Need Help with Summicron Lens

[leslie_p.]

Ok..I have a problem. I bought a used 35mm Summicron lens and it does

not seem to have a thread to screw on a filter or hood.

 

Leitz Canada 24617** Summicron 1:2/35

 

This is my first Leica and Summicron..so..this newbie is seriously

lost. Maybe someone would like to trade?

[leslie_p.]

I really just want to put on a filter so I can protect the lens..

 

Sincerely,

 

Unhappy Camper

[eliot_rosen1]

You have a variant of the second version 6-element 35/2 Summicron. According to Jim Lager), a subset of these lenses did not have screw threads. It is an error that may make the lens collectible. You can still use series filters, There was a metal lenshood made for this lens and the 35/1.4 that splits in half for insertion of a series type filter (I believe series 7). I forget the code number for the lenshood, but it might 12504 or something similar. Maybe someone else can provide more details.

[bart feliciano]

No filter thread? Never heard of that.

 

Could you post a picture of the front of the lens at an angle where we could see the area where the filter threads should be?

[bart feliciano]

Scratch my above post :)

[steve_hoffman]

Get a 12504 lens hood and a Leica "Serie 7" filter and you will be in business...

[jerry_lehrer]

Les,

 

Sell the lens to a collector and you will have enough money to buy a 4th version of that lens, or maybe an ASPH version.

 

Jerry

[michael_b._elmer]

Avoid using filters on Leica lenses. They are sufficiently protected in themselves. Filters will only decrease your photos.

[working camera]

I second, Michael B. Elmer?s , above post. The 1/4 wave coating on the front element of modern Leitz/Leica lenses is very robust. You can stub a lit cigarette out on them and do no harm. An old Leica rep demonstration! Also general UV filtration is not required on modern Leitz/Leica lenses.

 

Using unnecessary filtration only diminishes image quality.

 

The caveat is that some earlier lenses, such as the M 50mm Duel Range, for example, have soft glass front elements and need to be handled with kid gloves, as they scratch easily.

[ben z]

As someone who has been poking around camera shops in my travels for eons, I have seen lots of Leica lenses besides the early 50mms with various scratches and wipe marks on the front glass. Personally I always shot most of my b&w outdoor shots with a medium yellow filter, most of my outdoor slides with an 81a, and many shots overall with a polarizer, and that was back before the latest MRC multicoated filters which have virtually zero negative effect on the result. Unless I would be willing to forego the use of filters completely, I would have an impossible time making an intelligent case for never using a UV filter because of potential image degradation. That said, I would say you might be better off selling the lens to a collector and finding one with filter threads. You will want a hood in either case, but the 12504 tends to run quite a bit more than the 12585 which works as well.

[working camera]

I hear what you are saying Ben, fair point.

 

The point I was try to make, and perhaps should clarify for the Leslie, is that I think people can needlessly worry about their Leica gear. Yeah. it's expensive stuff and everyone wants to protect their investment. One of the reasons Leica gear is so expensive is due to the build quality. While accidents do happen, its all pretty robust stuff and can take a lot of punishment. One should, however, be careful about which Leica lens they use for an ash tray.

 

Regards Craig