T-mount 400mm f/6.3 (revised)

Many thanks to those (if any) who posted responses to this question,

but I was unfortunately unable to read them. My previous question and

responses were lost when photo.net shut down, so I'm posting it again

(with revisions):

 

I have been offered a Bower (not Spiratone) 400mm f/6.3 preset lens

in Canon FD mount for a very good price. Since I cannot try out the

the lens firsthand (the seller lives in a different part of the

state), I have a few questions. Is this lens the same as the

Spiratone model that many sources favorably mention, or is it a

different (inferior?) design? How convenient (or inconvenient) is the

preset aperture in actual use? Is the optical quality any good,

considering the very low price and outdated design? Any experiences

or comments are welcome. Thanks again!

 

JW

Is this lens the same as the Spiratone model that many sources favorably mention, or is it a different (inferior?) design?

Don't know. But I think Spiratone didn't actually make lenses, just marketed them, so it could be the same. I've seen the same 500mm lens sold as Samyang, as Focal, as Quantaray. I bought my 500mm f/8 for $139 including Tmount and teleconvertor, and recently saw some Quantary closed out at Wolf's for $79.

 

How convenient (or inconvenient) is the preset aperture in actual use?

On my 500 f/8, it is a moot point. Due to need to keep shutter speed up, you'll wind up taking 90% of your shots wide open.

 

Is the optical quality any good, considering the very low price and outdated design?

You get what you pay for, to a certain extent. If it was real good, it would be expensive. If you can get it for cheap, you can have lots of fun, even if not first class optics. I would be very hesitant to pay much for old used off-brand lens, regardless of reputation.

 

Any experiences or comments are welcome. Thanks again!

With the 500mm f/8, the biggest drawback is that minimum close-focus distance is about 32'. This means it is impossible to fill the frame with a small bird, even with a 2x teleconvertor. Depending on what you have in mind, this may or may not be a problem.

Stephen,

I have used extension tubes with mirror lenses to get closer focus capabilities. Try it out. The shorter extension tubes are especially useful here.

Around 1977 I bought one of the Spriratone T-mount 400mm lenses and found it to be very sharp - I made some excellent images with it. Unfortunately, the rear lens element eventually became clouded for some unknown reason - it could not be cleaned up. So I bought a Tokina 400mm to replace it.

My own experience is with the Spiratone, but I wouldn't be surprised to find that its performance is typical of the class. It's not real hard to make a 400/6.3 or a 500/8 with a manual diaphragm. If the price is good it's worth giving it a try, that's one of the great things about cheap stuff :)=

 

The preset aperture is very inconvenient on something like an AE1 (shutter priority, and not really well set up for non-auto operation), unless you shoot wide open (which you will much of the time). If you have an aperture priority mode to work with, though, it's a breeze: full autoexposure, no hassles at all. on a match needle camera it's much like a regular lens, except that the screen darkens as you center the needle by stopping down.

 

:)=

There are no less than 9 different "makers" listed for the old 400mm f6.3 lens. Almost every thing with a "maker" name you recognize is of the same optical design -- and this was, as lens tests clearly demonstrate, one of the best 3rd-party lenses offered back then. Spiratone didnt make lenses, then again, nor did (as of old) Asunama, Kenko, Samigon, Accura, Vivitar, Photina, etc. Most are the same thing. But, if you want to be sure, just buy the Spiratone lens, and if you do, look for one with the larger collar, extension tube for close-focus, and the flare-preventing accessory hood. None of these lenses are worth more than $40 on the used market, so we are not talking about much money. It is a very good lens; I use one via adaptor on EOS cameras, occassionally.

Thanks for all the replies. The lens arrived yesterday and I took some pictures with it today. The f/6.3 max aperture wasn't as dim as I thought it would be, and with ISO 400 film in moderately bright sunlight, it was easy to focus and still allowed the necessary speeds of 1/1000 and 1/500. The lens, though a bit on the heavy side, handles very nicely with a pistol grip, and the preset aperture was surprisingly easy to take meter readings with. I am looking forward to seeing the results.

 

JW