Pentax ME & MX Maintenance & Lens and Film Questions

LiMPiNg

LiMPiNg

Messages
132
Edit My Images
No
With my recent venture into the DSLR world this year, the photography bug has hit me hard again. I was thinking of picking up an old film SLR to play with when I realized that my dad probably had the camera that I used in my high school photography class some 15-16 years ago. Sure enough, he has his Pentax ME that I used for my class as well as a Pentax MX. He also said that he had "super wide 7 wide angle, super fast 35mm, telephoto, X2 adapter, motor winder for one of the bodies and a couple of flashes" but I couldn't get any more details as he was heading out the door for a trip - I am expecting more details when he returns tomorrow and I plan on picking them up when I am back home for a visit to Canada in May.

My first question is, should I expect to have to do some maintenance to have the bodies and lenses working properly since they have been sitting and not been used for 15 years? Should I be able to just take them out of the bag and start shooting?

Next, without details about what lenses he has exactly, are there any lenses out there that I should be looking at for these K mount bodies other than those mentioned?

Lastly, what type of film should I be looking for to go with these cameras? I think I would like to stick with B&W to go with the nostalgia of playing with these cameras from my younger days. What speed would be best for all around use? ISO 400? I don't mind graininess as I think it may add to the effect I am looking for with the B&W.

Thanks in advance for any help you can give.
 
With the lens just check there's no fungus in them if they've been sitting somewhere dark as this can form on optics.

Fire the shutter off and go through the different speeds to make sure they work. You'll may need new batteries for the light meters. Make sure the light traps look ok and haven't perished. Take a test film to make sure all is ok before shooting something important to you.

As regards to B&W a personal thing really but I prefer Ilford FP4 or HP5 or Delta 100.

Pan F for really bright conditions or when you want a really detailed enlargement
 
I guess the "super wide 7 wide angle" is in fact a 17mm Tokina or Tamron, either of which should be worth hanging onto for DSLR. If the 35mm is a Pentax, again Well Done! If the tele is a real cheapy, you could replace it with a Tokina f/4 - 5.6 70-210mm for £20.

Pentax lenses are quite sought after among digital users. The 28mm can be cheap but for 24mm you'd save a lot buying Sigma (not very well built, but otherwise good).

The PKA f/1.7 50mm is a bargain compared to the plastic crap of a modern lens, even if people like me begrudge not buying them up by the shedload when they were less than £15.

The Tamron Adaptall range includes some good lenses, though the adapters are now expensive in PKA fitting. The PK fitting is cheaper and more available, though less good on a DSLR.
 
Thanks chivers and photon. I appreciate the advice.

My dad is back home and managed to give me an inventory list and a picture. It looks like I am going to have some fun with this as it is an ME Super and the winder is for the MX. Plus, the lenses do look like some good all around lenses to play with and so I don't think I am going to need to invest in anything further at first other than film and batteries. Here is what is in the kit. Any comments/suggestions?

Pentax ME Super Body
Pentax MX Body

Lenses:
Pentax-M f/1.4 50mm
Pentax f/1.2 50mm
Vivitar Series 1 f/3.5 70-210mm Macro Focusing Zoom (Ø 62mm)
Vivitar f/2.8 28mm Wide Angle (Ø 49mm)
Sigma 2X1:1 Tele-Macro Adaptor
UV Filter (Ø 62mm)

(I get the feeling one of the 50mm is in fact a 35mm and he did a typo.)

Accessories:
Agfa 202 Hot Shoe/Cable Flash
Agfa 352 Cable Flash
MX Motor Winder
Short Shutter Release cable
Hard-side Case
Soft-side Case

pentaxcameras.jpg
 
In the nicest possible way: I Hate you :D
Just kidding, that is a really REALLY nice set of lenses IMHO)

I think that he was correct with both the lenses being 50mm. Thaats not a bad thing though, the F1.2 is blindingly fast, and the F1.4 has a good resell value depending on condition.

I have a vivitar 28mm and it is a peach, one of those real underrated lenses. I think it depends on the serial number (and thus where it was made) but I think the quality of the lenses generally range from good to excellent.

As for the light seals, well they are pretty simple to replace. Just need to make sure that you get all the old stuff scraped out. Thats only if you need to, and you can tell pretty quickly as they will either be crumbly or gummy. If they are gummy and sticky be real careful when removing the seals near the mirror as it can be a bugger to get of the mirror and if you get it on the focusing screen they your in a bad place as it will foul it pretty bad, but like I said, if your careful its real easy.

There is a bloke on ebay who sells the kits and he supplies general instructions and if you ask him, he can most times send you precise additional info for most camera brands.

As for film, I agree with Everyone for the Ilford stuff but I'm also giving some of the cheap Shantou Era stuff from ebay. At £1.80 a roll you can't complain too much and if you have a look on flickr you can see it gives good results :D

Phew, that was bigger than I planned, hope it helps (BTW I am no expert)
 
Agreed about the 50s and it's obviously an enthusiast's kit. Bear in mind that you shouldn't really expect to use them wide open.

The Vivitar zoom is in no way a cheapy - it's a classic! (There were less-good Series 1s, cos Vivitar were a marketing firm, but I'm sure your father got a goodun.)

You may find the buttons on the top plate of the ME Super are erratic and you get on better with the MX. There's a trick to get mirror lockup with the MX: http://ca.geocities.com/spirope/mxmlu.htm
 
Yup, you are correct in that they are both 50mm lenses. The above image is resized and so I checked the original full res and I can clearly see the 50mm 1.2 and 1.4 on the lenses. The 1.2 seems to fetch a very good price if it is in good condition, and I don't know if I will need both. I may just keep the 1.4 and move the 1.2 on in order to help fund my next DSLR lens. I guess I will wait until I get a chance to play with it some before making that decision though.
 
You could always switch to a pentax digital system. Suddenly you have loads of lenses!
 
Yes, the MX is a great camera - very reliable. This was my first ever SLR back in the early 1980's, and being a mechanical camera it operates without batteries (except for the light meter).

Your lenses are fine, and if you needed anything wider than the 28mm, Vivitar used to make a 24mm and even a 17mm f/3.5 - great for interior shots.

As for black & white film, you can't go wrong with Ilford.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top