Until the Olympus OM-1 came out the K-1000 was the smallest, lightest SLR on the market. The almost unlimited lens selection was great every lens maker made a Pentax Mount lens, which was actually called a Practica mount since it preceeded the Pentax. Straightforward camera!

Today the camera seems heavy, loud, and like driving a car with standard shift on the column. The older model felt better in my hands. Did not outlive hurricane Hugo. Had to file notches on the sides of the viewing window so I could slip an adapter on that had a flash shoe. The original did not have a shoe on the pentaprism.

Dependable high quality workhorse camera. My first K-1000 lasted 30 years and was the original K-1000 model that was replaced by the Spotmatic and then revived and finally replaced the Spotmatic by putting in a meter and then a bayonet mount. I replaced the original normal lens in the early '70s with the 50mm F1.8 when they improved the lenses. That lens was rated above Nikon and Minolta and Canon at the time. The next step up in lens quality after that was The Super Multi-Coated models that followed. This newer K-1000 seems a bit heavier but has a meter and flash shoe but is missing the M synch for flashbulbs. The leather covering doesn't seem to be real leather now. I prefer it to my wife's Nikon 6006 because I don't need to use a book every time I want to take a picture on anything but automatic. This is a CAMERA not a digital watch.

Customer Service

Never needed any on any camera.

Similar Products Used:

Nikon FM, had a pair of them and a motor mount on one. Rangefinder cameras, Rollies, view cameras.

- cheap - no camera is easier to operate; perfect for students - superb pictures - thing will last forever

light meter could be much better

I am a photography major in my first semester of college, and over the summer I began searching for a manual camera that (at least I hoped) would be very basic and easy to learn on and still give me quality prints. Little did I know, when my uncle presented me with my Asahi Pentax K-1000 which he bought in a pawn shop, that I would love this camera so much. It is about 25-30 years old, but I have had no problems with it whatsoever. Comparing my pictures to some of my classmates with cameras and lenses costing somewhere in the thousands of dollars, it is very difficult to tell the difference between them. The only problem is that the light meter isn't sensitive at all in very low light, so if you don't have a hand-held light meter, then I hope you're just very good at judging aperture/ shutter speed (if you aren't, I would suggest you start practicing!). However, if you are looking to purchase a low-end, simple camera, I would not recommend any other model.

Customer Service

never needed any

Similar Products Used:

other Pentax models

unbreakable

only the lightmeter could be more sensitive, that is all

All my gear got stolen, so while weating for an answer from the insuarance company, I wantedf to have a simple camera, I just had one request, that is is a pentax again. So They ahd a nice k-1000 with a f2 50mm lens. shot a few rolls with it, and was very happy with the results. I have shot a few rolls with it now, and all of them came out fine, so the meter and shutterspeeds are still acurate, even after all these years. I am not using it at the moment, cause when shooting film at ISO50, the lightmeter doesn't work well, but gonna have that fixed soon so I can enjoy the wonders of this very simple camera.

Customer Service

just simple cleaning and repairs after intensive use.

Similar Products Used:

pentax me-super, ricoh kr-5 super, pentax mx

Very durable in normal use. Easy change of lenses make it very versatile.Very good quality photos

This camera in a bag with 3 other lenses can be quite heavy.

The Pentax K1000 is a remarkable camera, given the relatively inexpensive cost. I have taken many hundreds of very nice quality photos. I have had my camera for about 12 years. It has never needed repairs, just cleaning.

Customer Service

None required

Similar Products Used:

Minolta, Cannon

All metal body, simplicity, durable, easy to use, GREAT photos.

The light meter at low light levels and slow shutter speeds is frustrating at times. This camera I have only allows wide open metering. It would be nice to have stop down metering.

I've been using the K1000 for about ten years. I've tried several times to buy a newer camera and just couldn't do it. Like Grandpa always says, "if it ain't broke, don't fix it!" I've taken thousands of photographs with this camera. I've yet to meet anyone that could tell the difference between the photos I take and one from a high end Nikon. I've got several lenses but my favorite is the 50mm F2 that came with it. This camera functions in any weather and has taken a beating. It's top notch as far as I'm concerned.

Customer Service

Never needed customer service with this body.

Similar Products Used:

Ricoh, Nikon, Olympus, all manual of course.

Solid, easy to handle, battery endures for a long time, and even then is cheap as hell to replace.

The light meter dies at about EV 4, so low light photography is pretty hard on this camera, that is: if you don't have a seperate light meter on hand. I wouldn't call lack of depth of field control and self-timer a weakness, since you get these in the KX if you want them.

For months have I searched for this camera, but I wanted a fair price, which I finally got... it included the SMC 50mm f2. This lens is a bit on the slow end for a standard lens, but it's very sharp at f4 and smaller apertures, and quite acceptable wide open. As for this cute nostalgic camera: I love it. I'm a MZ5/ZX5 user, but I wanted a manual camera to get further practice in the effects of different shutter speeds and apertures, which is much easier to have control over and learn about on a manual cam. It's solid build, and quite pretty too. Besides, I feel like black and white shooting is much more fun on an old camera. Ow, and don't forget to seal the lens when you're done shooting, or the battery will die :)

Customer Service

Never needed on this cam yet. The price of repair is about as high as a second hand replacement though.

Similar Products Used:

Pentax MZ-5/ZX-5

Update on my earlier review !! Just bought a smc 28 2.8 and have fallen in love with the K1000 again. Picked up and operated a Nikon FM2 and for all the hype, the Pentax feels just as good. I recently asked one of our leading nature and landscape photographers what gear he used, guess what - a K1000 !! Will never sell this baby

It''s the K-1000. What more can anyone say? When the F-5 is sitting around collecting dust because it''s no longer serviced by Nikon, The K-1000 shall thump past like the Energizer Bunny.

Only that it''s not being made anymore.

I''ve written a review before, but I want to include this bit of information now. I bought this camera with a 50/2 lens for $165. I went onto eBay, bought an M42 screw mount adapter ($20) and a Zeiss 50/2.8 lens, probably pre-war, for about $30. I am now walking around downtown and taking pictures that a $2000 body and a $1500 lens could only parallel. Think about it. Then go out and buy a K-1000.

Customer Service

jammed once. camera shop guy took off the bottom plate, flipped an armature that got stuck on a spring, and it worked fine. after 2 years of daily use, more than 2,000 exposures, not even a CLA.

Similar Products Used:

pz-1p, mz-5n, me super, spotmatic II

Light weight. Strongly built. Manual. Excellent beginer or learning camera. An advanced photograher will need an automatic camera for speed, but for what it is, it''s the best.

No film viewing window. Slow to use because everything is manual. Rather loud click, sometimes scares animals. Often needs lots of light. Light meter is often under exposed.

Excellent camera. Well built. Very clear photos.

Simple, easy to use. Great supporting cast of lenses (stick to SMC or equiv Viv. Ser. 1, Tamron SP), doesn''t eat batteries. Gets along great with a Vivtar 283!

Self timer? I had to purchase a separate one that screws into the release button. Depth of Field Preview (the SP 1000 had it!), I also would like to see the shutter speed and aperture in the viewfinder as well (I know . . . buy an MX!)

I think the K1000 is great. It''s tough, easy to handle (big-hands), clear view-finder, and very easy to learn how to use. I take the camera whenever I go hiking and when I don''t take it it''s because I''m carrying my SP1000 instead. Accurate metering and a flawless film transport mechanism.

Similar Products Used:

Pentax SP500, 1000. Minolta XG-1.