Focal Length of an _old_ Tessar?

[wlewisiii]

I'm looking at an old B&L licensed Tessar. The lens is marked "BAUSCH LOMB ZEISS TESSAR SERIES II(TWO) B - 5X8 f 6.3 PAT. FEB.24 1903 No.1215824" I'm trying to determine what focal length this old barrel mount lens is. I've got evil thoughts about the fact that the Speed Graphic has a focal plane shutter... 😀

Thanks!

William

 

[phototone]

For 5x8 huh? I'll bet it is a 7 inch focal length (175mm) It should work as a moderate telephoto (just slight telephoto) on your Speed Graphic if you use the focal plane shutter.
Won't be able to focus too close though.

 

[wlewisiii]

Yeah, that's the one possiblity I've been finding in the scraps of information I've been able to find. The other strong possibility is around 8" to 8 1/4" - roughly a normal for 5x7... Not a whole lot of information out there that I've been able to find.

Ah, well, if I get it I can always determine the focal length the old fashioned way 😀

Thanks,

William

 

[wlewisiii]

Well, I'll be finding out the focal length as I got it for $11.20 😀 😀 😀

Hope it's as good as it looks http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=7540944134&rd=1&sspagename=STRK:MEWN:IT&rd=1

Anyone with tips on mounting old barrel lenses? 🙂

William

 

[pshinkaw]

If the diameter requires a larger hole than the Speed Graphic's lensboard, I suggest you fabricate a new one. I modified a Graphic board once to take a 135mm enlarging lens and then found out how much one those things cost. Now if I want to mount another lens, I will have to patch the flange mounting screw-holes.

Nonetheless, a Vivitar 135mm enlarging lens works great on a 3.25 X 4.25 Speed Graphic using the FP shutter.

-Paul

 

[wlewisiii]

I was planning on just making one. I can get a thin piece of wood (one of the joys of the older models 😀 ) and filing it into shape a whole lot cheaper than I've seen those go for. I'm really looking forward to playing with this now. Should be a lot of fun.

William

 

[OldNick]

Measure the diameter of the lens and multiply that by 6.3 to get a rough idea of the focal length. Otherwise, focus the sun on a non-flamable surface and measure the distance from the center of the lens to the image.

 

[wlewisiii]

Thanks to a pointer from a person on Graflex.org, I found this page http://www.cameraeccentric.com/html/info/bauschcat/coveraged.html which indicates it's a 8-3/8" focal length lens. That should be just about perfect for my plans. It's nice to be good, but lucky works too... 😀 and 😱 that was an $80 lens in 1920 without a shutter!

William

 

[doubs43]

That's approximately a 210mm lens; a fairly common focal length for 4x5 cameras. The one you've just purchased seems to be in super condition and should be a top quality image maker.

IMO, you've scored very nicely. Let us know how the lens performs when you get it.

Walker

 

[wlewisiii]

I hope so. As for letting you all know how it performs, you'll probably have a harder time shutting me up 🙂 "Mommy is it here yet????" 😀 😀 😀

William