amirko
Homo soveticus
Hello All,
Recently I bought a postwar collapsible coated 50mm f/2 Summitar in LTM to accompany my Leica IIIF BD.
I know this is fine lens but finding a good specimen could be hard -- it is 50+ years old, the coating is prone to scratching, many have haze etc.
So I went with reputable store and ordered the one with no haze and highest the rating of 9+++.
Now this is the lens:

Cosmetically, it is fine.
Optically, it has no scratches on external surfaces of both front and back elements.
But, it has a lot of dust inside and couple of noticeable bubbles in the glass:

(see additional images with more dust and bubbles >here<)
Now I am debating with myself a "to be or not to be"-type question: either return it or keep it and send for CLA.
The goal is not to get myself a fine 50mm in LTM (the are few choices in ~$300 price tag I paid for this one) but rather fine 50mm f/2 collapsible Summitar lens.
So, looking at your experience with old LTM lenses of the period, especially Summitars, -- what would you do?
Continue the search? Stop it right there and send the lens for CLA?
Shoot it as it is? -- I know all of the dust and bubbles has little effect on the final image.
Your thought please...
Cheers!
Emir
Recently I bought a postwar collapsible coated 50mm f/2 Summitar in LTM to accompany my Leica IIIF BD.
I know this is fine lens but finding a good specimen could be hard -- it is 50+ years old, the coating is prone to scratching, many have haze etc.
So I went with reputable store and ordered the one with no haze and highest the rating of 9+++.
Now this is the lens:

Cosmetically, it is fine.
Optically, it has no scratches on external surfaces of both front and back elements.
But, it has a lot of dust inside and couple of noticeable bubbles in the glass:

(see additional images with more dust and bubbles >here<)
Now I am debating with myself a "to be or not to be"-type question: either return it or keep it and send for CLA.
The goal is not to get myself a fine 50mm in LTM (the are few choices in ~$300 price tag I paid for this one) but rather fine 50mm f/2 collapsible Summitar lens.
So, looking at your experience with old LTM lenses of the period, especially Summitars, -- what would you do?
Continue the search? Stop it right there and send the lens for CLA?
Shoot it as it is? -- I know all of the dust and bubbles has little effect on the final image.
Your thought please...
Cheers!
Emir
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