Multicoated Summar?

[Roger Hicks]

Yes, Roger, that was clear to me, but I wanted to make the point - maybe a bit off-topic - that there could be more Summars around that were coated by the factory when they were new. That is important because these lenses are really very fine users and they could be a nice item to collect. That is why I am interested in other Summars with serial numbers beginning with "299".

Erik.

Dear Erik,

Ah, sorry. As I say, you could very well be right, and, like you, I find Summars very usable indeed. But equally, I can't help feeling that like many Leica lenses from the 1930s, 40s and early 50s, the reputation these lenses enjoy today is curiously higher than it was 40+ years ago when I started buying them.

Cheers,

R.

 

[Erik van Straten]

I can't help feeling that like many Leica lenses from the 1930s, 40s and early 50s, the reputation these lenses enjoy today is curiously higher than it was 40+ years ago when I started buying them.

I think the taste for lenses became more refined over the years.

Erik.

 

[Dralowid]

As a student in the '60s I longed for that b/w USA reportage look. Of the lenses I could afford for my Leica the Summar, Xenon and Hektor both 50mm and 73mm really could not do it. So for me they were always a bit soft, scratched and cheap. It is hard to change a memory but I am working at it.

Michael

 

[Erik van Straten]

for me they were always a bit soft

Maybe the quality of the modern films has something to do with it.

Leica II, Hektor 73 mm f/1.9 (1933, uncoated), Tmax400.

Erik.

 

[Thomas78]

...


As proof here is a picture taken at a friend's wedding last weekend using a Summar and a Leica III. The lens was wide open at F2 and the exposure was either 1/20th or 1/8th (I can't recall which) using FP4 (ISO125). I think it's sharp enough.





alshri1 by debrux2010, on Flickr

Simon, I very much like this picture. (How) Did you stabilise the camera ?

Even when LTM Leica (and also bottom loader Canons) have a very fine shutter release I try to avoid longer shutter speeds than 1/50 s at almost all costs. Perhaps I should be a bit more courageous some times.


I have one question regarding the protection of the Summar.

I have a both a small 34 mm screw-in lens hood and a 34 mm screw-in yellow filter (as lens protection), but since the filter has no external thread, I can not use both at the same time.

Should I look for a filter with external thread or a different lens hood to protect both the lens from dust and the film from stray light?

 

[Roger Hicks]

I think the taste for lenses became more refined over the years.. .

Dear Erik.

Quite possibly. Or equally possibly, there's now a lot more money (and rather more mystique) chasing somewhat fewer lenses. Remember, too, that money is pretty much independent of artistic talent.

Cheers,

R.

 

[Simon Bruxelles]

Hi Thomas, The camera was handheld, I just braced myself against the wall. I also have the small screw in 34mm hood but only realised when it arrived that it wouldn't work with Leitz filters. Fortunately I have since found the correct SOOMP hood at a camera fair for £20.

 

[Simon Bruxelles]

Dear Erik.

Quite possibly. Or equally possibly, there's now a lot more money (and rather more mystique) chasing somewhat fewer lenses. Remember, too, that money is pretty much independent of artistic talent.

Cheers,

R.

Just as likely tastes have changed; you can get all the resolution you could ever want from a modern lens, what we now look for is character, an indefinable quality not captured in an lpm lens chart.

 

[Roger Hicks]

Just as likely tastes have changed; you can get all the resolution you could ever want from a modern lens, what we now look for is character, an indefinable quality not captured in an lpm lens chart.

Dear Simon,

We understood that 40 years ago, too. Even then, the Apo-Lanthar was a cult lens.

Cheers,

R.

 

[Deejon]

...Is there a batch? Is there anyone with a coated Summar with a serial number that is close?

Hi Erik,
Not sure if this helps at all but I have a Summar that, according to Leitz serial number records, was made in the same batch as yours and the one in the auction.
It's a 299*** number but I don't have it in front of me and don't remember the exact number off hand... maybe 299833?
Anyway, mine's uncoated and, sadly, has a few of the typical front element marks!
It came on a IIIa of the same year and I ASSumed it was the original lens for that body but maybe not? The IIIa is in fantastic shape... I wish the lens was too 😡

Cheers,

D.J.

 

[Monochrom]

Coating

Coating

Hi, i´ve seen the listing and quite surprised over the price tag...in the past i wanted to coat a hektor 5cm f2.5, and looked for ti in my country and could find that any lens workshop can perform the job, there are many coatings for lenses, a few ones are made for like phographic purposes....at last i sold the hektor because it shifted like hell, was unusable at 2.5.....so for that i would use best an elmar 5cm...

So going back to the coating issue , in conclusion it can be done, wasn´t expensive...

After looking for a nice sample, the wost part has been finding a lens which has a perfect glasses, no cleaning marks or rubs....that proved very difficult task...

 

[Erik van Straten]

It's a 299*** number but I don't have it in front of me and don't remember the exact number off hand... maybe 299833?
Anyway, mine's uncoated.

Thank you, Deejon, for this information.

Anyway, a coated Summar performs amazingly. Like a Summicron from the fifties.

Leica II, Summar 50mm f/2 coated, Tmax400.

Erik.

 

[Deejon]

Anyway, a coated Summar performs amazingly like a Summicron from the fifties.

Yep, nice!
The photos I saw on here from you and the other folks were the reason I went looking for another Summar with good glass.
The 2nd one I bought wasn't cheap - £200 😱 Ouch!! - and isn't perfect on the front but is much better.

Question: is yours coated at every air surface or just on the front?

 

[Erik van Straten]

Hi, Deejon, every surface is coated. Only a coating on the front element will not help much.

Erik.

 

[Dralowid]

Something a little different

Something a little different

I came across this and thought you guys might be interested...no connection with seller etc. Michael


http://www.photographyhistory.com/makroplasmat35.html

 

[Deejon]

Hi, Deejon, every surface is coated. Only a coating on the front element will not help much.
Erik.

Thanks Erik.
Yep, that's what I thought.
I haven't priced it at CRR in Luton but I would think that having every surface done would be VERY expensive... Or maybe not if the front is the only one that needs polishing first?

Anyway, you have a nice lens there.

 

[Roger Hicks]

Thanks Erik.
Yep, that's what I thought.
I haven't priced it at CRR in Luton but I would think that having every surface done would be VERY expensive... Or maybe not if the front is the only one that needs polishing first?

Anyway, you have a nice lens there.

I don't think so. As far as I recall, all you need to do to an unscratched element is clean it, and then everything goes into the coater together. It's the repolishing what costs the money.

Cheers,

R.

 

[Deejon]

As far as I recall, all you need to do to an unscratched element is clean it, and then everything goes into the coater together. It's the repolishing what costs the money.

Thanks Roger.
Then I might be tempted to enquire about sending my 299*** scratched-front Summar in to CRR or Malcolm Taylor for a make over... ?
At this stage, I consider it a body cap that came free with the IIIa, so spending a few £'s to get it sorted wouldn't hurt too much.

Interesting link Dralowid. Although $30K for a non rangefinder-coupled 35 makes spending $800 for the coated Summar on the Bay seem like chump change now! 😎

 

[Simon Bruxelles]

A few years ago Malcolm Taylor quoted me something like £65 a surface to recoat a 3.5cm F3.5 Summaron which worked out at considerably more than the lens cost. Of course that didn't include the dismantling, service and rebuild. Unless cost is not a consideration I would say it is unlikely to be worth it especially if you've had to buy the lens. As Erik suggests Leitz may well have put together a batch of coated Summars for customers who wanted to upgrade. It was presumably easier to do it when a new lens was being assembled than to try to retro-coat and rebuild a used one.

 

[Deejon]

A few years ago Malcolm Taylor quoted me something like £65 a surface to recoat a 3.5cm F3.5 Summaron which worked out at considerably more than the lens cost. Of course that didn't include the dismantling, service and rebuild. Unless cost is not a consideration I would say it is unlikely to be worth it especially if you've had to buy the lens. As Erik suggests Leitz may well have put together a batch of coated Summars for customers who wanted to upgrade. It was presumably easier to do it when a new lens was being assembled than to try to retro-coat and rebuild a used one.

I count... 8 air surfaces on a Summar, so that's £520 right off the bat, not including the other stuff involved!
I see what you mean 😱