Substitude for the Tri-Elmar. Much better and Heavier.

[c_d5]

Found this on a Japanese Used Camera site.

http://www.mediajoy.com/mjc/search/index.php?item_no=4686&shosai=1

 

 

<img src="http://www.photo.net/photodb/image-display?

photo_id=1730500&size=md">

 

The camera is Leica M2, the 3 lens on the rotating mount are Elmar

50/3.5, Elmar 90/4, and Summaron 35/3.5. Only 250 ever made. This

is for the price of Yen 998,000 or around US$8500/9000. I apologize

if somebody has seen this before. Just thought of sharing this with

other beginners.

 

My thought. Use things and Love people. Not the other way around.

God bless.

[john_chan2]

Strictly for fondlers.

 

On a positive note though, if you attach a rectangular piece of white cloth to one of the strap lugs and wave the unit above your head you might be able to convince the other side of your sincerity of surrender (as no one is still using M1s with mounted bayonets these days).

[stephen_w.]

I think it was conceived by a few idle Leitz technicians that wanted to play around in the machine shop. They made a dizzying array of products in the old days when it was about craft rather than a business.

[Rob F.]

I've always wondered how the lenses could still focus to infinity on that contraption, since they are fitted to a turret. If they mount to a flange on the turret, it would have to be in front of the camera's bayonet ring, moving the lens forward. I must be making a wrong assumption about how that thing is built.

[andrew_c2]

Looks like it'd make a great mask at a masquerade party!

 

Regards!

[jay_.]

The turret only uses screwmount lenses, and only mounts on an M body, where an added spacer is always required for the lenses to focus to infinity due to the difference in flange-filmplane. That's how the LTM-M adaptor rings work.

[karl_yik1]

Some people do have crazy solutions dont they! ;)

[jerry_pfile1]

Jay,

 

And I always wondered how they brought up the correct framelines for each lens.

 

Necessary to twist each lens 30 degrees to release and then spin to next lens and twist 30 degrees to mount it?

 

Best,

 

Jerry

[roger_michel]

jerry pegged it!! jay, the spacer required is just the thickness of the ring, a few mm only. the flanges on this baby are obviously much thicker. each lens must be seated with a strong oush inward and then a bayonet twist. the procedure must be revered before changing lenes.

 

before mocking the leitz engineers too vigorously, remember this thing was built in pre-zoom days. for a news photog, this must have been a handy contraption considering the alternatives. it was also probaly smaller and lighter than a crown/speed or a linhof.

 

it was not built for f******s as suggested above, but working professionals who didn't care about looks, just utility. then again, maybe it would have been easier to carry three cameras . . . .

[jay_.]

<<jerry pegged it!! jay, the spacer required is just the thickness of the ring, a few mm only. the flanges on this baby are obviously much thicker. each lens must be seated with a strong oush inward and then a bayonet twist. the procedure must be revered before changing lenes.>>

 

That's not how the OROLF works. There is a thumbscrew on the back of the turret that draws the turret toward the camera and locks the lens in place. You turn the screw to release the lens, then you can rotate another lens into position and tighten the thumbscrew. The camera's bayonet is not used (obvious if you look at the posted photo the turret completely covers access to the lens lock release button)and the individual lenses are not pushed or twisted, there is no bayonet-type locking mechanism on the turret either. And as I said, it has to take LTM lenses because a minimum amount of spacing was required to hold the lens. The flange just *looks* thick in the photo but actually the lens sits in a recess. I only handled one of these, at the home of a real Leica collector, and it was quite a few years ago, but I do remember you didn't push or turn each lens individually. P.263 of Laney's Leica Collectors Guide has a large photo that's clearer, along with a description of its operation that supports what I've said.

[jay_.]

PS, it's also on P.120 of the Hove Leica Accessory Guide 2nd version, if anyone has one of those. BTW it comprised an integrated baseplate, it did not attach to the camera's baseplate.

[h._p.]

There was an SLR which had a similar arrangement. I seem to remember it was either French or Italian. It had three lenses in a turret with a very similar pistol grip arrangement. I wonder whether one influenced the other or if they were independent developments from people trying to meet the same requirement.