Pentax super multi coated TAKUMAR

[oftheherd]

SMC = Super MultiCoated Early ones were labeled Super Multi Coated and had metal focus ring. Later ones were labelled SMC and had a rubber focus ring but they are effectively the same lens. They will work on the 705 but once on you won't be able to remove them! If you have no intention of getting an SPF or ES series, you can remove the full aperture pin and then they will work on all the M42 cameras including the SPF and ES series but the full aperture metering will be disabled.

Kim

I'm not at home to try, but what prevented them from being removed? I know there are tabs on the Fujica lenses both for registration and for the open aperture metering. I thought that I remembered that SMC lenses could be removed, but were just a little tricky. Was I just lucky? I think the only SMC lens I have is a 50mm f/1.8. All the lenses I normally use for the Fujicas are either Fujinons or Vivitar TX mounts.

 

[Michael I.]

I have a pentax k1000 with 50/2; k mount to m42 adapter(quirky) and a couple of m42 lenses(non pentax) and accessories;if intrested feel free to pm me

 

[oftheherd]

I have about 60 or so M42 lens; including a bunch of Takumars in pretty much all the focale from 24mm to 200mm. Sone of them are excellent indeed, but there also are plenty of non-pentax M42 that are superior too. The Carls Zeiss Jena are exceptional, some Chinon are also very good, and the well known russians also had quite a few exceptional lens!
There are also "inferior" brands that produced "superior" lens on that mount, like Soligor and Vivitar, some of them are superior even to Pentax glass...

Recent revalations by Herbert Keplar of Modern and PP&I fame indicate that Cosina probably made many of the Vivitar and Soligor lenses (as well as cameras). It was probably the particular forumla and the required quality control that made the difference.

I think Cosina or somebody else may have made many of the "name" brands as well, as I once read that even some of the "name" brands didn't actually have their own plants for lens manufacture. I don't now remember which were which. I also read somewhere that many bought glass from the same manufacturer, but then ground it to their specifications. Anybody remember more on that?

 

[Ronald M]

Sharp yes, but does not get the same tonal representation on film as do Leica or Zeiss.

I had every one from 21 to 300 mm and they are all gone and I do not miss them one bit. Leica glass is what got me what I wanted and Zeiss is a close second.

You can put Leica, Schneider, Rodenstock, Zeiss negs on a light table and separate out the Nikon, Canon, and Pentax without a problem. Actually my spouse can do it, and she knows zero about photography.

 

[Graham Line]

I'm not at home to try, but what prevented them from being removed? I know there are tabs on the Fujica lenses both for registration and for the open aperture metering. I thought that I remembered that SMC lenses could be removed, but were just a little tricky. Was I just lucky? I think the only SMC lens I have is a 50mm f/1.8. All the lenses I normally use for the Fujicas are either Fujinons or Vivitar TX mounts.

The SMCT lenses have a small springloaded pin on the back of the mount that can drop into lens mount screw heads on some M42 mount cameras and lock the lens in place. They mount and dismount without problem on Pentaxes. I remember Fujicas and a Russian make, maybe Zenit, being reported as problems.

I enjoyed my Spot F's when I was working with them but the only lens I miss is the 85/1.8.

 

[Dougg]

Joe, mentioning the 85/1.8 in the same sentence as the Spotmatic F leads me to think you mean the rather rare lens of 1972-73... I had the earlier 1.8 Auto-Takumar, and traded it in for a new 1.9 Super Takumar just months before the SMC version came along. I kicked myself for not waiting, then that was replaced by the SMCT 1.8... If that was the same glass as my K-mount 85/1.8 it must have been great. The SMCT 120/2.8 was another great lens; I just received a K-mount version of that one today!

 

[Graham Line]

Dougg:
At the time I sold off my screw-mount stuff; maybe three bodies and six lenses, the 85/1.8 SMCT represented about half of the value. It was an excellent lens and good ones now run $300 and up. You're right, the full-aperture metering screwmount version is rare. You can imagine my feelings, buying all that stuff in '73-'74, to have the K-mount arrive in '75. http://www.rangefinderforum.com/forums/images/smilies/banghead.gif
:bang:

 

[raid]

Joe, mentioning the 85/1.8 in the same sentence as the Spotmatic F leads me to think you mean the rather rare lens of 1972-73... I had the earlier 1.8 Auto-Takumar, and traded it in for a new 1.9 Super Takumar just months before the SMC version came along. I kicked myself for not waiting, then that was replaced by the SMCT 1.8... If that was the same glass as my K-mount 85/1.8 it must have been great. The SMCT 120/2.8 was another great lens; I just received a K-mount version of that one today!

Doug,
I have a 85mm/1.8 SMC lens. Is it really "rare"?
Raid

 

[Graham Line]

Raid: It's pretty rare if it's the Super-Multi-Coated Takumar for screwmount and full-aperture metering with the Spot F. KEH recently listed one in EX nick for $389; quite a lot for an M42 lens. The K-mount appeared in '74 or '75.

 

[raid]

Raid: It's pretty rare if it's the Super-Multi-Coated Takumar for screwmount and full-aperture metering with the Spot F. KEH recently listed one in EX nick for $389; quite a lot for an M42 lens. The K-mount appeared in '74 or '75.

Joe:
Yes, it is that one for my Spotmatic F. It is very clean and has been taken of me very well. I may have bought it through Shutterbug durings the magazine's golden times.

Raid

 

[Dougg]

The fine lens deserves to be used... here's one from my 85/1.8

 

[raid]

Doug: I agree with you, but I have been putting my SLR gear to the side while using my rangefinder gear.

Raid

P.S.I like your posted photo.

 

[Kat]

Is the 2nd pin of the SMC easy to remove? Can they be put back, or is removal permanent? And if they don't have the 2nd pin anymore, can they still be used with adaptors with DSLRs?

 

[ray_g]

Is the 2nd pin of the SMC easy to remove? Can they be put back, or is removal permanent? And if they don't have the 2nd pin anymore, can they still be used with adaptors with DSLRs?

Why remove them? I have used these with adapters without any problems. The SMC lenses have a sliding "manual/auto" switch on the base of the barrel - you can just set this on manual. Best thing is to try out your lenses first to see if there is any problem.

 

[edodo]

I have acquired some of the lenses mentionned by your very nice and helpful comments. I got in m42 the SMC takumar 50/1.4 the SMC 24/3.5, 35/2, 35/3.5, 105m/2.8, and the super takumar 55/1.8.
The ones that yellowed are the 35mm f2 and the fast 1.4 50mm. I have tried putting them under the sun and, they cleared a lot but they are not completely cleared.
I tested each one with my pentax DS and they perform very well, even manually. On a DSLR, the bayonnet K lenses that I have (50/1.4, and 135/2.5) won't work with Aperture Priority mode as they don't stop down manually, they will only work in manual mode, there the m42 mount lenses are superior.

 

[edodo]

Yes the 85mm seems to be the most expensive but desirable telephoto in the takumar line up. I may have made a mistake but I choose the Jupiter 9 85mm/2 lens as a replacement. I am disapointed with the quality of construction in comparaison to the Takumars that are superb, but also disapointed with it wide open as it is way soft and with low contrast. Maybe it is only suitable in that setting for B&W portraiture. Here some pics of the jupiter 9, the first photo at f4 and then the 105mm 2.8 smc takumar wide open and last is the Jupiter 9 wide open

 

[ampguy]

same here

same here

never needed to remove any pins to work on my k-mount. Lots of folks here are just drill crazy

Why remove them? I have used these with adapters without any problems. The SMC lenses have a sliding "manual/auto" switch on the base of the barrel - you can just set this on manual. Best thing is to try out your lenses first to see if there is any problem.

 

[Dougg]

I too would urge restraint in "tampering" with the SMC Takumars which are much less common than Super Takumars, and made with a calibration lug and a moving tab that conveys aperture info to the camera, as well as the standard push-in pin for auto aperture stop-down that is common to all. The SMC lenses are the only ones that allow open-aperture metering with the last of the screw-mount bodies, the models ES, ESII, and SPF.

Users of these Pentax models are particularly keen on having SMC lenses for this reason, though of course all previous Takumars will work too in stop-down metering, less convenient. The compatibility is two-way, as previous thread-mount Pentaxes back to 1957 can also use the SMC lenses though they offer no metering advantage, if a meter is even present.

 

[Kat]

Why remove them? I have used these with adapters without any problems. The SMC lenses have a sliding "manual/auto" switch on the base of the barrel - you can just set this on manual. Best thing is to try out your lenses first to see if there is any problem.

Coz they can't be used with my Fujica ST705 with the two pins (as Kim mentioned, they'll get stuck on the camera). I've always wanted a fast lens, but from what I hear, the f/1.4 super takumars can't hold a candle the SMC ones. But I don't want to get SMC lens for the Fujica, remove the 2nd pin, and ruin it forever for other cameras like DSLRs, if that's going to happen.

 

[ray_g]

Coz they can't be used with my Fujica ST705 with the two pins (as Kim mentioned, they'll get stuck on the camera). I've always wanted a fast lens, but from what I hear, the f/1.4 super takumars can't hold a candle the SMC ones. But I don't want to get SMC lens for the Fujica, remove the 2nd pin, and ruin it forever for other cameras like DSLRs, if that's going to happen.

The EBC Fujinon lenses are as good, IMHO, and would save you the trouble. They are less common and more sought after on the used market. I would try a 55/1.8 EBC Fujinon, if you can find one.