Pentax's QC, does it really excist ?

Well, I for one wonder... since march 2023 I've been using my 4th PLM 16-50 and after about 6 months I notice a very minor problem... sometimes the lens "disappeared" from the camera.... a small touch on the lens and all was okey. But, in early spring this year that problem has grown which means that a small touch was not enough any longer... which means that I had to do one small turn of the lens while still in the bayonet grip and restart the camera. After the summer holiday I contacted Pentax Service in Sweden and was told to clean the contacts (both camera and lens) which I have done 3 times and that didn't changed anything. To be sure that the problem is with the lens I tested my old 16-85 lens and everything worked perfectly. Still wanted to use the PLM 16-50 and after the summer the "turning procedure" increases a lot and finally when I was out photographing last thursday the lens became unusable... for the one last picture that day I had to do the "lens turning procedure" several times and several turnings each time before I finally could take one last picture. So now I'm back using my old 16-85 lens and that's how it's probably gonna be from now on since there isn't any warranty left and these days I'm retired and probably can't afford to repair that expensive lens. That was almost 18,000 Swekrona ($1900) down the drain...

KK

Luckily I had my 16-50 PLM since 2021, which was of the first batch production, and never found any main issue. Btw, whats ur body used?

A tech support worker comes to a doctor and says:
"My left foot hurts."

The doc answers:
"My left foot is exactly the same as yours and it doesn't hurt."

My camera is K3III... the thing is that I use two cameras so that I don't ever have to change lenses on any camera which so far have saved my pictures from dust stains. On my "old" K-3 I use the PLM 55-300 and that lens have never been removed from the camera either and compared to my K-3 III and PLM 16-50 that combo have been working perfectly... about Pentax QC, when that 55-300 was brand new and out of box I could clearly see dust inside the front elements BUT, as long as that doesn't affect my pictures I'm gonna use the lens.

KK

It exists, but Pentax "delegated" it to the customers :-( .

Thanks.... I simply love your answer.... perhaps the truth (ha ha). By now I have again contacted Pentax Service by email when I realized that the problem could be a very simple problem and doesn't have to cost that much money.... not those big numbers that are flying around in my head.

KK

I have used Pentax for about sixteen years, twelve of those my Pentax DSLR was my main camera, and though I believe that Pentax gear is generally built to be hardier than similarly-priced gear from other brands, their quality control is poor. A lot of dodgy copies of lenses are sold.

alex_virt said:

A tech support worker comes to a doctor and says:
"My left foot hurts."

The doc answers:
"My left foot is exactly the same as yours and it doesn't hurt."

Click to expand...

A older man come in and says, "I don't have as much energy and don't see as well as I used to. There's a little flare at night."

The younger doctor says, "Yes that's normal. My energy is fine, and I have no issue with flare at night"

flektogon said:

It exists, but Pentax "delegated" it to the customers :-( .

Click to expand...

Every company want to make profit and give a warranty for their products. Pentax photographers are a special kind of photographers. Some want to buy (second hand, third hand or even higher hand) gear at a very low price. No wonder that Ricoh does not release any new cameras or lenses. Their customers just buy (used) gear.

When I bought my Leica SL2-S I was pleasantly surprised. One of the first things you see when you opend the box is a card with the names of the persons are a responsible for the checking and packing of the camera plus the serial numbers. The camera comes in a sealed box.

I have used Pentax gear for over 45 years. The last twenty years I had three lenses that were decentered.

As a service Leica will check Leica cameras and lenses at a price of 300 euros each.

Good quality control will cost a lot of money and it will make cameras and lenses more expensive.

RBIV said:

alex_virt said:

A tech support worker comes to a doctor and says:
"My left foot hurts."

The doc answers:
"My left foot is exactly the same as yours and it doesn't hurt."

Click to expand...

A older man come in and says, "I don't have as much energy and don't see as well as I used to. There's a little flare at night."

The younger doctor says, "Yes that's normal. My energy is fine, and I have no issue with flare at night"

Click to expand...

An elderly man comes to the doctor complaining of erectile dysfunction and decreased libido. The doctor says,

"This is normal for your age, sir."

"Really??? My neighbour is older than me but still has sex with younger women and can come 3 to 5 times a night!"

"How do you know?"

"He told me."

"Well, why don't you tell him too?"

--
https://www.flickr.com/photos/202837760@N02/

alex_virt said:

RBIV said:

alex_virt said:

A tech support worker comes to a doctor and says:
"My left foot hurts."

The doc answers:
"My left foot is exactly the same as yours and it doesn't hurt."

Click to expand...

A older man come in and says, "I don't have as much energy and don't see as well as I used to. There's a little flare at night."

The younger doctor says, "Yes that's normal. My energy is fine, and I have no issue with flare at night"

Click to expand...

An elderly man comes to the doctor complaining of erectile dysfunction and decreased libido. The doctor says,

"This is normal for your age, sir."

Click to expand...

There are meds that work quite well with that, but then the issue that frequently “arises” is there is no opportunity to use it! Relating this back to QC I guess you could say there is a known fix, but it may prove difficult to find all the necessary components.

alex_virt said:

"Really??? My neighbour is older than me but still has sex with younger women and can come 3 to 5 times a night!"

"How do you know?"

"He told me."

"Well, why don't you tell him too?"

Click to expand...

egk4260 said:

alex_virt said:

RBIV said:

alex_virt said:

A tech support worker comes to a doctor and says:
"My left foot hurts."

The doc answers:
"My left foot is exactly the same as yours and it doesn't hurt."

Click to expand...

A older man come in and says, "I don't have as much energy and don't see as well as I used to. There's a little flare at night."

The younger doctor says, "Yes that's normal. My energy is fine, and I have no issue with flare at night"

Click to expand...

An elderly man comes to the doctor complaining of erectile dysfunction and decreased libido. The doctor says,

"This is normal for your age, sir."

Click to expand...

There are meds that work quite well with that, but then the issue that frequently “arises” is there is no opportunity to use it! Relating this back to QC I guess you could say there is a known fix, but it may prove difficult to find all the necessary components.

egk4260 said:

"Really??? My neighbour is older than me but still has sex with younger women and can come 3 to 5 times a night!"

"How do you know?"

"He told me."

"Well, why don't you tell him too?"

Click to expand...

Click to expand...

It's a very old anecdote

I feel your pain. I will only buy lenses from sellers with solid return policy like Amazon, B&H, etc.
Last 2 lenses I bought a few years ago, I had to exchange them twice each due to open-box-failure.
Now I am reluctant to purchase new lenses due to all the hassle and long waiting time for replacement unit. It takes about 5 weeks to exchange 1 lens due to shipping.