I bought it - even the Pentax-F 35-80mm f4-5.6 that I've seen described as "a poor paperweight" in one review!

I have:

Pentax-A 28mm f2.8, 50mm f1.7 and 200mm f4
Pentax-M 50mm (several, both f2 and f1.7 as I keep buying mouldy ones and cleaning them), 135mm f3.5, 80-200mm f4.5
Pentax-K 55mm f1.8

Also a Takumar bayonet 28mm f2.8, although I don't use that much if at all. I try to stick to A series primes now as they work with all exposure modes on a DSLR, however I do keep an eye out for any more original K series. The 55mm looks very good on a DSLR and produces excellent images, although I prefer the A 50mm for ease of use.

Prices do seem to be rising for manual lenses, especially in the last few months.

Welcome!

You could probably replace the MX fairly easily, there are usually a few good tested examples on ebay at any one time. I have one that I've just replaced the light seals on, it's probably older than I am but I really like using it. Worth tracking one down as they're great cameras to handle.

I'm a big fan of the Energiser Lithiums, my K-m came with a set that lasted for roughly 800 shots or six months. I've since replaced like with like and keep four spares handy.

However, I doubt they'll still be working in 2035!