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KONICA sticker in Kalimar mirror lens
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PostPosted: Tue Feb 07, 2023 12:51 am    Post subject: KONICA sticker in Kalimar mirror lens Reply with quote
I took apart a Kalimar mirror lens, made in Korea presumably by Samyang, and found a KONICA sticker under the focus grip. I’m surprised. Does anyone know of any connection between Konica and Korea or Samyang?



PostPosted: Tue Feb 07, 2023 3:38 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
Is it not just in a Konica mount? Kalimar / Samyang made lenses in most mounts.
BTW, that lens looks really tiny. The smallest 500 ever?


PostPosted: Tue Feb 07, 2023 10:59 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
I'm going to say it means Konica mount, not sold as or related to Konica, although it's interchangeable T mount I assume, and those were usually marketed as pick your own adapter(?)

This sort of sticker is factory floor information I would think, so hard to unpick which logic at work.

Here's my best guess: they were boxing up a certain amount of mirror lenses with each mount. The sticker was to tell it where to go. It allowed them to keep track? I don't want to assume they needed to keep track like that, but how else would you count a huge pile of boxes even when sectioned off?


PostPosted: Tue Feb 07, 2023 2:35 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
eggplant wrote:
I'm going to say it means Konica mount, not sold as or related to Konica, although it's interchangeable T mount I assume, and those were usually marketed as pick your own adapter(?)

This sort of sticker is factory floor information I would think, so hard to unpick which logic at work.

Here's my best guess: they were boxing up a certain amount of mirror lenses with each mount. The sticker was to tell it where to go. It allowed them to keep track? I don't want to assume they needed to keep track like that, but how else would you count a huge pile of boxes even when sectioned off?


I agree, that would be my guess.

That sticker is upside-down by the way; just knowing that would annoy the crap out of me even if it is invisible (I'm a bit OCD like that Wink )


PostPosted: Tue Feb 14, 2023 3:41 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
I have no good ideas for this. I appreciate the suggestion that it might have been made for Konica mount, and the idea has merit. However I’m also skeptical. What I have observed from looking at the boxes for these (under a variety of brands) suggests that they were simply made and boxed without a determination of mount adapter (this is a T2 mount). Then at a later time someone would put a specific mount adapter into the box and put a sticker into a reserved space on the box. The other reason for doubt is I think the serial number convention is the first two years are the decade/year of make. This one is a 92xx serial number, and I think the last Konica SLRs were made in the early 1980s. I think by the early 1990s a third-party mirror lens for a Konica SLR would have been extremely niche. But maybe I’m estimating that wrong, and someone who was working in a camera store at that time could offer perspective?

I’m not trying to be antagonistic, just sharing my thoughts as I consider the reasons to believe or doubt.

In any event it is an interesting curiosity and fun to discuss!


PostPosted: Tue Feb 14, 2023 3:45 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
Maybe the manufacturer sourced that portion of the lens from Konica?


PostPosted: Tue Feb 14, 2023 8:38 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
xaprb wrote:
I have no good ideas for this. I appreciate the suggestion that it might have been made for Konica mount, and the idea has merit. However I’m also skeptical. What I have observed from looking at the boxes for these (under a variety of brands) suggests that they were simply made and boxed without a determination of mount adapter (this is a T2 mount). Then at a later time someone would put a specific mount adapter into the box and put a sticker into a reserved space on the box. The other reason for doubt is I think the serial number convention is the first two years are the decade/year of make. This one is a 92xx serial number, and I think the last Konica SLRs were made in the early 1980s. I think by the early 1990s a third-party mirror lens for a Konica SLR would have been extremely niche. But maybe I’m estimating that wrong, and someone who was working in a camera store at that time could offer perspective?

I’m not trying to be antagonistic, just sharing my thoughts as I consider the reasons to believe or doubt.

In any event it is an interesting curiosity and fun to discuss!


From what I've been able to see since I began goofing off with cameras and lenses (over 4 deccades now), most OEMs didn't use their SN to indicate year of manufacture. The ones that I know of that did this include the Soviets (for most if not all the photo gear they made) and Tokina. I know of no other . Konica certainly didn't. Incidentally, the last SLR Konica manufactured in-house (the Konica FT-1 Motor) dates from late 1987.
This sticker (shape color and font) looks very much like the stickers placed on T-mount adapter boxes to indicate what mount they were made for. Just my 2 (maybe 3) cents' worth.
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