Why did Cosina limit the 50/3.5 Heliar production?

chris00nj

chris00nj

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Among the possibilities for 50mm lenses, there is sometimes a need for having a small compact 50 in the arsenal. However, the choices are limited. The Elmars are over 50 years old and are often fogged and scratched.

The 50/3.5 Heliar seems like a great lens, got great reviews, and it would fit a niche in the market very well.

I'm wondering why Cosina only had a limited run of this lens?
 
The Elmar-M is one of the best lenses in the Leica line-up. Don't let the small size and modest aperture fool you. In my opinon - shared with many - it is on par with and exceeds in many respects the image rendering of the summicron. Oops, sorry, that was kind of off-topic.
 
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Odd, at first sight.

Maybe they reckoned that it was such a tiny market there was no sense in making more than one run of them. Or maybe they reckoned that the number of people who say they'd be happy with an f/3.5 lens is a lot smaller than the number of people who'd actually buy one. Or maybe they reckoned there are enough used f/2.8 Elmars on the market, some of them very recent, that those would suffice.

Yes, it was/is a brilliant lens -- I had one for review -- but I have to say that I'd rather have a Summarit: better ergonomics, a stop faster, and I prefer the look it gives (so does my wife -- she bought one). The extra bulk of the Summarit is pretty trivial.

Cheers,

R.
 
To get a good Elmar 3.5 LTM, I simply paid the premium price at a dealer for a late coated example in decent shape. They're getting (relatively) tough to find.

I probably would have paid a bit more for the Heliar, if I had been able to find one; I think the market was/is bigger than VC estimated.
 
It was a shame it was never available as lens only. I would have liked one for a older LTM Leica for a classic compact package with a stunning optic. I originally tried to get one of the Konica 50mm 2.4 collapsibles but they were even more difficult to get. I didnt need it that much to warrant getting the 101 kit the lens came with. My curiosity for the lens was still there though, and since i had Nikon RF as well, when Cameraquest offered the lens by itself in S mount for a most reasonable $299 I snapped one up. I doubt I will ever part with it its a tremendous lens. One thing that surprised me is that while every other Voigtlander lens I have tried has a similar family character to them this lens really has one all of its own. In LTM form there are 2000 of them out there so just be patient and one will come up eventually. The Nikon S versions seem to be relatively easy to get hold of still and there are only 500 of them
 
The original Heliar 50f3.5 was a "limited edition" only on the T 101 kit. The R2S version came up as an idea at a discussion at the factory. A rigid version and in the SC mount would not offend the "collectors" who paid a premium for the T 101. I dont know if there ever will be another one though - it has been suggested many times and I would love to see one as a lens only.
It is a lens that is not only extremely sharp, but it has a "image draw" that is all its own. It will render an image that has a depth to it which is uniquely its own.
I like it with a slow, fine grain bl/w - it really pops!
 
It's not the only fairly recent lens that has become rare and expensive. For Nikon F-mount, the 125/2.5 APO-Lanthar is also sold out and Stephen Gandy thinks it's unlikely to be made again. I don't understand Cosina's approach in cases where the lens is very popular.
 
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