Coding non ASPH 35mm Summicron question

[adavis47]

I have an older 35mm Summicron, not ASPH. I contacted DAG and they said they could machine the flange. When I looked at the coding location on another lens and compared it to the 35mm flange, it appears one of the coding marks would sit right on a flange screw. I asked DAG and they said that would not be a problem. Then I wondered about painting in the code. Would you paint over top of the screw, or ??? Rather than bother DAG again I thought I would see if anyone has encountered this issue and what they did. Thanks

 

[cyberguru]

Hey Al,

I have coded my 35mm Cron IV with the D-Coder kit. You are correct, one of the mount screw sits right where a black code should be.
I went ahead and marked over it and sure enough the M8 recongnized it as a 35mm lens.

Hope that helps.

 

[adavis47]

Thanks Reggie. Do you find this solution works well or do you have to color in the coding frequently?

 

[cyberguru]

I have coded the following with a temporary felt tip pen.

25mm ZM 2.8 (coded as 24 Elmarit)
35mm Cron IV
35mm Cron ASPH
35mm Lux ASPH
35mm Nockton 1.2
50mm Pre-ASPH
75mm Cron ASPH
75mm Lux
90mm Cron Pre-Asph
90mm Cron ASPH

All have been successful, some hold longer then others, depends on how often you mount and dismount it.

I've had some that stayed on for at least 20 mounts.

I usually look at it and if it looks to start fading, I just pop the coder on and and touch it up. Takes about 10 seconds and will last for some time.

Would you like me to code you 90mm Cron ASPH before I ship it out to you?

 

[adavis47]

Yes, that would be great. Thanks.

 

[ramosa]

it's great how you need information--and you find it in an RFF post. i'm considering getting the summicron 35mm v4, but am concerned about coding. let me make sure that i understand my options. send the lens to leica (and be without a lens for a long time) or use the m-coder as a temporary fix. are there any other businesses (e.g., dag) in the united states that complete permanent coding at a good price with a quick turnaround? thanks for any help.

 

[cyberguru]

DAG does it and cheaper too. Only thing is his backlog. so it may even take as long as Leica NJ.

I think leica charges $175 and DAG quoted me $65 when I sent in my canon 50mm f/0.95 for the m-mount conversion. But he told me he had 6 canon 50 conversions in front of me and a 3 month wait. He said special request like that has a longer wait, but just a 6-bit code on a lens may get you a quicker return.

 

[adavis47]

ramosa, some issues come up with coding this lens as a flange screw sits right in the middle of the two code areas that must be black, so the screw must be black. Even if grooves are machined for the code I'm not sure that the screw head won't still be flush with the flange and any paint (marker) on it will still be susceptible to wiping off. I've used the m-coder on this lens and it works fine. You'll see in the photo that you could probably code this lens without the m-coder. The two code areas that must be black are next to one another so you can make just make one large black area. The screw acts as a guide, making the black mark a bit wider than the screw. Easy enough to try. Make sure you get down inside the machined area of the screw that is meant to take the screwdriver tip.

 

[Ben Z]

The code for the V.4 35 Cron is 2 black segments side by side, and the screw sits smack in between them. What I I was mill out one double-size recess surrounding the screw hole, making sure to leave enough flange underneath the screw head so it could be retightened correctly. After putting the screw back in I then painted the whole thing black and it codes perfectly. Even if you don't paint the screw it probably would work, because the code reader tends to read screw heads as if they were black code segments. That's why some of the older-generation Leitz lenses you need to paint that screw white so it doesn't fool the M8.

Oh yes, and I coded my V.3 35 Cron as a V.4 (since there's no factory code for it) and it works great.

 

[oldoc]

Only problem here is Don told me about a month ago they were out of the coding business. Referred me to some metal working shop in Brooklyn. Still having nightmares about my cron 35 ASPH in the hands of Hector the journeyman metalwright...

 

[cyberguru]

Wow, I recently email DAG that he should hire some help to offload some of his work, but letting the metal shop handle my Noctilux is going a little too far...hehehe

 

[JNewell]

You guys might want to do a little background checking before you throw slurs at Hektor the metalwright...

 

[cyberguru]

It's all in good fun, i'm sure they are reputable if DAG referred them...

 

[Tom Niblick]

Only problem here is Don told me about a month ago they were out of the coding business. Referred me to some metal working shop in Brooklyn. Still having nightmares about my cron 35 ASPH in the hands of Hector the journeyman metalwright...

Michael,

Don always sent the flanges to Milich for milling. He charged a $75 to take your flange off and send it to Milich who did the milling. Then Don would paint the code and reassemble the lens. Milich charged $25 so Don made a whopping $50 for his efforts.

Now its up to you to remove the flange and send it to Milich then reassemble it when its done.

BTW: "Hector" is a better photographer than most of us ever will be. He does this because he loves Leicas not because he's getting rich from his labors.

Tom

 

[cyberguru]

That's great, "Hector" has a real name, Milich. That's good enough for me.

Thanks for the info.

Michael,

Don always sent the flanges to Milich for milling. He charged a $75 to take your flange off and send it to Milich who did the milling. Then Don would paint the code and reassemble the lens. Milich charged $25 so Don made a whopping $50 for his efforts.

Now its up to you to remove the flange and send it to Milich then reassemble it when its done.

BTW: "Hector" is a better photographer than most of us ever will be. He does this because he loves Leicas not because he's getting rich from his labors.

Tom

 

[JNewell]

Having had four flanges machined by "Hektor," I can say he does first quality work at a very reasonable price with great turnaround.

If only 1/3 of American businesses performed at this level, you wouldn't find "China" on the back or bottom of almost everything sold here today. 🙁

 

[adavis47]

Contact information for "Hektor", Millich? Much appreciated.

 

[cyberguru]

Al,

Contact info is John Milich, jm@milich.com

Contact information for "Hektor", Millich? Much appreciated.

 

[adavis47]

Thanks Reggie.