Contax-Yashica lens adapter to Canon FD body?

Since acquiring the Lens Mount Converters N and P, I've been intrigued by the possibility of mounting other

manufacturers' lenses on my F-1. So, is, or was there ever, an adapter made to use C/Y mount lenses on FD bodies?

It seems that the 3.5mm difference between the two mounts, and the reportedly high optical quality of several

lenses in the C/Y mount, would have motivated someone to fabricate an adapter to make this work.

AFAIK, none ever made for FD.

the mistique of certain lenses is a myth.

some do-do's pay to have fd lenses butchered so they can be mounted on an eos.

making them into manual lenses.

the photographer or film or technique is far more important.

If you feel a certain brand of lens is superior, buy a body for them.

the canon 50mm f/1.4 lens is supposed to be one of the best lenses ever made.

but you can get equally good photos with a dozen different lens and camera combinations.

Walter, no one said anything about mystical communion of any sort, or whether any lens brand is better than any

others. However, it is useful sometimes to use a lens that is not available for one's camera (i.e. 35mm F1.4), or

to investigate the different look of 50 or 60 year old lenses, or simply to have fun.

L. M., look at <A HREF="http://www.photo.net/canon-fd-camera-forum/0093Hg">this old (brief) thread.</a><p>Scott

Pickering asked the same thing four years ago. He says that at that time they were occasionally turning up

on ebay, and Doug Nelson suggests Tony Chu in Macau. I think I remember seeing these adapters on ebay within

the last few years, but I could be wrong.<p>If you can track down Tony Chu, he might have a few of these sitting in

the back of a drawer. There's probably very little demand for them nowadays.

Thanks, Dave.

Happy shooting.

I think Bob Shell had one, as well as Tony Chu. The registration difference is said to be so minute that the adapter is very difficult to manufacture.

Doug, Contax/Yashica register is 45.5mm, basically the same as Pentax M42. I'll concede that a Pentax M42 mount is about as simple as you can get, but there's still 3.5mm of clearance. Are there pins and stuff sticking out of the C/Y lens that get in the way?

TM you were right to say what you said.

but i "sorta" saw something coming.

admittedly the conax and yashica cameras that use these lenses are top notch.

but all the time we see the nikon / canon debates.

and the real answer is: look and think before you push that button.

 

even a reall failure prone camera can take great pictures, as long as it works, that is.

both the contax and yashica as well as the canons are good.

 

certain cameras are semi-rare and should be avoided as lenses are too hard to get.

but if you have that lens in your hand and a non-compatible camera in the other, the temptation is to figure a way to put the two together.

 

My own problem is that they don't make a YS adapter for Pentax K

or a decent one for canon FD.

my favorite 2 lenses are ys mount. I guess I will have to get a Minolta or a Nikon.

( i have a nikon mount)

and k mount 85mm f/2 lenses are pricey.

No, I've never bought into the mythology surrounding Leitz and Zeiss optics, not that there's anything wrong with

those. I actually prefer manual-focus Canon and Nikon lenses; but then, I take digital pictures every day for a

living, yet I still prefer to print with a condenser enlarger for fun, and I hate the harsh upper midrange in the

sound of CDs. One reason for me to adapt oddball lenses is actually to save money, not to spend more on exotic

glass. For example, I'm mainly a wide-angle type of guy. Once in a while, I've got a use for long lenses, but not

nearly enough for me to spend big bucks on fast, modern 400 to 600mm lenses; therefore, I think I may pick up a

screwmount SMC 400 or 500mm and mount it on my F-1 with the Canon P converter. I would then have the advantages of

a very reliable body and being able to choose different screens. Let's not forget the Speed Finder I got for $50

either. I'm not at all familiar with Contax, Yashica or Pentax bodies, but I doubt that any of them would be as

rugged or "repairable" as the F-1, plus I'm not crazy about starting new collections of cameras with differing

lens mounts. Or, as in the example above, there's a Nikkor 35mm F1.4 that I've owned for over 20 years; it's good

for my bank account to be able to use the same lens on a Nikon or Canon or M39 camera. The relatively short lens

to film distance in the FD system makes it nearly as flexible as the Bronica C/S cameras were in the medium

format world. Hmm, maybe I spent too much time reading lens-hacking articles on Bob Monaghan's website, years ago

when I had too much leisure time :).

Coming back to this topic, I haven't found either Bob Shell or Tony Chu. I found adapters to mount M42 lenses on

C/Y bodies, even though they have almost exactly the same register: 45.46mm (M42) to 45.5mm (Contax), but none to

go the other way. See http://www.rugift.com/photocameras/yashica_contax_lens_adapter.htm. I was thinking

if I could get a C/Y lens to M42 body adapter, then I could mount that on an FD.

I did find this article showing how to convert C/Y to an M42 mount

(http://www.pbase.com/wesleywong/diy__convert_yc_to_m42_mount). I'm not sure that I'm brave enough to try that yet.

btw

I read a posting that some early sigma lenses ( MF ) after the Ys lenses were discontinued.

were actually YS lenses wit the adapter held on by setscrews.

spiratone and others sold the 18mm f/3.5? and the 85mm f/1.7 and the 135mm f/2.0

I may be off a click or so wit these three.

I think it was before the c/.z era. as well as the k mount era.

someone told me he made and added a "prong" on an old Nikon YS mount.

a ys lens is the same as a t mount lens with a auto pin likea m42 lens.

<i>Coming back to this topic, I haven't found either Bob Shell or Tony Chu.</i>

<p>

L.M., Bob Shell's in prison. I found contact info for Tony Chu but it may not be current-- check your email.

I know the thread is very old, but I found this Contax lens to Canon FD adapter here:

Adapter Ring_Contax CY Lens to Canon F-1 FD Mount Camera Adapter (CY-FD/YC-FD) | eBay

 

Has anyone tried it?

I had one a long time ago, don't remember if it was by Chu, but it was handmade in the far east...cost around $100. Also bought one to use some Leica R lenses on my Nikon (before Leitax became popular). The problem with both is that infinity focus wide open was impossible, you needed to stop down to f/8 and then the DOF got you infinity focus. Needless to say, I resold both after a few weeks of experimenting.