Industar 61LD

B

BB52

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Hello: I am a new member to the forum,and greatly enjoy the info fellow members have,I am using a Canon P w/ 50mm 1.8 serenar (rigid) I have been looking at the Industar 61LD,for a back up lens.Any comments would be helpfull.BB
 
it's a nice sharp lens... maybe a little harsh opened up, but the barrel is pretty nasty. Fine for a backup lens. Personally, I like my CV Color-Skopar 50/2.5 a lot better... cost more too (of course).
 
Hard to go wrong with the I-61 L/D. It's one of the best 50s ever made. A modernised version of the proven Tessar. I had one for years on a Canon before.

I don't see why the barrel can be 'nasty'. :)

For less than $20 apiece, what can go wrong?
 
Some of my favourite shots ever were taken with an Industar 61. It's really lovely a couple of stops down from wide open - around f5.6.

I compared mine to my Jupiter-8 and found that the Jupiter-8 was a little sharper at the same f-stop, and the Jupiter-8 was more resistant to flare, but I really like the look that I've had from the Industar.
 
mcgrattan said:
Some of my favourite shots ever were taken with an Industar 61. It's really lovely a couple of stops down from wide open - around f5.6.

I compared mine to my Jupiter-8 and found that the Jupiter-8 was a little sharper at the same f-stop, and the Jupiter-8 was more resistant to flare, but I really like the look that I've had from the Industar.
Click to expand...

You mention Industar 61, it makes however a difference if you use the L/D version, it is sharper than the 'normal' version. It also is quite sharper than all my J8 lenses (and I have zeven of them).
 
Jupiter 8

Jupiter 8

I have been looking into the Jupiter 8 read some good reviews on that lens also,decision`s ouch...........
 
I have an L/D that I am now considering selling. I will post in classifieds if anyone responds...
 
I have an I-61 L/D which I thought of selling because I do not use it. Decided to keep it since it won't bring in much money. It is remarkably sharp and contrasty, but prone to flare. Build quality is as low as its price.
 
I love my I-61, the mount and controls are a little rough, but the lens is a good performer, especially for the money. According to Princelle's book, the L/D and plain I-61 are identical, and the L/D was something added later on and is simply a renaming. Allegedly, the older 'zebra' (silver/black/silver) ones are made to a higher standard than the later ones, this is the one I have, and its a pretty sweet lens.
 
I guess mine is a zebra, then. I didn't know there was a difference. The l/d supposedly had a different coating on it as well, I thought. Optically identical, but different coatings.

Mine must be a good copy. Focusing is smooth, and aperture even has click stops (though they don't line up at all - you find the first click, and that's 2.8. Then go from there. Ignore the labels). Mount is nice and tight, and images are sharp except for when I get flare.
 
My couple of Zebras work very well. In my simple comparison tests both Zebras have the edge on my two black L/Ds.

I think that this is down to simple variations between samples. I understood that the glass was identical and that the change to the black L/D version was a just a marketing change.
(ref Princelle?)
 
I had been lead to believe - the L/D denotes the use of Lanthanum glass?
Dave.
PS, I have one that does not get much use, but it's not worth the hassle of trying to sell - as they can be bought on Ebay for about £6 !!
 
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Yep, L/D is for Lanthanum coatings. I believe my L/D is sharper than my zebra I61 but I'm rather not testing guy.
 
The princelle book says that both have Lanthanum glass, it just wasn't noted on the actual lens before they rebranded them. I think the older ones do have a different coating, I think mine is an amber colour but the later ones are purple (it might be the other way round), the lanthanum is actually in the glass its self (it has a low refractive index) rather than the coatings I believe.
 
Not engraved

Not engraved

Welcome to the forum BB52!

Small remark on Industar-61 L/D (I-61 L/D): take into count that some of the newest, all black lenses have their aperture/distance numbers painted only, not engraved!
 
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The machining of the metal mount is crude, and the original lube is more wax than lube. Folks have commented that Industar lenses shipped from Russia often come in parcels tied with "Yak hair" string. Maybe the lube is ear wax from the same Yaks?

The mount is also a very soft aluminum alloy, so lube is important, or it will self-destruct.

With a clean and proper lube of the mount, they can run pretty smooth, and they are indeed sharp optically.
 
As has been mentioned before, get the I61 and the J8 too. You won't be out very much money. My I61 was unusable as received due to the yak ear wax lube, after disassembling and cleaning out the old lube the focus feel is now quite nice, and it is an easy lens to work on. In reference to the coatings, I also have an I61 for the M42 mount that is marked 61/3 MC. I presume the MC stands for multicoated. Has anyone ever seen an LTM I61 marked MC? Welcome to the forum BB52.

Steve
 
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