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Carl zeiss sonnar 4/135 for contax rf dating
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PostPosted: Sun Apr 13, 2014 12:27 pm    Post subject: Carl zeiss sonnar 4/135 for contax rf dating Reply with quote

I bought this lens today at the camera fair for € 50 as I spotted some very slight signs of separation along the outer part of an element.
I bought it because it looked like a pre-war model: can anyone help me in dating precisely this little beauty?
Serial number is 1898xxx, "made in Germany"
Thanks.


PostPosted: Sun Apr 13, 2014 1:22 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Can you post a picture of the lens for identification? Not having the serial number data from Zeiss, would not be able to tell the age. A picture can tell if it is pre war, post war, east or west German, there are 4 or 5 versions of them in all...


PostPosted: Sun Apr 13, 2014 1:24 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

cambug wrote:
Can you post a picture of the lens for identification? Not having the serial number data from Zeiss, would not be able to tell the age. A picture can tell if it is pre war, post war, east or west German, there are 4 or 5 versions of them in all...


Sure, I will as soon as I get home, thanks.


PostPosted: Sun Apr 13, 2014 2:02 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Yes, 18 serial is prewar, uncoated so contrast is a bi lower but a very sharp lens with that superb sonnar smoothness to it's rendering. Great lens, one of my faves, I have pre-war, postwar and Russian J11 copies plus zebra and late MC PB 3.5 ones too, just because I love Sonnars. Smile


PostPosted: Sun Apr 13, 2014 6:12 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Here's the lens:



Passed years are not invisible, but I think she looks good for being almost 80 years old - also, I haven't cleaned her yet.

here, mounted on my nex:


Again, some dust, the little separation visible in the lower right corner, but glass is completely free of scratches or cleaning marks - and pics were taken in harsh light.

Bonus: the other purchase of today

A shiny contax/kiev jupiter-9, arsenal made: these two make my rf kit almost complete: I only need only something wider than 35 at this point, but you know, rf wides are a dangerous topic.

It's incredible how better the lubricant of the sonnar survived the years: despite being 25 years older the focusing helicoid is smooth as butter and perfectly even through all the range, while the j-9 is averagely harder, with a "dry" feel, and quite uneven (but perfectly usable).


PostPosted: Sun Apr 13, 2014 10:08 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

And a bunch of random samples too:








My impressions: sharpness seem very good, bokeh and colors are to die for (I'm a sucker for sonnars, too), contrast is good if you plan carefully where you point your camera (and easily fixed in pp, however). You must be careful and not point the camera straight towards a strong light source, but not impossible with a 135. However, I'll look for a hood.
I'm really happy with it for now.


PostPosted: Mon Apr 14, 2014 1:31 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

This is a post war West German Sonnar, coated, either Zeiss Opton or Carl Zeiss marking. Earlier ones with red T marking and later Carl Zeiss version omitted the marking. The features of West German version: lighter aluminum construction, the mount part more circular square and the lens release buttom is square shape.


PostPosted: Mon Apr 14, 2014 2:56 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

It's a late production western Zeiss, same as the one I have, stunningly good lens. Seen here with J11.




PostPosted: Mon Apr 14, 2014 5:49 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

iangreenhalgh1 wrote:
It's a late production western Zeiss, same as the one I have, stunningly good lens. Seen here with J11.


cambug wrote:
This is a post war West German Sonnar, coated, either Zeiss Opton or Carl Zeiss marking. Earlier ones with red T marking and later Carl Zeiss version omitted the marking. The features of West German version: lighter aluminum construction, the mount part more circular square and the lens release buttom is square shape.



Thank you very much for the info: the serial number and "made in Germany" engraving deceived me.
Any chance of knowing the year of production?


PostPosted: Mon Apr 14, 2014 12:30 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

You can look it up here:

http://motamedi.info/serial.htm

All we can know is that both your lens and mine were built in the 1953-59 period. Mine is probably 53 or 54, yours is probably 55 or 56.

Quote:
Carl Zeiss (Opton), Oberkochen, West Germany.
10,000-500,000 1946-1951
500,000-1,100,000 1951-1953
1,100,000-2,600,000 1953-1959
2,600,000-3,000,000 1959-1961
3,000,000-4,000,000 1961-1965
4,000,000-5,000,000 1965-1969
5,000,000-6,000,000 1969-1971
6,000,000-7.300,000 1971-1975


PostPosted: Mon Apr 14, 2014 1:05 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

iangreenhalgh1 wrote:
You can look it up here:

http://motamedi.info/serial.htm

All we can know is that both your lens and mine were built in the 1953-59 period. Mine is probably 53 or 54, yours is probably 55 or 56.


Thank you very much.
It is more or less as old as my father, then, and probably the oldest lens I own.


PostPosted: Mon Apr 14, 2014 1:25 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

You're welcome.

Mine is rapidly becoming one of my favourite lenses.

3 shot stitch I did the other day:



Wide open it has a lovely character with some pop:



This one shows the lovely smooth painterly bokeh I love so much, almost like brush strokes:



I forget what aperture this was, probably 5.6, but it's very sharp: