Who cleans Summaron 3,5cm f3.5 in Europe?

[knut_schwinzer]

<p>Hi all, anybody that is able to tidy up the haze of this lens?<br /> No mechanical problems, but the lubricant they chose 70 years ago (whale sperm?!) makes this lenses often unusable nowadays.<br /> TIA,<br /> Knut<br /> PD Better no UK adresses (I'm located in Spain) because of expensive shipping and tax problems. A pity.</p>

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[astral]

<p>Kamera Service in Netherlands (<a href="http://www.kamera-service.info/index.php/en/">http://www.kamera-service.info/index.php/en/</a>). There should be no problem with tax for items sent to the UK which is still part of the EU despite some <em>doom-mongers!</em> Similarly, postage to the UK will be similar to postage to any other part of the mainland EU that is covered by the CEPT agreement.</p>

<p>Spermacetti oil was obtained from the sperm whale (physeter macrocephalus) - it is found in the whale's head. It retains its viscosity at low temperatures, and was not used on lenses or cameras except those which were prepared and lubricated for very low temperatures, which itself was quite rare. Conversely, spermacetti oil is much too thin to use as a camera lens lubricant at normal temperatures. Mineral-based grease was the normal lubricant, and was a mix of substances of different viscosity and volatility, some of which progressively evaoprate and may then re-condense in unwanted places.</p>

[paul_neuthaler]

<p>Good info., Alan.</p>

[Robin Smith]

<p>Spermaceti.</p>

[astral]

<p>Thanks Robin - I am re-learning Italian; using double t becomes a habitt! </p>

[knut_schwinzer]

<p>Thanks for the exhaustive information, Alan! </p>

[astral]

<p>There has been some debate (in whaling history circles) about the extent to which Germany had access to spermaceti in the 1930s and what impact this had on German engineering and manufacture, etc.<br /><br />Germany did not have a significant whaling industry prior to 1939, and could not operate one from late '39 onwards. Like many other specialist materials, spermaceti either had to be imported, or alternatives and substitutes had to be developed. (Historically, the largest producer of spermaceti oil was the USA). During the First World War Germany faced a virtually total naval blockade which contributed significantly to its lack of animal or vegetable oil for margarine, soap, and glycerides (used in chemical manufacture and explosives), as well as some lubricants; petroleum imports were also severely affected. This led Germany to expand oil-seed (rape oil) production and to improve the extraction of a wide range of mineral oils from coal or to synthesise them. Whether Germany obtained - or really needed - spermaceti oil in any quantity in the 1914 to 1945 period appears not to be very well known - maybe there were several ingenious 'work-arounds'. Either way, the availability of spermaceti, except for the most specialised uses, may have been somewhat problematic for Germany until the 1950s. <br /><br />After 1945 until the late 1960s the international whaling industry went into overdrive, but (as in thje 1930s) the focus was primarily on baleen whales which could be found in large numbers, rather than the more solitary sperm whales. (The bulk of baleen whale oil was destined for the food, soap and chemical industries as in the 1930s). Spermaceti oil was by then very rapidly being replaced with mineral oils and synthetics, but continued to be used in some very narrow applications such as automatic transmissions in some motor cars, as a special lubricant used in engineering and manufacturing, and reputedly in some spacecraft. Supply and demand tended to make the use of spermaceti for non-specialist applications unduly expensive . . . and sperm whale populations reached near-extinction levels in the '60s.<br /><br /></p>