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Explore the world of vintage lenses through repair notes, real test shots, and detailed archive threads packed with images.

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Mamiya/Sekor SX Series
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Posted: Sat Dec 19, 2009 1:09 pm
Post subject: Mamiya/Sekor SX Series
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Posted: Sat Dec 19, 2009 1:09 pm
Post subject: Mamiya/Sekor SX Series
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Hi everyone!

Now that I have successfully modified my KOOD M42/Nikon-Adapter, I have got my whole range of Sekor SX lenses working with full aperture control on my Nikon D50.

I think they are very nice regarding colours and Bokeh. Tell me what you think!

Of course there is more to come soon, for now it´s just a little christmas time atmosphere (first snow and plum pudding ingredients).


28mm F2,8 @F5,6:




135mm F2,8 @F5,6:




Regards,

Benedikt


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Posted: Sat Dec 19, 2009 1:20 pm
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Posted: Sat Dec 19, 2009 1:20 pm
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Good pics!!

Not surprise to me. I have a mamiya/sekor TL 2,8/135 and the rendering is similar to your SX lens. Perhaps your lens has more contrast and mine has 8 blades not 6. Very good at F/2,8-3,5 too.

Rino.


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Posted: Sat Dec 19, 2009 6:14 pm
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Posted: Sat Dec 19, 2009 6:14 pm
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Yes, the Mamiya lenses for 35mm are really nice and pretty affordable.


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Posted: Sat Dec 19, 2009 7:39 pm
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Posted: Sat Dec 19, 2009 7:39 pm
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I certainly like the colours.


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Posted: Sat Dec 19, 2009 7:48 pm
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Posted: Sat Dec 19, 2009 7:48 pm
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Great ones ! What did you modify on adapter ?


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Posted: Sun Dec 20, 2009 1:04 am
Post subject: Re: Mamiya/Sekor SX Series
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Posted: Sun Dec 20, 2009 1:04 am
Post subject: Re: Mamiya/Sekor SX Series
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BenediktW wrote:
Hi everyone!

Now that I have successfully modified my KOOD M42/Nikon-Adapter, I have got my whole range of Sekor SX lenses working with full aperture control on my Nikon D50.

I think they are very nice regarding colours and Bokeh. Tell me what you think!

Of course there is more to come soon, for now it´s just a little christmas time atmosphere (first snow and plum pudding ingredients).


28mm F2,8 @F5,6:




135mm F2,8 @F5,6:




Regards,

Benedikt


i have a voigtlander color-skoparex 2.8/28mm AR in rollei-qbm mount ...
and it is a mamiya sekor.

http://eddy.uni-duisburg.de/joerg/allerlei/mamiya/sx.html

"AUTO Mamiya/Sekor SX lenses on other cameras. From 1976 to the early eighties Mamiya produced lenses for some german Rollei/Voigtländer cameras. Those lenses had the Rollei QBM-bajonet mount and had been a low-budget-series in opposite to the much more expensive Zeiss lenses. They were sold as Rolleinar-MC or Voigtländer AR, the following table shows the lenses with the Voigtländer designation, the picture a Rolleinar-MC 2.8/35 - by Mamiya."

I must try to take some pictures with this lens.... but i think that i will have some infinity problems !
i must try ! i must try !


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Posted: Sun Dec 20, 2009 1:38 am
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Posted: Sun Dec 20, 2009 1:38 am
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@metallaro:

Hehe, yes, you definitely must!


@Attila:

I inserted a rubber ring from the local hardware store (designed for dish washing machines) into the adapter. It now lies around the correction lens, and pushes the pin at the rear of the M42-mount, so I can choose the aperture manually, like with Takumars with their A/M-switch set to M.


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Posted: Sun Dec 20, 2009 3:59 am
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Posted: Sun Dec 20, 2009 3:59 am
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Wow! If I hadn't known the lens was a Mamiya Sekor, I would
have said "I love the Leica glow!" Shocked I mean, just look at
that second image and it's glowing colors....very nice.

Hang on to that lens! Amazing! Would LOVE to see more.


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Posted: Sun Dec 20, 2009 1:45 pm
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Posted: Sun Dec 20, 2009 1:45 pm
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I have the Mamiya/Sekor 135mm f/2.8 SX, and I think it's one of the best and most underrated 135mm lenses. Build quality is also top-notch, it sits on my shelf next to the C/Y Sonnar 135mm f/2.8 and doesn't pale in comparison.


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Posted: Sun Dec 20, 2009 1:53 pm
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Posted: Sun Dec 20, 2009 1:53 pm
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I have had two mamiya sx 135/2.8 unfortunately both with stuck apertures at 2.8... both extremely sharp


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Posted: Sun Dec 20, 2009 2:35 pm
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Posted: Sun Dec 20, 2009 2:35 pm
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@Laurence:

That´s a pretty good description, glow... Somewhere between the colour and Bokeh-aspects. It´s what I tried to describe before.

Leica is an interesting comparison. I don´t have enough experience there, but some of the R-lenses with the Leitax-conversion are on my wishlist for the future. The 35mm F2 Summicron would be a great (and big) investment.


@Arkku:

I can only second that. The 135mm is really stunning. I would love to use it without the conversion lens, because there should still be a little bit of quality getting caught in that cheap little thing.


@Roman:

I think they are not so difficult to repair. Have you tried it? I also thought mine had a stuck aperture, before I noticed that the pin just didn´t get pushed in far enough when screwed into the adapter.

I am using this adapter,
Click here to see on Ebay.de
but when I bought it, it was much more expensive (2 years ago), maybe 40€.

Right now, there seem to be no listings, but this one just ended yesterday. They are usually available as buy-it-now-items on German eBay.


Regards,

Benedikt" target="_blank">Click here to see on Ebay[/url]


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Posted: Sun Dec 20, 2009 3:19 pm
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Posted: Sun Dec 20, 2009 3:19 pm
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is infinity available with this adapter and what about photos shot wide open?


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Posted: Sun Dec 20, 2009 3:35 pm
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Posted: Sun Dec 20, 2009 3:35 pm
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NikonD wrote:
I have had two mamiya sx 135/2.8 unfortunately both with stuck apertures at 2.8... both extremely sharp


I think that the TL/DTL (some of them tokinas, I guess) versions were better build, in the mechanical topic.

But in the optical question, I never find anybody who can tell me if the TL/DTL 135 is the same schame than the SX version. It seems that mamiya isn't so known as first brands.

Rino.


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Posted: Sun Dec 20, 2009 4:06 pm
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Posted: Sun Dec 20, 2009 4:06 pm
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@Roman:

Infinity is available, yes. Pictures taken wide open are often a bit blurred, and it is very sensitive towards flare and ghosting. But this seems to be the nature of these adapters.

There are other threads where I showed pictures taken with the 28mm F2,8 Sekor SX and the KOOD adapter. Just search for my user name, you will find them.


@Rino:

I don´t know anything about it either. The only thing I can say is that the build quality is great judged from the outside. The aperture ring feels great - solid yet precise, the focus is a pleasure to use. You can see the love for the detail everywhere. But appearantly the 135ers share a weak spot somewhere in the aperture mechanics. My copy is not concerned anyway.


I will show more pictures as soon as there is some time and light... Also from the Sekor SX 55mm F1,8, which looks surprisingly identical to my 55mm F1,8 Super-Takumar, regarding the results.


Greetings
Benedikt


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Posted: Sun Dec 20, 2009 4:24 pm
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Posted: Sun Dec 20, 2009 4:24 pm
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BenediktW wrote:
.......@Rino:

I don´t know anything about it either. The only thing I can say is that the build quality is great judged from the outside. The aperture ring feels great - solid yet precise, the focus is a pleasure to use. You can see the love for the detail everywhere. But appearantly the 135ers share a weak spot somewhere in the aperture mechanics. My copy is not concerned anyway.....Benedikt


Thanks for the answer. I saw two SX (in QBM both) with the apertures ring died. Casuality? Can be.

Congrat for your lens. And the 55 mamiya are really good, I still read it in pentax forum.

Thanks. Rino.


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Posted: Sun Dec 20, 2009 10:15 pm
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Posted: Sun Dec 20, 2009 10:15 pm
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I find the Mamiya lenses very good as well. I have a 50mm f/2 SX that renders rather nice.


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Posted: Mon Dec 21, 2009 8:26 am
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Posted: Mon Dec 21, 2009 8:26 am
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estudleon wrote:
BenediktW wrote:
.......@Rino:
I don´t know anything about it either. The only thing I can say is that the build quality is great judged from the outside.

Thanks for the answer. I saw two SX (in QBM both) with the apertures ring died. Casuality? Can be.


Yes, it looks tough on the outside, with tight and smooth focusing feel. However, push the stop-down pin (by attaching a QBM adapter for example) and rotate the aperture ring, and you'll see how the blades have a slight 'play' as you work the aperture ring.

I've been inside of a Rolleinar lens (Mamiya built) exactly for an aperture problem. It's a badly designed and badly engineered mechanism, prone to problems when abused even very slightly. Mamiya used several moving parts to control aperture where Nikkors use only one - and that single part would be fixed hard. Nikkors (especially late ones) were mechanical masterpieces, quite unlike many other Japanese lenses and CZ Jena designs.

Optical quality of Mamiya / Rolleinar designs is top notch though!


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Posted: Mon Dec 21, 2009 11:10 am
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Posted: Mon Dec 21, 2009 11:10 am
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A little diva, so to say?


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Posted: Mon Dec 21, 2009 12:04 pm
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Posted: Mon Dec 21, 2009 12:04 pm
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I have a Mamiya SX 135mm f2.8 which I bought locally for 30 euros, but on my *istD the aperture ring protrudes too much, and the lens cannot be screwd on all the way. I have to dremel it, but somehow I've never found the time, maybe this thread will give me the right incentive to do so...


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Posted: Mon Dec 21, 2009 1:30 pm
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Posted: Mon Dec 21, 2009 1:30 pm
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Well, don´t dremel the lens, dremel the adapter!


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Posted: Mon Dec 21, 2009 1:55 pm
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Posted: Mon Dec 21, 2009 1:55 pm
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BenediktW wrote:
Well, don´t dremel the lens, dremel the adapter!


Not possible with Pentax; the M42 adapter is flush with the mount on the camera (and he's probably not willing to dremel that =).


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Posted: Mon Dec 21, 2009 2:02 pm
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Posted: Mon Dec 21, 2009 2:02 pm
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Oh! Ok, with Nikon, you have a protruding rim which is too broad in some cases.


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Posted: Mon Dec 21, 2009 2:50 pm
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Posted: Mon Dec 21, 2009 2:50 pm
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Heh yes, I'm not too keen on dremelling my camera body.


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Posted: Mon Dec 21, 2009 8:24 pm
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Posted: Mon Dec 21, 2009 8:24 pm
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I posted this pic on amother thread. I didnt do this to the lens, I bought it this way. It's ugly but it works fine.



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Posted: Mon Dec 21, 2009 10:23 pm
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Posted: Mon Dec 21, 2009 10:23 pm
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spiralcity wrote:
I posted this pic on amother thread. I didnt do this to the lens, I bought it this way. It's ugly but it works fine.


Yowz! I hope to do a neater job, but as long as it works... Smile
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