Colin wrote: >>And which bodies are you using? >>Some of them seem pretty well-built, like the KR-5 & KR-10. Some seem >>pretty mediocre. Recommendations?
I'd skip over the commodity-level KR-5, KR-10, and their spinoffs. For me, the 1984 XR-P is the standout choice. See my recent post on that body. In 1985 Ricoh introduced a less full-featured version, the XR-20sp and KR-30sp twins. Basically, they're an XR-P without TTL flash capability, the aperture window, TV mode ((1/25 second), tri-program mode (only one or two program modes), and a built-in intervalometer. Except for the TTL flash, they use the same accessories as the XR-P; so do the XR-10 and KR10, I think. In 1987 the XR-P was replaced by the XR-M (XR-X outside of North America). The colorful, full-featured viewfinder is roughly the same as the XR-P's, but the aperture window is gone, the viewfinder magnification dropped from 0.88x to about 0.78x, and a built-in winder was added instead of giving you the option of three winder/motor/grips. Also, an optional side flash was added to keep the body low profile. Also, the XR-M has a spot meter. I don't know, but I suspect that the XR-P's oversize mirror and mirror dampening system was removed. In the 1990s the XR-M was replaced by Ricoh's final top-end model, the XR-X3pf. The optional side flash was replaced by a built-in top flash covering 28mm. Other enhancements were made, largely in metering modes, flash modes, and motor speed. The bright pentaprism was retained throughout. if you're more of a traditionalist, look back to 1981's XR-2s (also sold as Sears KS Auto). Its closest Pentax counterpart is the K2. The XR-2s offered manual and autoexposure, plus mirror lockup via the mechanical timer. The shutter was 1/1000 second horizontal, the same shutter used on the Nikon FM. The XR-2s's viewfinder (like that of other early Ricohs) indicates exposure by means of a needle instead of the LCDs adopted on the XR-P. Alan Chan is correct that most Ricoh bodies are not as durable as most Pentax bodies. The XR-1 (all manual), XR-2, and XR-2s and on through the XR-6 were probably the sturdiest, best-made Ricohs. Later models feel less substantial. Manuals for virtually all Ricoh SLRs can be found at http://www.butkus.org/chinon/ . I have had no trouble using my XR-P and XR-2s with three Pentax lenses (35/2K, 55/1.8K, 200/2.5K). Using Ricoh lenses on Pentax autofocus bodies is a different story: You must not use a Rikenon P (program) lens on a Pentax autofocus body, or you may never get be able to remove it. I mean this literally, not facetiously. The P thingie will lock into the Pentax AF hole. All three times that a lens screwed up a body's autoaperture mechanism, or the lens's autoaperture mechanism got damaged, the lens had just been mounted on a Super Program. Twice the lens was a Vivitar Series One zoom and the camera was damaged; the third time (last week), it was my Zenitar fisheye that got damaged. I don't know whether the Super Program is the root cause or a coincidence. But for various reasons, if I were to replace it I'd replace it with a second XR-P. [EMAIL PROTECTED]
