Pimp my ugly Cyclop 85mm 1.5 - "Airbrush" Edition

[schildzilla]

I just wanted to share my painting results to maybe give some people ideas to pimp their old lenses, that probably would otherwise be thrown away.
That way you can also put them into a glass cabinet.
I've just received an old Cyclop 85mm 1.5 that was heavily scratched and needed some new paint.
For sure the Cyclop 85mm 1.5 is a very very very ugly lens, but I was optimistic, that it can be optimized, even if it will still be an ugly ugly ugly lens. I like my Helios 40-2 more, but it's heavier.
So I've took sandpaper (fist dry and then wet), some spray cans, tape, some other stuff and a 3D printed mesh to create the pattern.
I'm not going into every detail, that would be too much.

The back part was easy. It can be removed with 3 screws hidden under the front part that just block you from screwing the lens further out when focusing.
The back part has a fixation ring that holds the tripod mount ring. After removing the fixation ring, the tripod mount can be pulled off.
I've removed the outer paint of that fixation ring and polished it at the visible outer side.
All other parts were painted black matt, also because it is easier to repaint that part just in case it will get scratched. I also thought about glossy black, but matt is less complicated.

The front part is made of 2 peaces that are just screwed together.
I've screwed off the ring (back part), removed the paint and polished it, which now gives a decent transition from the front to the black back part of the lens.
Some tape to cover the thread and back lens is important, else you'll get problems in assembling the lens later and also the front lens was covered with tape (I could also took it out but needed to clean it later anyway).
I've sanded down the grooves in the front and polished that part a bit.
The polished front part was also covered with tape until the red base paint including the black pattern was applied.
After removing the tape and some detailing, the whole piece was painted with clear vanish.
Later after some drying time the clear vanish was sanded (to get rid of the raised pattern in the surface of the clear vanish) and painted again with clear vanish.
Drying time again, then I highly polished the paint to make the surface more even and clear.

The rest was just a little bit of clean up, putting everything together and cleaning the lenses in the inside.
Still thinking about some stickers to give some finish.


This is the result:

Before (it looked like that all around, but this was the most serviere scratch):


After:


This is what will go into my glass cabinet now:

[jamaeolus]

1st post allows no images as anti-spam measure.

[jamaeolus]

[jamaeolus]

Looks good!

[schildzilla]

Thank you very much.
I was already wondering why there are no pictures

[visualopsins]

Welcome schildzilla!

An art showpiece. You will use it, yes?

[schildzilla]

[LittleAlex]

Cyclop 1,5 / 85 (ROMZ) - a technical version of Helios-40-2 for use in night vision devices, adapted with an iris diaphragm. Review from Rodion Eshmakov

https://radojuva.com/en/2021/06/cyclop-1-5-85-romz/

[kiddo]

i dunno the lens, the results are nice but i`m not sure if they are the best grip for focusing

[schildzilla]

[BrianSVP]

Nice refinish! Interesting choice to remove the knurling.

[Lloydy]

Very nice finish, I like it.

[kiddo]

[Nordentro]

Awesome

[schildzilla]

[schildzilla]

I've just received a silver Zenit camera body. I think optically the lens with it's colors fits better on that body.

[schildzilla]

Pimp my Cyclop 85mm F1.5 v2.0 - Coating edition:

I've noticed that my Helios 40-2 (2015 version with good coating) was way(!) sharper than the Cyclop. I was not too happy when attached to my a7R V.
Also the TechArt LM-EA9 Autofocus adapter was always off the focus a lot with an accuracy of about 30-60%.
The Cyclop wasn't sharp at all when perfectly manually focused and even worse when the sun came out.
As it was too far off the Helios, I've decided to remove the blueish weird shimmering back coating (which have had some scratches anyway which were not the cause) of the front lens, as I've had a feeling that this coating caused the quality loss.
I've used my (professional) car polishing machine (slowest speed) and an abrasive polish that is used for getting rid of holograms of car paint together with a hard foam disc (new and never used before to have no dust in it, that could cause scratches in the glass).
The polish must be allover the disk where the lens touches the foam, else it will not work and it should never run completely dry.
I've often used such a combination for car windshields in the past, to get rid of scratches on the glass, often caused by the windshield wipers, so I've had some experience with that already. Yet it was risky.

For me it worked perfectly. Took about 5 minutes including stops to carefully check the progress and I've rotated the lens during polishing.
No more back coating, no scratches and later I've waxed it by hand, also because it's easier then to clean the glass and blow away any dust on the surface later.
As long as the wax is on the lens, it also adds some extra protection against scratches, as everything touching the front lens tends to slip away instead of instantly scratching over the surface.
It looks like a brand new front lens now. I've attached a cheap 12 layer coated UV filter and a lens hood as well.

The result:
I have way better sharpness, details and contrasts now, even when the sun is coming out. I would say now it's very usable and pleasing.
Also my TechArt LM-EA9 AF adapter now automatically focuses almost perfectly on my a7R V in all lighting conditions, which it didn't before with the Cyclop.
Autofocus accuracy is now about 70-100% (mostly 90%). In comparison the Helios is about 80-100% (mostly 100%) accuracy with that adapter.
So somehow this night vision coating of the front lens affected the image quality - in my case a lot. At least you can see it on a 61MP camera.
Still the Helios 40-2 2015 version is sharper, but they came a lot closer now.

I wouldn't recommend anyone trying that for themselves, as there is a risk, that your lens will slip out of your fingers while polishing it and you must definitely know your used equipment and material perfectly.
You can also cause more damage to the lens than making something better.
I would also recommend, that if someone is trying that, to protect your area around the lens in case it slips out of your fingers to protect your surrounding and the lens itself. Some soft blankets should do a good job.
In my case it didn't slip, but it can happen with polish on your fingers.
I would definitely repeat that procedure in the future if needed.
Also works with scratched CDs and other surfaces if done properly

[jamaeolus]

Interesting. I have some scratched lenses that would definitely benefit from a polishing. I have been meaning to try something similar. These lenses are so damaged already as to be useless, optically speaking, so little risk involved.