Pentax ME

[nikonbob]

I have never had much to do with Pentax cameras until I picked up a battered K1000&50/2 and that got things going. Just picked up an ME mainly because it had a 28/2.8 A lens on it. What a nice compact little camera and as everything works it deserves a work out. Now to find a tele lens to complete the outfit. Too many cameras too little time. What are your impressions of the ME?

Bob

[olroy2044]

For years, my primary shooter was an ME that I purchased new. I shot literally hundreds of rolls with it, and really enjoyed the camera. It finally started giving problems,starting with the hot shoe, and then the meter switch, which in effect is a master switch for the camera, except in the mechanical flash speed. When it quit, the camera was essentially useless. However, I still have it, and will never sell it. When I was using it all the time, I learned to tweak the exposure compensation and ASA settings, and could trick the camera into doing just about anything I wanted it to. Used all my M42 lenses (from my Mamiya days) with the adapters, along with the K-mounts, with excellent results. Absolutely loved it. I keep telling myself that I need to send it to Eric, but--------ah, you know how that goes! Too many cameras Where have I heard that before? ;D Roy

[nikonbob]

Well. it was too cold, -24C, to do anything with the ME today. If I catch a break in the next week or two I might even like it more than first impressions. The MX might also be one to keep a lookout for.

Bob

[nikonbob]

Got to finally do a roll and I have to say that the Pentax SMC A 28/2.8 appears to be a very decent lens. The ME performed as new except for metering errors on my part, not taking into account back lighting, doh. Anyone looking for a small compact SLR should really give this Pentax body series a try. I would really be tempted to add an MX. That is saying a lot for a Nikon addict.

Bob

[Deleted]

Back in my newspaper days when the paper photographer bought their own gear, most used the Pentax ME rather than the Nikon FM or the Olympus OM1s--mostly I think because the MEs were cheaper--less than an FM anyway. They also could buy a power winder pretty cheap for the ME. They shot a lot of film through their cameras and I remember one telling me that his MEs didn't seem to hold up as well as the Nikon FMs a fellow photog used on another area paper but that was OK because the Pentax was much cheaper..

[nikonbob]

Wayne

I can believe that under hard newspaper use the Nikon would stand up better. I think that for the average casual duffer, as I am, the point is somewhat moot. I don't think that in my life time I would burn as many rolls as a news photog would have in a few short years. OTH there is nothing wrong with over kill in the build department either.

Bob

[pentaxgraflex]

I have a ME and two ME Supers. The ME functions perfectly, but the Supers
have electronic problems. I don't miss the manual mode, exposure comp.
switch is just as good for me. If I really need manual I'll use my LX or KX.
(or Spotmatics, or K1000's etc., etc.).

[olroy2044]

The ME functions perfectly, but the Supers
have electronic problems.

Interesting. My experiance is just the opposite. My Super works perfectly, and my ME is dead. 'Course it could have something to do with the 30 plus years of heavy use, including several years of bouncing around in a squad car! Roy

[ebolton]

I have 3 ME Supers. My only reliable one is on permanent loan to my son. I love to use them when they work, but it seems I can't count on them, especially during the winter here in NH. The film winds but the shutter doesn't cock, or the mirror will move in slo-mo, then I'll get a couple of good shots, then something will hang up again, all within a few minutes.

[nikonbob]

I am wondering if the trouble with your ME Supers may be that they need a CLA?

Bob

[vintageslrs]

Being a N.H. resident...I would agree with ebolton.
Many SLR's will have trouble in our coldest winter temps.
Just last Sunday, when it was 12 degrees and a stiff wind, Sherri's Sears/Mamiya's mirror was getting sluggish, while my Nikkormat FT-2 was just acting like it was 70 degrees.
And it seems not to matter when any were CLAed last.
Certain ones are effected by the extreme cold and others are not.

Bob

[nikonbob]

Bob

I also never had any trouble with my Nikons in our North Western Ontario cold but did have a problem with a Canon P shutter getting sluggish and it was not that cold. The P's shutter worked fine inside but out was a different story. I had the P CLA'd and the problem disappeared. That is why I had thought of a CLA. I guess that there are just some cameras that don't handle the cold well.

Bob

[vintageslrs]

nikonbob

A CLA would never hurt.......but some SLR's..... just seem like they never imagined them being used in artic temps---lol


;D
Bob

[Deleted]

The Canon P--one of the nicest RFs ever made. I had one that had some small issues and I lets it sit in a box under the house for a decade and then sold it for 10 bucks in the late '70s (with lens).

WHAT WAS I THINKING???

Jan 27, 2009 23:53:23 GMT -5 nikonbob said:

Bob

I also never had any trouble with my Nikons in our North Western Ontario cold but did have a problem with a Canon P shutter getting sluggish and it was not that cold. The P's shutter worked fine inside but out was a different story. I had the P CLA'd and the problem disappeared. That is why I had thought of a CLA. I guess that there are just some cameras that don't handle the cold well.

Bob

[PeterW]

For Kiev Russian mechanical cameras the factory, and T&OE in London, used to offer a 'winterising' service. They cleaned out all the factory oils and greases and replaced them with very low freezing point materials. I had a Kiev 4A winterised by T&OE and it performed faultlessly in February night-time temperatures of minus 42 degrees C in Timmins in northern Canada.

Mind you, I think T&OE made sure it was screwed together properly after being stripped and relubricated. I suppose you could call it a C re-L and A. This was in the late 1960s or early 1970s, and the camera's still working well today.

PeterW