Pentax Class of 1975

 

Pentax introduced the K-mount fifty-one years ago, and these three SLRs were the first K-mount bodies. The Pentax KM - a fully manual SLR with the ability to operate without a battery for the meter. It is basically a Pentax Spotmatic F, and far better than the K1000 that replaced it later. The Pentax KX uses a match-needle in the viewfinder to choose the appropriate shutter speed, and is also fully manual. There is a small window above the lens to show the aperture in the viewfinder. The K2 is quite different from the other two. It's an Aperture-Priority camera with manual exposure, but requires a battery to function  properly. For some reason, the designers at Pentax placed the ISO selection in a ring at the base of the lens mount. The camera also has a metal-bladed vertical focal plane shutter - the first Pentax camera to feature this.  

I purchased the KX at Monument Camera in Tucson in October 2025.  The K2 was an eBay purchase, back in March of this year.  I have had to lubricate the ISO ring several times, as it seizes up.  The KM, also an eBay find, was purchased in late August.  I'm still testing the KM, and it appears to work perfectly. I think it will become my favorite of the three cameras, with the KX coming in second.  The K2, aside from its flakey ISO ring, works well, too, and the exposures have been spot-on.  

These three cameras represent a milestone for Pentax, as it moved away from the M42 screw-mount.  The K-mount was able to accept the M42 lenses with an adapter, allowing users access to their old Takumars.  The K-mount lenses are pretty much identical to the SMC Takumars that they replaced.  The K-mount also allowed Pentax to add more electronic features as new technologies evolved and were incorporated into the bodies. 

Later SLRs from Pentax incorporated more electronic controls and smaller bodies as seen n the M-series, such as the ME.  However, I think that if a manual K-mount body is something you want, the KM, not the K1000, should be on your list. It has all the features that you may need.

I'm still working on my M42-Spotmatic book, but I have put it aside for a while. The text is done, and it's just a matter of layout and design. Of course, the question is will it be an e-book or a printed volume?