How to mount Jupiter-12 on Kiev 4am

[akptc]

Noel, I may need to use your write-up in my PhD dissertation on FSU lens CLA 😀 I am starting to appreciate more the skills required to adjust photo gear, I certainly don't have much of those.

Anyway, by now I am pretty certain that the reason my J12 has a tight spot is because of a machining error of some kind, i.e. one or two of the wide "keys" on the lens shaft are just a tad outside of the tolerances for the mount (I assume the mount is OK as it works well with all the other lenses).

I use the two Kievs now with either the Helios lens or (more so) with the 135 Nikkor, which is amazing. As a matter of fact the 135mm Nikkor is the reason I have not yet sold my Kiev outfit - if I take the time to focus properly, to my eyes it produces images nearly as good as my 77mm Pentax limited, which is the best lens I have.

But, now that I (again) have more photo gear than I need, the Kievs and FSU lenses will probably have to go. Of course, everyone already has a Kiev!-))

 

[rolleistef]

It seems that newer lenses on older bodies, or vice-versa, don't work very well.
When I bought my '56 IIIa, the seller proposed me to mount a 80s Helios 103 on it and it didn't work, unlike the '57 Jupiter 8. It may be the pb you're encountering with your 4AM?

 

[akptc]

Stéphane, that's probably right. The NOS Helios I got from fedka will only mount on one of the Kievs, while the old Helios works on both.

I guess you get what you pay for, i.e. all the roads lead to Leica.. 🙂?