HerbChong wrote:
i can tell you haven't actually used any recent single digit D series Nikon body in heavy rain. the D3 is significantly better than my K20D. a couple of the guys in the Nikon forum have shot entire sessions in rain too hard to see 10 meters without additional protection on their setups. i trust my D3 and D3X much more than my K20D even with the weatherproof lenses. the K7 might be better than the K20D but it doesn't seem like it so far. my personal experience has been shooting under heavy showers for about 4 hours with my D2X and 300/4 AF-S. until the DA * lenses came out, there was no point doing something like that with Pentax lenses because they all leaked water like a sieve.

Herb...


The D3 series bodies are not splashproof. They're certainly up to heavy rain (I've used the D300 in similar circumstances and it's not as well sealed as a D3 body). All of the sealed pro bodies can handle that sort of situation when matched with sealed lenses.

The K10D/K20D are better sealed than any of the Nikon DSLR's. Same goes for the DA* lenses (although they're definitely lacking in selection compared to even Nikon's selection of sealed lenses). The fact you trust the Nikon's more does not change the fact that the Pentax's are better sealed, particularly at the card door and battery compartment.

The K7 has lighter sealing than the K10D/K20D around the card door and battery compartment. As far as I'm aware the K-7 is not splashproof unlike its predecessors. Its sealing level most resembles the K200D's.

mawz wrote:
All of the sealed pro bodies can handle that sort of situation when matched with sealed lenses.

Sealed lenses are pretty unimportant from what I've deduced through using all kinds of unsealed lenses with my D700. Rain never makes it past the mount. The sealing is especially important for the buttons on the camera. That was the entry point which put my friends 5D2 out of order.

mawz wrote:
The K7 has lighter sealing than the K10D/K20D around the card door and battery compartment. As far as I'm aware the K-7 is not splashproof unlike its predecessors. Its sealing level most resembles the K200D's.
Having looked at only the K-7 it's sealing is in no way as good as a D700s.

TWoK wrote:
mawz wrote:
All of the sealed pro bodies can handle that sort of situation when matched with sealed lenses.

Sealed lenses are pretty unimportant from what I've deduced through using all kinds of unsealed lenses with my D700. Rain never makes it past the mount. The sealing is especially important for the buttons on the camera. That was the entry point which put my friends 5D2 out of order.

It can be an issue if enough water gets into the lens or the lens has an open rear, as that can provide an entry point to the body.

having just checked the service manuals for the K10D and the specifications for the seals on the body, you are in fantasy land. just look at the door seals on the K7 vs the D3 and that's all that you need to see who is more likely to survive a splash. the D2X and D3x use the same seal system.

Herb...

mawz wrote:
The D3 series bodies are not splashproof. They're certainly up to heavy rain (I've used the D300 in similar circumstances and it's not as well sealed as a D3 body). All of the sealed pro bodies can handle that sort of situation when matched with sealed lenses.

The K10D/K20D are better sealed than any of the Nikon DSLR's. Same goes for the DA* lenses (although they're definitely lacking in selection compared to even Nikon's selection of sealed lenses). The fact you trust the Nikon's more does not change the fact that the Pentax's are better sealed, particularly at the card door and battery compartment.

The K7 has lighter sealing than the K10D/K20D around the card door and battery compartment. As far as I'm aware the K-7 is not splashproof unlike its predecessors. Its sealing level most resembles the K200D's.

The K-7 as I noted earlier has distinctly inferior card and battery door sealing to the K10D/K20D. The K10D/K20D are better sealed than the D3, the K-7 most assuredly is not. The main difference here is the battery and card doors, the K10D/K20D have a better sealed battery door and similar levels of sealing in the card door to the D3, the K-7 uses a design most similar to the D90 for those.

You cannot use the K-7 to demonstrate that the D3 is better sealed than the K10D/K20D. It's not the same body design, the card and battery door design is completely different and Pentax doesn't even make the same claims with regards to dust sealing (K-7 is Dust Resistant, K20D is Dustproof) let alone weather resistance.

In other words you are attempting to disagree with me on the K10D/K20D sealing by agreeing with me on the K-7's distinctly inferior level of sealing.

I will note that I did make one mistake with the specs, the K10D/K20D was advertized by Pentax as 'splash resistant' not splashproof. Nikon only claims 'moisture resistant' for the D3.

HerbChong wrote:
having just checked the service manuals for the K10D and the specifications for the seals on the body, you are in fantasy land. just look at the door seals on the K7 vs the D3 and that's all that you need to see who is more likely to survive a splash. the D2X and D3x use the same seal system.

Herb...

mawz wrote:
The D3 series bodies are not splashproof. They're certainly up to heavy rain (I've used the D300 in similar circumstances and it's not as well sealed as a D3 body). All of the sealed pro bodies can handle that sort of situation when matched with sealed lenses.

The K10D/K20D are better sealed than any of the Nikon DSLR's. Same goes for the DA* lenses (although they're definitely lacking in selection compared to even Nikon's selection of sealed lenses). The fact you trust the Nikon's more does not change the fact that the Pentax's are better sealed, particularly at the card door and battery compartment.

The K7 has lighter sealing than the K10D/K20D around the card door and battery compartment. As far as I'm aware the K-7 is not splashproof unlike its predecessors. Its sealing level most resembles the K200D's.

i have all of the K cameras and all of the D's mentioned. you have obviously not examined the D2 and D3 series bodies nor the D700 and compared them to all of the K bodies. the Pentax K10D, K20D, and K7 are not as sealed as any of them and it is obvious from external examination and confirmed by checking the service manuals. the Pentax bodies are suitable for light rain for short periods of time and some splashes. the D2 and D3 bodies are suitable for heavy rain and splashes for much longer. double channels in all the doors is standard on the Nikon bodies mentioned. none of the Pentax bodies have that. Nikon uses soft solid rubber gaskets. Pentax uses closed cell foam. it costs money to do good water sealing and none of the K cameras cost enough to have the level in one of the D2/D3/D700 bodies. even the D200/D300 bodies have noticeably less than the D2/D3 series and they cost much more than the Pentax bodies. the service manuals bear this out with their seal replacement specifications and instructions.

Herb...

mawz wrote:
The K-7 as I noted earlier has distinctly inferior card and battery door sealing to the K10D/K20D. The K10D/K20D are better sealed than the D3, the K-7 most assuredly is not. The main difference here is the battery and card doors, the K10D/K20D have a better sealed battery door and similar levels of sealing in the card door to the D3, the K-7 uses a design most similar to the D90 for those.

The weather sealed claim is meant to afford you more security in shooting in adverse conditions. Now after saying that, I have shot with my K7 and DA* lenses in pouring rain without a hiccup.

Now I don't claim you can submerge them underwater for extended periods of time, but the Pentax weather sealing in the K10/20/7 with DA* lenses allows you to continue your work when the weather does turn upside down.