Best deal on earth - Summilux-R 80/1.4 for just 5 GBP !!!!

ferrick · Joined: 20 Apr 2012 Posts: 643 Location: Hong Kong

I bought this lens last year in Leicester, UK. The camera shop was closing down. Lots of used lenses/cameras were placed on long tables. Some 40 GBP, some 20 GBP, some 10 GBP and some 5 GBP. This lens was put on the 5 GBP table. When I first picked it up, I did not realize that it was a Summilux. I soon noticed that it was very heavy. When I took a look at the front ring, it read "Summilux-R" ... what the .... !

But the thing is this lens had been immersed in sea water. Aperture blades were rusted and broken. White colored dust/oxide was in between all lens elements. So what! It's a Summilux! I of course purchased it.

It took me quite some time and effort to open up the front lens group and cleaned it. However, the rear group was so heavily rusted that it simply cannot open despite how hard I tried! Moreover, the aperture blades cannot be fixed. So, all that I can do is to add a black cardboard
between the front and rear lens groups to step it down a bid. With the white dust remains in the rear group, this is how the lens performs on mu NEX-5!

Comments on its quality/price ratio or performance are welcome! Very Happy