Konica M-Hexanon 50/2 - focus problems

This is what I posted yesterday:

"A few days ago I bought a Konica Hexar RF set with the M-Hexanon 50mm f2 lens.
I just did a few handheld test shots with the M8 to compare the Hexanon with my '70s Cron.
Wide open, near infinity, the Hexanon is disappointingly soft, with details and contrast suffering badly and it is absolutely no match for the seasoned Cron.
At close distances, it performs (almost) at the Cron level. Will do some more tests later today at middle distances."
Whether the rootcause is a focusing issue or whether the M8 and the Hexanon don't make a great pair, I don't know yet, but there is definitely an issue.

On the positive side, though, the Konica RF seems to work great with Leica lenses. The first roll I shot suggests no focussing issues. I did not do a systematic test, simply handheld shots with different lenses of the same subject at different apertures. In this quick comparison, film developped at cheap lab, compared low jpeg res. on screen, the Hexanon 50 seemed to be ok.
 
I use a 50mmM-Hexanon on a Leica M4. Between 1.5m and 5.0m, the focus accuracy when compared to a ruler is within 1 cm. That's less than half an inch. I'd say that's a perfect match. Oh, and on the Bessa-T, the accuracy is equal in the same range..
 
Over a year ago I purchased the 50/2 M Hexanon and found that indeed it had a slight focusing error with my MP that was not unlike the site on your initial post. Don Goldberg (DAG) took care of it at a nominal cost although he said Konica used so much cement on securing the part he needed to adjust, that he almost gave up on the repair. Fortunately his pesistance paid off and the lens came back with perfect focus agreement for my camera. Interestingly, my 28/2.8 M Hexanon also needed a focus adjustment by Don but the 90/2.8 M Hexanon was perfect as was the 35/2 UC Hexanon LTM.
 
Hmmm. My experience is that my M-Hexanon 50 focuses perfectly on both my Hexar RFs and on my M3. My other KM lenses also seem spot-on, but I've only used them on the Hexars. My Leica lenses all focus just fine on the Hexar RFs, including my Summilux 75 when used wide open. This leads me to believe that any focus issues come down to tolerances (a lens at one end of the curve matched to a camera at the other) or sample variation.

...Mike
 
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