Should I consider a 3rd Party battery grip the K7 (or K5)

[stemked]

<p>Hello All.<br>

As I previously noted I just picked up a 600mm f5.6 A. The lens is extremely front-heavy and so I put a long Quick release plate on the lens (the mount IMHO is not well placed). The lens though is still front heavy and doesn't balance on my Jobu Gimble head so I'm trying to add some weight to the camera, ergo I'm considering a battery grip for the body. The point is though I'm rather cash-short right now and the thought of a $220 + for a grip is not in the cards. I see a lot of 3rd party grips on e**y for about $50 so I have started to consider them. Short of not supporting our engineer friends at Richo-Pentax (I think I've helped put enough of their kids through college anyway) what other things should I be aware of if I get one of the knock-off grips?<br>

Cheers,<br>

Doug</p>

[michellemandat]

<p>For me grip is heavy and slightly useless because battery has a good autonomy about 700 shots. So if you want a grip in spite of that, buy a second hand or a third party. Put lead in it to balance the set with the lens !</p>

[mtk]

<p>Hi Doug, I'm a Nikon guy. I purchased a third party grip (Mielke brand) from Adorama and have been very happy with it on my D90. I know there seems to be several import brand names, but I am thinking they most likely are all the same manufacturer. The pricing of these thru Adorama or BH may be just a tick higher than Ebay, but I would check there first. At least you then have some warranty recourse with a reputable company should the need arise. When I purchased mine it was eligible for free shipping thru Adorama so you may consider that route as well.<br>

Have Fun!<br>

Mark</p>

[stemked]

<p>Michel,<br>

I actually had sold my grip for the K10 for the very reason you stated, I never used it. But it's the weight I need.</p>

<p>Thanks Mark for the info. Somehow I hadn't guessed a knock-off would be a real shop. I see them on Amazon less than on e**y so it seems that's the logical direction for me.</p>

<p> </p>

[sketch_tbhotmail.com]

<p>A warning about third party battery grips. I bought one for my K20 a couple of years ago and noticed that the insert lock was always a little too easy to release. Then the inevitable happened... I was shooting a stream near my in laws house when I heard a faint thunk. Thinking nothing of it, I finished shooting and carried my camera (still attached to my tripod) back to the house. When I got back, I realized I had dropped my grip insert which had the battery, IR remote, and extra SD card in it. I spent a few hours moving rocks around in that section of the creek, got soaked in the process and still never found the stupid gear. My wife just got me a new grip (can't buy the insert separately of course) and I keep a piece of gaffers tape over the lock now.</p>

[william_roberts4]

<p>Being an engineer, I would just create a counter balance like a steel plate that could screw into the tripod mount in the bottom of the camera. Maybe a 1/4" steel plate with a tripod screw in it? Could this be an option? Would be cheaper than the battery grip.</p>

[danny_wong2]

<p>I screw a metal jar of pennies to the tripod socket as counterweight. Especially when I am using the 400/4 EDIF. That lens' tripod mount is balanced for a Pentax 67 so when using DSLR/645 and sometime the 1.7x AF converter balancing the whole rig on a gimbal is a must.</p>

[stemked]

<p>Interesting William. I think I could try and make something like that.</p>

[michellemandat]

<p>A wooden grip, without battery w'll be light and handy. I'm on a project.</p>

[celasun]

<p>I have the original grip for K20D and the third party one (better of the few options) for the K5. Both are useful and fine. I especially like the ability to use more battery power longer (usually for the whole trip). The balance issue is of no concern for me as my glasses are not that big. The "good" third party grip has worked just fine until now...</p>

[andrewg_ny]

<p>If it's just for the weight, the grip <em>is </em>kind of expensive. I would be a little wary of third-party grips matching the weather sealing of the Pentax grip but the savings is real. I don't think used genuine grips are much cheaper than new ones right now.</p>

<p>You might not like this idea but you could mount a flash to the camera to boost camera weight.</p>

[mountainvisions]

<p>With previous grips, I'd agree with Michel and for most of my shooting I still agree. However, The K-7/K-5 grip is much more useful than before due to the AF button being on the grip. This allows you to actually use the grip in portrait mode without contorting your fingers to reach the body mounted AF button. The extra shutter button without the extra AF button is plainly useless, IMO.</p>

<p>The K10D grip never got used by me, and I sold it for what I paid (got a good deal on it) 4 years later. I haven't bought a K-7 grip but if I was to buy it, I'd go with the excellent models I've seen that appear to be actual reproductions of the real grip (minus, perhaps, the sealing). As a matter of fact, LinkDelight, the original place I intended to buy it, stopped stocking them and would not give me a reason why they were pulled from the site nor any time frame for them to carry them again. My impression is some sort of patent violation.</p>

<p>People might mention the knockoff grip not being sealed. So what? The way the grip attaches to the body even if the grip were to be soaked with a fire hose the K-7 would still be sealed (the ports on the K-7/K-5 are internally sealed, which is why the annoying rubber plugs are not really an issue in terms of maintaining sealing).</p>

<p>For my purposes, I probably wouldn't be using the grip where weather sealing mattered. Actually, I'd probably be using the grip when shooting portraits or sporting events.</p>

<p> </p>

[stemked]

<p>Trust me, the 600mm lens is not going to is a situation where "to seal or not to seal" will be an issue. Frankly one thing I love about Pentax camera bodies is the small size, ergo the grip (or other weight) will really only be in use when I'm shooting with the big lens.<br>

I'll be taking another class this year down to Costa Rica and I suspect I will have a chance to use my K7 under 'adverse rain conditions' and as such the only lens on the body will be my sealed 100mm macro.</p>

[jeremy_corbin]

<p>It's hard to say but I also suggest an alternative counterweight. I'd probably find a 1/4-20 eyelet so I could put a carabiner on it. With that in place I could put a sandbag (or something else I already own) with the perfect amount of sand in it to counterbalance everything. Although I have metal plate laying round (my father is a Welding Inspector) I know that buying a plate for this purpose might cost more than the 3rd party grip. If the whole idea is just a counterbalance I'd spend the least amount of money I could while maximizing usability. The sandbag would be detachable and how much does sand (or whatever else you have laying around) cost you? Very little.</p>

<p>That said, I've been eyeing the 3rd party grips for my K10, but I've only seriously considered the nicer ones with dual wheels and the shutter release. I don't use back button focusing, so the AF button wouldn't do much for me. (I currently have the AF button to recenter the select-able AF point). I rarely (if ever) use the green button, but if it's there, it's there. I really only shoot portrait orientation for head shots so most of my environmentals are in landscape orientation. Even still, the grip would still be nice to have.</p>

[mountainvisions]

<p>One other thing about the new grip.</p>

<p>Unlike previous Pentax grips post with Lithium camera body batteries, the BG4 can take AA batteries.</p>

<p>This is perhaps a reason to go with the Pentax OEM grip, because if you are doing extended shooting off the grid, you might want a fully sealed setup if you are using the AA batteries as a main power source. Because if the grip dies, you camera is essentially dead as well (from lack of power).</p>

<p>However, the only time I suspect I would need the extra continuous AA lithium power is if I was shooting star trails (usually clear for that), in winter (fickle in this part of the world, but if it's cold enough to shoot with AA lithiums, it's probably too cold for water to be an issue), or video.</p>

<p>Video is probably the only thing I would need the grip for in weather sealed conditions. So unless you shoot a lot of video, you could probably skip the OEM grip.</p>

<p>Jeremiah, love that green button. Believe me, it's a great tool and one of Pentax best features for those shooting in manual.</p>