Goggled Summaron 2.8 -- should I buy?

[mgrinnan]

Hello all

I thought I'd gaze into the crystal ball which is RFF and ask whether or not I should buy a goggled Summaron 2.8. My main camera is an M3, although I also shoot on a K1000 and a Yashica. 50mm is starting to feel a lil constrained and idk if the Summaron would hold it's value. The asking price is $600 and it's in pretty good shape. Let me know what you think!

 

[giulio stucchi]

it would be a perfect match for your M3, prices seems OK if the glass is clean and clear.

in case you don't know this thread:

http://rangefinderforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=108763

I love my summaron

Giulio

 

[Erik van Straten]

Try to find out before buying that the goggles are OK. Often the prism in the left window (seen from front) is loose so focusing will be problematic. Repairing this issue is not easy and can be expensive.

Another problem is fogging of the inner elements of the lens. This is for a competent repairman not hard to fix, but the repair will add to the price.

Erik.

 

[Benjamin Marks]

It is a lower contrast lens that, if cloudy, can produce a lot of flare. I love how they look as physical objects, but would see whether I could live with their technical qualities before buying one.

Here is a scan of a picture I took 10 years ago with mine:

 

[leicapixie]

Try to find out before buying that the goggles are OK. Often the prism in the left window (seen from front) is .Another problem is fogging of the inner elements of the lens. This is for a competent repairman not hard to fix, but the repair will add to the price.

Erik.

I have owned 35mm Goggled Summicron and now, a 35mm Goggled Summaron f2.8
Both lenses had loose prisms, making exact focus a real hassle.
I love my Summaron and actually prefer it to the (stolen) Summicron.
Any lens that is hazy, is almost worthless.
On my M3 perfect.

 

[Vics]

I didn't like the goggles. I ended up adapting a tiny Nikkor 2.5 and used an accessory finder. MUCH better! Here's one from the Summaron.
Selfie by Vic Stewart, on Flickr

 

[jamin-b]

I have one, without the issues mentioned here, and it's a class act. I enjoy it both on my M3 and M8. Good thing I didn't know about all these potential problems or I never would have risked buying it online....

 

[B-9]

Its a great lens when clean and clear,

Typically you find haze in the goggles, not a big deal, can be cleaned, or just live with it.

at 600$ you might wait on a better deal,

I purchased mine and sold it around 500$ In excellent condition all around with leica caps, leica uv filter, and IROOA hood.

 

[Ko.Fe.]

I've had 3.5. The build quality of the lens is very high. 2.8 is more interesting lens. 600 is low price as of now. Yes, where are others 35 in $600, but none of them will give you the signature of Leica optics. The lens you are asking about is perfect on bw film scans and very distinguishable. It isn't very heavy, but bulky. I have sold my goggled one because of this.
But my problem was with Color Skopar 35, which is a trap! 🙂

 

[kknox]

Great les, perfect for you M3.

 

[Muju79]

I say try before you buy if possible.
Some people don't like the extra bulkiness and weight given from the goggles, they also unbalance the camera towards the front (main reason I've sold mine).
Optically it is an amazing lens but when you have a clean one it is NOT a low contrast lens as someone wrote earlier. The contrast is actually very well balanced, in between classic and modern I'd say...of course it depends a lot on your film developing skills too.