It's skewed because most people who find that survey probably got there by Googling "Sigma+lens+faulty" (substitute manufacturer of choice). Therefore a disproportionate number of response will come from folk who have had problems and were searching for solutions.

But then you know what they say about lies, damn lies and statistics...

I've bought 7 "new" lenses in the last 5 years, 6 Pentax and 1 Tamron. All have worked perfectly so I've added those in.

The K7 and The K-x use sensors that not only vary in pixel count but which are from different manufacturers (different designs). Hence the chances are each will need slightly different in-camera processing in order to produce similar results.

As far as I know Pentax never intentionally "cripple" their processing (as some may on low end bodies, in order to get you to buy the more expensive models) but with different hardware it'll always be tricky to get identical results.

Yes.

I think it's at 100 you become a Pentax Pro Master - 59 to go!

Don't tempt me!

A very cool set of lenses, but as I don't do any surveillence work I can't really justify the extra...

I went through a stage (well, a few years) of buying every Trip I saw at boot sales and charity shops - usually for around 50p-£1 each - and ended up with a whole drawer full of them. Now they've all gone bar two (both early, both near mint) and some rare accessories such as filters, hoods, etc. In my experience there are a lot more "battered" Trips out there than there are minty ones, so one that's had a bit of use is probably the more iconic actually...

They could be on any of the elements to be honest, front back or middle. The easiest way to spot them is with a bright white LED torch - I've got one on a keyring (a freebie from the K7 launch at SRS!) that I take to auctions and camera fairs specifically to look for fungus and other nasties.

Well spotted! I had to look twice for that

Meccano, paperclips, Leica M3, the Union Flag, road signs, a London Underground map, Zippo lighter... I actually started a list but had to stop when I realised I'd never cram them all in lol

It didn't make it into the final picture but it was used to take it - one design icon shooting another.