Nikon helical- what do I do with it

[dexdog]

I bought a water damaged Nikon S from eBay for $35. The camera in question was a Nikon S that had evidently been under water for a while. The body was a mass of rust and verdigris, the NKT 50/1.4 was a corroded mess with a fractured lens element. Advertised "as is" I figured that it was worth the gamble. The only bright spot in this case was the focusing helical, which was in very good shape, probably because the parts were chrome plated.

In any case, I extracted the focusing helical and trashed the rest of the camera and lens. So, I have this really nice Nikon focusing helical, and don't know what to do with it. Suggestions would be welcome.

 

[bmattock]

Focusing helicals are very useful for adapting weird lenses to camera bodies.

I've got an old Canon FL macro focusing adapter - it was meant for mounting a Canon FL lens backwards on a Canon SLR for macro work. But I did a little Dremel work on it and made it hold a Schneider Xenon 85mm f/2.8, and it just happens to hold it at the right distance from the film plane - I can focus with it from infinity to pretty close in.

I have seen some of the work done on LTM focusing helicoids and various lenses - some were done long ago, like during WWII when they shoved in Wollensak lenses and so on, to the latest when people stick in a variety of lenses that never were made in LTM. As long as it's the same focal length and has the same distance from all the way in to all the way out, it should be adaptable. Of course, the real question is whether or not you'd want to do something like that.

 

[NIKON KIU]

I bought a water damaged Nikon S from eBay for $35. The camera in question was a Nikon S that had evidently been under water for a while. The body was a mass of rust and verdigris, the NKT 50/1.4 was a corroded mess with a fractured lens element. Advertised "as is" I figured that it was worth the gamble. The only bright spot in this case was the focusing helical, which was in very good shape, probably because the parts were chrome plated.

In any case, I extracted the focusing helical and trashed the rest of the camera and lens. So, I have this really nice Nikon focusing helical, and don't know what to do with it. Suggestions would be welcome.

Send it to Amadeo to make you a convertor!!!


Kiu

 

[jmkelly]

Send it to Amadeo to make you a convertor!!!

My thoughts exactly. Robert (digitalintrigue) mentioned that he did the same thing with a helical he had laying around.

 

[Ken Ford]

I would have taken the whole camera and lens and encased it in a block of lucite!

 

[dexdog]

A big block of lucite...

OK, if I send the helical to Amedeo to adapt, do I go with M-mount or LTM? It might be kinda fun to have it done in LTM so that I could put my Millenium 50/1.4 on my Canon P. Seems kind of perverse to get an LTM adapter given that many Nikkor lenses are already available in LTM.

 

[raid]

Mark,
Go with LTM since the lens then becomes useful LTM and M cameras. I need to go that route one day. I dislike Nikon S cameras, but I like the Nikon lenses. One day, I will get such an adapter myself, and then I will get a Nikon S lens.

 

[splitimageview]

Sell 'em to Amedeo, they are more valuable that way. 🙂

 

[raid]

M-mount do doubt.

I just recalled that for no extra cost [I think] , the adapter can get coded for the M8.

 

[Tom A]

It is better to do them as LTM as then you can put the appropriate adapter on them and use more of the Nikon lenses (28/35/50/85). In M-mount you would have to decide which focal length to install and be limited by that. I should actually do that too. i have a Contax mount and a couple of Nikon mounts that could do with this conversion. What is the cost and what is the turn around time? Anyone knows?

 

[raid]

Cost is around $235 I think.

 

[splitimageview]

Amedeo sells them for $249 on ebay, but it's a bit less if you provide the helical. I have an S2 helical I'll be sending him soon.

Making it LTM means you can use the adapter with the appropriate LTM adapter to bring up the proper framelines, can't do that on M-Mount as Tom says.

 

[NIKON KIU]

I bought a water damaged Nikon S from eBay for $35. The camera in question was a Nikon S that had evidently been under water for a while. The body was a mass of rust and verdigris, the NKT 50/1.4 was a corroded mess with a fractured lens element...
In any case, I extracted the focusing helical and trashed the rest of the camera and lens.

I hope you really didn't trash the remains. it may still have good parts, the lens bayonet mount may be worth something as a lot of them have broken tabs.

I would have gladly taken it off your hands, let me ask something, the body number wasn't 6095380, was it?

Kiu

 

[dexdog]

Kiu, I salvaged the helical, and tossed the rest. I don't remember serial number, purchased about a year ago from a seller in Texas. So corroded, it could have literally been a hurricane Katrina victim- almost had to be in salt water for a while. I needed a chisel to remove the back from the camera, and a pair of channel locks to separate the broken lens from the mount. Entire camera was a rusted/corroded mess, chrome flaking badly, missing in places.

 

[jonmanjiro]

This helicoid is on its way to Amedeo (via an RFF member in Venezuela) for conversion into an adapter as I write. Which reminds me, I'd better email Amedeo to let him know its on the way!