Leica Wartime Production and Allied Occupation

[SimonSawSunlight]

Zeiss Ikon, on the other hand, simply made a special run of Contax II cameras which had almost no lubricants. These were also known as "K" cameras, from the German term "kaltfast" or "cold-protected".

really just wanting to help, the word is probably "kältefest" 🙂
thanks for all the info!

 

[johannielscom]

Kältefest = cold resistant

 

[photovdz]

i'm more interested in the lens ;-) is that a rigid f2 sonnar ?

 

[dexdog]

The depth of field scale on the lens runs from 1.5 to 16, suggesting that it is a 5cm/1.5.

 

[Dralowid]

I take it you have all seen this?

http://www.angelfire.com/biz/Leica/page26.html

British Intelligence report on Leica factory 1946. With thanks to Peter at CRR Luton who many of you will know for his excellent work.

Michael
(happy customer, no connection otherwise!)

 

[LeicaTom]

Photovdz,

That's not an original styled wartime production mount for the CZJ/Leica f1.5 lens ~ more than likely it's a postwar mod or hack, still if it shoots good who cares! 😀 *it's that vintage T glass that counts when taking photos, delightful in color shots!*

Here have a look in this thread there's at least 4 original 1943 CZJ f1.5 Sonnar T lenses posted there.......JFYI.

http://www.rangefinderforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=74907


Tom

 

[splitimageview]

Write me off the board, I'll send you some information/history on this......

Tom

I have all the history already, its provenance is very interesting.

I seriously doubt there are very many of these cameras that were factory upgraded to IIIf with a self timer. This is a very unique cam.

 

[LeicaTom]

Tell me it was General Georgi Zhukov's camera right? lol!!!!! 😀

Tom

PS: I'm still looking for Eva Braun's Gold Plated Crocodile Skinned IIID Red Curtain ......I'm sure it's out there someplace!!!!!

 

[johannielscom]

...
I'm still looking for Eva Braun's Gold Plated Crocodile Skinned IIID Red Curtain ......I'm sure it's out there someplace!!!!!

It is, but I forgot where I put it...

😛

 

[splitimageview]

This isn't Eva's 😉 but it's another wartime cam with factory upgrade to IIIf. I auctioned this cam for $12k a few months ago.

 

[Marc James Small]

Eva shot only large-format, I believe. I hae some pictures, somewhere, of Hoffman giving her pointers. She also toyed around with cine. To my knowledge, she never owned a Leica, though there are workmen in the Ukraine who would argue differently!

 

[CameraQuest]

This isn't Eva's 😉 but it's another wartime cam with factory upgrade to IIIf. I auctioned this cam for $12k a few months ago.

Great price! Please explain what pushed up the price so much over the marketplace for chrome Luft cameras. In my experience factory updated Leica screw mounts always sold for less than the original, non converted camera.

Thanks,
Stephen

 

[splitimageview]

There are always exceptional situations, in this case, it was bid up by Chinese collectors who really wanted the camera. If it had been posted any other week, perhaps those bidders wouldn't have seen it and it wouldn't have gotten that much. Hard to say. It helps to have full delivery data from Lager, as well as matched lens.

 

[LeicaTom]

Eva shot only large-format, I believe. I hae some pictures, somewhere, of Hoffman giving her pointers. She also toyed around with cine. To my knowledge, she never owned a Leica, though there are workmen in the Ukraine who would argue differently!

It's all FANTASY Marc.......just making a big joke about it, though history about Eva is an interesting subject, she was Hoffman's personal assistant in Munich when she met "Herr Wolf" (Hitler) in the early 1930's, shortly thereafter Hoffman became Hitler's favorite photographer, Eva worked together with Hoffman till about 1939.

While Hoffman used Leica's (alot ~ I held Hoffman's IIIB/MOOLY B Summar rig in my hands while in Germany seeing a private collection) Eva preffered Rolleiflex's and also her Agfa Super 8 movie camera, she was a ardent home movie buff, many times showing off a insiders personal look at the "inner circle" of the Nazi clan, many home movies are of her at the Berghof with girlfriend's sunning themselves, relaxing at the two tea houses or her trips abroad to Italy etc. etc.

Yeah, the Gold Eva Braun Leica IIID is a project sometime for me, with an old worn old IIIC Red Curtain, laying around, made just out of pure fun......

Tom

 

[LeicaTom]

This isn't Eva's 😉 but it's another wartime cam with factory upgrade to IIIf. I auctioned this cam for $12k a few months ago.

That was sheer GOOD LUCK there....WoW! LE IIIC/IIIFBD conversion

Congrats on that, send the buyer over to me I'll sell him some really rare Grey WW2 equipment that's not converted, LOL!!!!! 😀 sounds like the type of guy who has money to burn on stuff, there's lot's of WW2 German gear in the states now, I suspect it won`t stay here long with guys paying that price, wish I'd still have my KM Leica now, I bet it would bring over $15k easy (one of 5 cameras made), MAYBE even more now?

That lens is rather uncommon, maybe one of the "rarest" of the LE lenses the LE engraved Elmar 35, won't discuss prices here, but it's a desired one.......

Tom

 

[Marc James Small]

The only photos surviving of Eva with a camera have her with LF gear or with a cine camera. Hoffman did own a Leica but rarely used it: his background was as a studio photographer and so he tended to stay with LF gear. I can find no reference at all to Eva using a Rolleiflex either in my fairly extensive history of the Nazi Bonzen in WWII or in my fairly extensive history of Rolleiflex. Sounds like another Ian Parker pipe dream to me!

 

[LeicaTom]

The only photos surviving of Eva with a camera have her with LF gear or with a cine camera. Hoffman did own a Leica but rarely used it: his background was as a studio photographer and so he tended to stay with LF gear. I can find no reference at all to Eva using a Rolleiflex either in my fairly extensive history of the Nazi Bonzen in WWII or in my fairly extensive history of Rolleiflex. Sounds like another Ian Parker pipe dream to me!

Marc,

I HAVE photos of Eva holding her Rolleiflex (a 1940 Automat I) and I know the US Army officer who owns the camera now personally 🙂 ~ the inner circle nicknamed Eva
"The Rolleiflex Girl" this is also mentioned in a few books concerning Hoffmann, as I said, I was always interested with Eva's history, a quite bizarre and sad story it is........

Hoffman used Leica's exclusively when traveling in the "Grey Column" (Vienna/Paris etc.) anytime shooting "on location" ~ the collector who owns Hoffman's IIIB/MOOLY B rig told me that Hoffman owned a few, and he was also looking for his IIIC, that would be a interesting find in it self.

I'll write you about the Zeiss lenses, I'm adding more serial numbers to the registry quite often, much fun!

Tom

 

[Marc James Small]

With respect, we have lots of pictures of lots of the Nazi bonzen holding lots of items -- I have at least a dozen pictures of Hitler holding various bits of military gear and that hardly makes him a "user" of such gear. Eva may have owned a Rolleiflex and may have even held it on occasion, but I doubt that she ever used it. I have a fairly extensive collection of referrences on "die vom der berg", Hitler's Chauffeureska, and, while I have found Eva described under a few names, I have never heard her described as "the Rolleiflex girl" and such a term has escaped the notice of the historians of the inner circle. Do you happen to have a souce, primary or secondard, to which you can pont me? I believe Fest is still alive (almost all of the historians of these folks are now dead) and I can check with him.

Marc

 

[LeicaTom]

With respect, we have lots of pictures of lots of the Nazi bonzen holding lots of items -- I have at least a dozen pictures of Hitler holding various bits of military gear and that hardly makes him a "user" of such gear. Eva may have owned a Rolleiflex and may have even held it on occasion, but I doubt that she ever used it. I have a fairly extensive collection of referrences on "die vom der berg", Hitler's Chauffeureska, and, while I have found Eva described under a few names, I have never heard her described as "the Rolleiflex girl" and such a term has escaped the notice of the historians of the inner circle. Do you happen to have a souce, primary or secondard, to which you can pont me? I believe Fest is still alive (almost all of the historians of these folks are now dead) and I can check with him.

Marc

It's wrtten about in that very big and expensive book about Hoffman's photos, I saw a copy in Germany while I lived there, I don't remember who published it, but it was a very large coffeetable book and had details about his studio and the history of photographing Hitler, it was published sometime in the 1990's.

The Munich collector who has Hoffman's gear also mentioned this to me, and he himself knew Hoffman personally, weither or not it's true, who knows? ~

Tom

 

[LeicaTom]

I don`t know what you are talking about with a BLUE Leica???

There was a repainted one sold at auction about 2 years ago claiming to be a Kriegsmarine Leica, but through Jim Lagers records and factory records it was proven to be just a normal civilian issued IIIC K ~ that has absolutely nothing to do with the camera I owned and sold, I had nothing to do with any blue Leica, the camera I owned was from a issue of 5 chrome cameras with a Xenon f1.5/50 lens, verified by Jim Lager and the Factory.

Marc asked me about some lens serial numbers? Not a big deal, the only serial numbers I don`t post are the ones on equipment and that's for safety reasons (tons of people do this, not just me) ~ and if anyone has a question about their Leica all they have to do is email me about it.....

Please, we are all susposed to be helping each other out here, not getting at each others throats....sigh!

Tom

PS:I believe the Munich collector, while he's been collecting Leica's since 1958, and he knows alot about the subject, I don't doubt a word he's ever said to me, you have to trust in some people....