Well my friend Colleen got the MX. It is a well used but not abused camera. Thanks for the heads up Jerry Thisty (re:electronics). Although the hot shoe is dead the PC plug works and the meter doesn't activate when the shutter is locked.
Armed with this information I was able to get a good deal. The MX ,a 50mm 1.2 Pentax lens,power winder and a fully functional Ricoh KR-5. All for $80.00.Sweet.
Colleen is now looking for a medium zoom lens.I gave her an old 135mm but she likes the midrange glass. Something like a 35-80mm. Suggestions?
Zooms have advantages, but there ain't no free lunch. They are heavy, slow, and almost always underperform a prime. She might consider the Pentax 85mm 1.8 M (or K) lens, it is a great performer, fast, light compared to a zoom, and works really well with the small MX.
I have an SMC pentax 40-80 F2.8 for my MX and it works quite well despite a small amount of peripheral fungus. Was thinking of listing on ebay as most of my 35mm kit is nikon. You could have it for postage cost if you're interested.