Yashica Electro Lens on Sony Mount

Here it is on the NEX-5n. Nice compact, lightweight portrait rig, balance and feel are very good. Even more compact w/o the hood. Should be great on the A6000 as well.

Total project time: A couple of hours.
Tools required: Dremel to cut off two protruding things. JIS screwdriver set will help.

Parts kit: On eBay. Search "lianzhong yashica", LianZhong is the manufacturer. Seller today is baocheng_sd, but that could change. $40 plus postage.

Hope this helps someone.

170202-70-YS-on-NEX5n-IMG_8137.jpg
 
gb hill said:
I have a junk Electro with a very nice lens. I wonder if this can be mounted with a Canon FD mount. I have both. I also have a 39mm LTM I could use. Anyways I'll be following your progress.
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@GB HILL, sorry I missed your question.

The key question is the flange to sensor distance. This is short for a rangefinder camera and longer for an SLR. A rangefinder lens mounted on an SLR will be too far from the sensor and will not reach infinity focus. Only mirrorless has the short register distance that makes this work.

This project was easy because there's room to add an adapter to the back of the unmodified lens body.

Maybe if you go to work modifying the lens body you could do it, but I doubt it.
 
ColSebastianMoran said:
Not so. The aperture is fully controllable, as always. The shutter has been blocked open.
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That is good to know, Colonel.

I have an one of these models of Yashica RF cameras in need of a pad of death replacement. It is an early Electro GS model and these were not cheap to buy when they came out for a quality amateur camera.
 
xcube said:
Do you have the link to the adapter parts? Thanks.
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See my #21 above. I name a seller currently offering the kit, and search terms to find it if the seller changes.

[ EDIT Jan 2019: That search fails today on eBay. You can probably find offers of completed conversions. ]

Also, note my photo way above to confirm you're getting the same kit I found.

I think this is a good outcome for Electros with good lens and broken body.
 
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Next step, double checking infinity focus.

Recap: Last night, using 60' distance indoors, I had tried to set the lens to be able to focus past infinity.

Today, testing with an outdoor shot, quarter mile across a frozen lake, the lens doesn't reach infinity. There's lots of room for adjustment with this part set, so I can correct this. Lesson: use a really distant object for setting infinity focus.

Test: vs. Nokton 50mm f/1.5, a known good lens. Both lenses wide open. Distant scene 1/4 mile with some closer stuff branches at 50 feet. Yashinon has better focus on the branches, worse focus on distant. Re-adjust.

170203-Yashinon-notInfinity.png
 
OK, a little focus tweak; loosen grub screws, turn lens slightly clockwise, evenly retighten grub screws. Now I can focus to infinity.

Same scene, very different light, again the 50mm f/1.5 Nokton on left, the 45mm f/1.7 Yashinon on the right. In Lightroom, shot from Sony A6000, 1:1, near center.

170203-Yashinon-Infinity.png
 
By mistake, I got the same adapter part for a Fuji X mount. I can return it to seller, but I'll ask first here if anyone wants it. This puts the Electro lens on a Fuji X camera. Same work as described above.

PM me.
 
ColSebastianMoran said:
Have long liked the lens on the Yashica Electro and lusted to have one mounted on a modern DSLR.

Now in the midst of a project to create one.
- Here is a thread with instructions and photos
- Here is more detailed info about opening up the front of the lens
- And, finally the repair manual with lots of helpful photo sequences

I like the black metal Electro lenses, so I'm doing this with a GT.
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Long shot question😉 - you wouldn't happen to be doing these conversions commercially, would you? I have a defunct GTN, and would potentially be in the market for a conversion to Sony E-mount. TIA.
 
tbhv55 said:
I have a defunct GTN, and would potentially be in the market for a conversion to Sony E-mount. TIA.
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No, explorations like this are just for fun. Any slightly adventurous camera repair person can do this. Point them to the links above.

Only two slightly tricky points: 1) care in tightening the grub screws so the aperture ring moves freely, and 2) setting infinity focus.
 
I've had that hood for years, and never knew what it fit. It has a flat cover that snaps into place in those holes. Were these made specifically for the Yashica?

I took the focus nubs off the lens as they didn't end up in a comfortable position, and replaced them with a Taab focus band.
 
Larry H-L said:
I've had that hood for years, and never knew what it fit. It has a flat cover that snaps into place in those holes. Were these made specifically for the Yashica?
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Larry, that hood is a Hama general accessory, not for any particular brand. I have one set up for use with a TLR. It's a nice hood. Hard to find today.
 
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