Summicron collapsible?

[pfogle]

What with all the recent talk about collapsible lenses on the R-D1, I've been bitten by the bug - after all, I got this camera for its portability, among other things, and I'd like a more compact setup.

I'm tempted to trade my Hexanon 50/2 for a Summicron collapsible. Does anyone have any advice/feedback about the relative strenghs of these lenses?

thanks
Phil

 

[Sonnar Brian]

Getting one with a good front element is tough: Leica's coating was fairly soft and it marred easily. For that swap, you should get quite a nice Collapsible Summicron. The Type I and DR Rigid Summicron are supposed to be slightly better optically, and seem to fair better with cleaning marks. ANY Summicron is a first rate performer. These '50s Summicrons have less contrast than the later versions, something that Sein Reid has favored on his RD1.

 

[pfogle]

I found this excellent reference on the summicron, so I decided to keep the Hexanon, which I think is close to the rigid summicron in design/image quality, and try out the collapsible and see if I like it's 'drawing' (q: Sean).

Seems like they're going to be quite different, so that's something else to factor in.

Any comments welcome.

By the way, Brian, thanks for the comments, it seems like a good 'cron is about 100 GBP more than the Hexanon in the shops here in London at the moment. Maybe I'm shopping in the wrong places 😉