Altix lens to Leica M adapter

[rune_nordrum]

I consider to by an adapter for Altix lens to Leica M adapter. Does anybody have any experience with this combination on analogue (film) camera with M-mount? I have a Zeiss Zm, but I guess this will work in the same way on a Leica or Voigtländer analogue camera with M-mount.

 

[radi(c)al_cam]

I consider to by an adapter for Altix lens to Leica M adapter. Does anybody have any experience with this combination on analogue (film) camera with M-mount?

I’m not sure whether I understand you correctly; which adapter exactly are you talking about?

I know there are at least three different Altix-to-Leica-RF adapters available that are basically built like adapters for SLR-lenses on RF-cameras: they do not NOT support the transmission of the distance you’ve chosen, hence you’re working not with a rangefinder but with a viewfinder camera, so to say.

Or: Have you discovered a more sophisticated adapter?

I have a Zeiss Zm, but I guess this will work in the same way on a Leica or Voigtländer analogue camera with M-mount.

The «Zeiss Ikon», I suppose?

 

[rune_nordrum]

Thank you for your replay.

It is a Zeiss Ikon ZM, to be precise.

You are perfectly right about what you said, and if I had thought about it, I would not have posted this question. The lens is made for a viewfinder camera and have no transmission between the distance setting on the lens and the rear part of the lens. Therefore the adapter has no mechanical information to pick up from the lens. So if I use this lens on a rangefinder with an adapter, I would have to guess the distance and in addition could not use the numbers (meter/feet) on the barrel. So I will be better off with an Altix camera-body.

 

[radi(c)al_cam]

It is a Zeiss Ikon ZM, to be precise.

You are perfectly right about what you said, and if I had thought about it, I would not have posted this question. The lens is made for a viewfinder camera and have no transmission between the distance setting on the lens and the rear part of the lens. Therefore the adapter has no mechanical information to pick up from the lens. So if I use this lens on a rangefinder with an adapter, I would have to guess the distance and in addition could not use the numbers (meter/feet) on the barrel. So I will be better off with an Altix camera-body.

I can imagine a couple of alternative solutions, from the least to the most expensive:

a) I’m sure, the Altix lenses could be used on many SLRs, at least if the cameras have a short «register», a simple mechanical adapter could be made.

If one wants to use them on a Leica-type rangefinder camera:

b) Most simple way would be an external rangefinder — how did they use the Altix then? I guess many users had an additional rangefinder in their cameras’ accessory shoe.

c) One could modify the lenses so that they carry a rangefinder «tongue» (is that the correct term? Not sure). That would be not that difficult concerning the 50mm lens.
The 35mm and the 90mm lenses would need a more sophisticated solution that includes a translation of the movements so that they match the correct movement of the camera’s rangefinder cam.

d) If one doesn’t want to modify the lenses: Hypothetically, one could build an adapter that would carry all the aforementioned rangefinder coupling parts; that would need some sort of tiny gear shifting, if one wants to have one adapter for all lenses in question. I’m not sure whether there would be enough space inside the adapter, perhaps one adapter per lens could be doable.