Nikon-E 50/1.8 on Pentax K

luisalegria · Expire: 2018-01-18

There was a recent discussion on the Nikon-E lenses. I was inspired to have a look at my Nikons and Nikkors, which I rarely touch anymore. I also wanted to investigate the idea of using Nikon/Nikkors on Pentax DSLR's.

I have two Nikon-E's, the 50/1.8 and the 75-150/3.5 (and some other Nikkors)

Neither of my E's seem to have plastic barrels or helicals, both seem to be aluminum. The 50/1.8 really is quite a compact lens.

The E's and my Nikkor-Q 135/2.8 and Nikkor 50/2 all mount on my Pentax K100D. None really mount well on my Pentax LX or SF10 (so the picture above is a bit of a lie). The E 50/1.8, the Q-135, and the 50/2 mount very firmly (but don't lock) on the K100D. Even though they don't lock, there is no danger of their getting loose, so I have been taking them out to shoot with - there is no infinity problem of course, though the aperture ring is sometimes a bit tight. The E 75-150 mounts, but not firmly, and is not safe to leave it attached. The others are fully usable as manual lenses on my K100D, so I expect they are probably usable on all Pentax DSLR's.

So my conclusion is that most older Nikkor's and probably many third-party Nikon-mount lenses are probably quite functional on Pentax DSLR's. I will more confidently look into Nikon mount wide-angles if they come up, and maybe some of the old Nikkor-Q's if any are available cheap.

I looked into modifying them to lock on the Pentax - this will not be as simple as just drilling a hole for the Pentax locking lug, because that part of the Nikon mount does not lie flush against the lug. One would have to somehow install an aluminum or plastic spacer with a hole or a slot.

The Nikon E seems to be a perfectly fine lens, but not exceptional in any way vs my M42 primes.

The bird - they wouldn't let me get too close

crop -

NikonD · Joined: 29 Jul 2008 Posts: 1922 Location: Slovenija

hmmm nice photos... how about pentax lenses on nikon body... must fit aswell but what about the infinity? can you check that out... I would apriciate it Wink

the_Suede · Joined: 30 Oct 2008 Posts: 67 Location: Sweden

Infinity focus is easy, you go 0.98 to 1.04mm PAST infinity when mounted like this.... Smile

@Luis : the real "steal" in the E-series right now is the 100/2.8 which can be found for pocket change.... And the 75-150/3.5 zoom that you already have, but that tends to be pricier as the excellence of that lens is widely known by "Legacy" Nikkor people. And I guess it would be hard to use if you can't get it to "lock" on to the mount.
I've found the 100/2.8 within a hair's breadth as good as the legendary 105/2.5's that I've tried. It's seriously good value.
The 50/1.8E is identical to the current AF-D 50/1.8 optically as far as I've been able to find... It's not exceptional, just very good Smile