Best quality Russian optics???

[giles_poilu]

Just how bad are <a href="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?

ViewItem&item=1944642645">these</a> lenses? Has anyone bought/used

one? They are a throw-away price - Is the bin the best place for

them?

[phill kneen]

I've got 5 of these lenses, all on Zorki's and no 2 are the same! The quality isn't that bad in any of them to be honest.

 

At that price you can't complain.(although I have never paid more than £30 for lens AND camera body)

[phill kneen]

I've just checked my buyers guide and you shouldn't be paying more than £15 for this lens in exellent condition.

[todd frederick]

This question comes up frequently. The quality can vary from lens to lens (so I'm told) but I have a Jupiter-8 that is awesome.

 

I am posting my "Bronze Eagle" again that was taken with my Juiter-8 50/2 on an M2 with adapter using Tri-X film.

 

Very sharp image with good contrast and good bokeh in background. They have about 10 aperture blades.<div></div>

[todd frederick]

In my opinion, these lenses a very under priced for the quality and are a bargain. Don't let a good one pass buy simply because the seller wants more than the price listed in the buyer's guide.

[phill kneen]

Giles, I have a Zorki 4K in very good condition with Jupitor 8 50mm f2 lens that you can try out if you like. I can send it to you, you put a few rolls of film through and if you like it then make me an offer.(as I said, I've never paid more than £30 for one). A kind of 'try before you buy'.

[todd frederick]

The eBay item you listed could be a winner. It is the same as mine...English writing on the front, intended for the European and American markets, with better quality control (so I'm told).

 

It looks nice and clean.

 

It's interesting that the ad pictures the old Soviet flag and not the Russian flag, but, maybe that's because he's selling USSR equipment.

[giles_poilu]

Seems these are all brand new lenses and the seller has <a href="http://cq-search.ebay.co.uk/search/search.dll?MfcISAPICommand=GetResult&query=leica+jupiter+50&cgiurl=http%3A%2F%2Fcgi.ebay.co.uk%2Fws%2F&ebaytag1=ebayavail&ebaytag1code=3&from=R10&currdisp=2&itemtimedisp=1&st=2&SortProperty=MetaEndSort&BasicSearch=">lots of them for sale.</a><p>£25 for a brand new 50 shipped to your door seems impressive, as do some of the recommendations here, sure it's not a Summicron but these are super cheap.

[nick roberts]

No, it's not a Summicron - it's a Sonnar, or at least a copy of the 50mm f2 Zeiss Sonnar. I loved the one I had on a Zorki 4, and the one on my Kiev 4 is pretty good too. Yes, they are reputedly a bit of a lottery, but a good 'un is better than any pre-war Leitz lens, for a start.

[carbonado]

If you're interested Russian lenses, check out Fedka.com. He's got a steady stock of the Jups in both LTM and Contax mounts.

 

I've ordered several Jupiters from him (Yuri, I think, is his name), and he seems to go out of his way to make sure they're in good shape (and if they're not in good shape, he'll make sure you understand what you're getting.)

 

His prices are little higher than the average Jup on ebay, but you can be assured you're getting something that is actually usable -- as opposed to several ebay Jupiter sellers who seem to sell lenses that look quite different (and are in considerably worse shape) than the lenses pictured in the auction.

 

Fedka has lots of cleaned up FEDs, Zorkis, and Kievs, too.

 

Plus, he ships from New York, so if you're in the states, you can usually get the item in a couple days. Packed nicely, exactly as pictured.

 

(I'm not affiliated with Fedka, but I've found -- after a year or so of buying lots of Russian stuff -- that his 35mm lenses and bodies are consistently high quality -- or at least as "high quality" as you're gonna get with 20,30, 40 year old bodies and lenses.)

[roger_michel]

check the feedback of the seller in the auction you referenced before you buy!!

[giles_poilu]

Roger, your're spot on, I did just that after posting my last comment - needless to say the idea of buying anything from him has gone directly in the bin.

[michael_bender]

(a) As was pointed already, Russian lenses are copies of Zeiss lenses; after the war they were coated.

 

(b) They are of excellent quality, as a rule. The reason they are cheap is not because of their inferiority, but for the reason of political and economic realities. Enjoy your access as long as it lasts - I am not sure how long the current conditions last - the realtive poverty of the former USSR population, for whom $100 sales can feed the family for a month, and how long the stocks last.

 

© Among lenses I have are Jupiter-3 (1.5/50) I bought separately, and Jupiter-8 on a Zorki-4K body.

 

The one from Zorki focusses too closely - about 3-4 sm off - at the closest range, wide open (I usually photograph a ruler) - when attached to a Bessa LTM body.

When attached to the Zorki-4K, however, it is precise.

 

The second lens, the one I bought separately is precise on the Japanese LTM body.

 

Zorki cameras were NEVER sold without lens (unlike the tradition in the West, where body and lens are separated to extract higher price). Therefore I suspect, during manufacture the lens focussing cam was polished, adjuste to fit the camera.

 

So, in the end my opinion is that one should really make use of the unique current conditions and get several Russian lenses - they are so cheap, everyone can afford it.

I would be a bit more wary about the lenses taken from camera bodies as opposed to lenses that were sold separately (i.e. coming in those plastic screw-on black barrel-like containers).

[mikal_grass]

Do 28 mm Russian lenses exist for a Leica M6? Thanks.

[vuk_vuksanovic]

<br><br>

I'll let the pic speak for itself.<div></div>

[vuk_vuksanovic]

You can also have a look at this thread:<br>

<a href="http://www.photo.net/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg?msg_id=0040G7">http://www.photo.net/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg?msg_id=0040G7</a>

[kelly_flanigan1]

Mikal; the 28mm F6 Orion is in LTM and requires a LTM to M adapter. Here is an old thread I started on the <a href="http://www.photo.net/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg?msg_id=002qrv">Russian Orion 15 </a>; and the usually comments!

[garvey_p]

Has anyone here tried the Orion 15 on a Bessa R or R2? Gandy says it won't work, but after doing some babelfishing on Japanese sites, I found reports that it may work on the CV bodies after all. Anyone here with any experience trying it?

 

Also, the Orion 15 is not RF coupled, correct?

 

Japanese sites:

http://member.nifty.ne.jp/Bou/CCCP/Pages/bessa_r.html

http://www.cameraguild.co.jp/cosinacamera/Russia.html

http://kuro704.cool.ne.jp/albm/021027/

http://kuro704.cool.ne.jp/albm/021025/

 

I suppose the pics speak for themselves.

[Rob F.]

"I'll let the pic speak for itself."

 

It does that all right, Vuk. The hell with the lens. Did you get her number?

 

(Nice work)

[kelly_flanigan1]

Garvey; Re:<BR><BR><i>Has anyone here tried the Orion 15 on a Bessa R or R2? Gandy says it won't work, but after doing some babelfishing on Japanese sites, I found reports that it may work on the CV bodies after all. Anyone here with any experience trying it? <BR><BR>

 

Also, the Orion 15 is not RF coupled, correct? </i>

<BR><BR><BR>The Orion-15 in LTM is RF coupled; and focuses to 1 meter. The lens's focus cam is cylindical; thus it will work on a Russian camera (with a camera body focus arm ROLLER) ; or a leica or Bessa with a camera body focus cam arm roller..<BR><BR>My Orion-15 fits on all my Russian Lennigrad, FED, and Zorki; plus my Bessa R and Leica M (with a LTM adapter). <BR><BR> The lens is very slow at F6 . it is a very light, compact lens. It is sharp enough for grab shots; but I have not explored really how good or bad the lens is. That is a future exercise for me. <BR><BR>I am puzzled that someone would mention it not fitting on a Bessa R; perhaps there is a variant of the lens that doesnt fit; or a percieved metering problem..???<BR><BR>The Orion-15 in KIEV camera mount is ultra rare.....

[bernhard]

Jupiter 8: pretty good for the price and overall

 

Jupiter 12: 28/35 Biogon type lens, astonishingly prone to flare like hell on my Zorkji 4, no idea why a coated 6 element/4 group lens would do this, but it does. Maybe a problem of the body?