I got to handle an RD once and it just seemed to 'fit'. As far as being a pain to use I'll have to give it a work out and see.
I have rather big fingers... You may indeed like it, let's see.
I actually consider the SP rather a pain, I'll compare. The RC on the other hand is a joy all around, just want the faster lens when needed. Believe it or not the QL17 GIII focus 'lever' drives me nuts, I'd rather just have a ring like all my other cameras.
I dislike the lever for esthetic reasons but, in use, it makes me grab the focus ring without any thinking, even with light gloves.
But optical quality is all that really counts. Quality control is probably not as good on these 70s' RFs as with SLR lenses (from what I read in the "Classic35mmCompacts" group).
The Pentax PC35AF is another classic RF. Auto focus but winding is manual (no noise), metal body, small (not as much as Olympus XA but noticably smaller than RC), exposure control through ASA (25 to 400), +1.5 stop button also, fill-in flash, self-timer, high quality 5 elements optics. Manual winding and rewinding is what makes it special among many otherwise interesting AF cameras.
Andre
