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iangreenhalgh1
Joined: 18 Mar 2011
Posts: 15679
Expire: 2014-01-07
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 Posted: Tue May 17, 2011 5:02 pm Post subject: Comparing two cheap 3.5/35mm M42 lenses |
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iangreenhalgh1 wrote:
Hi folks
I just bought two Japanese 3.5/35mm lenses, one a Unitar, the other a Rolmax, both in unused condition, paid just under 4ukp for the Unitar, just under 11ukp for the Rolmax.
I'm not expecting either to be Flektogon quality but am hoping one of them is good enough to keep and use. I bought an Aritar 3.5/35 a while back and it was rubbish.
I took two sets of similar shots with each lens, using the same aperture and camera settings, here is the Unitar set:
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iangreenhalgh1
Joined: 18 Mar 2011
Posts: 15679
Expire: 2014-01-07
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| Posted: Tue May 17, 2011 5:05 pm Post subject: |
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iangreenhalgh1 wrote:
Not very impressed with the Unitar, here is the Rolmax set:
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iangreenhalgh1
Joined: 18 Mar 2011
Posts: 15679
Expire: 2014-01-07
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| Posted: Tue May 17, 2011 5:08 pm Post subject: |
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iangreenhalgh1 wrote:
Let's compare the crops:
Unitar, f5.6:
Rolmax, f5.6:
To my eyes, the Rolmax is both sharper and has better contrast.
Unitar, f11:
Rolmax, f11:
Again, the Rolmax is both sharper and has better contrast.
Unitar, f8:
Rolmax, f8:
Hmm, pretty clear there that the Rolmax is sharper, you can read the text on the For Sale sign clearly, whereas it's not clear in the Unitar shot.
So what do folks think? The Unitar is clearly not sharp, but what about the Rolmax? Do folks think it's a decent lens?
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I don't care who designed it, who made it or what country it comes from - I just enjoy using it!
Last edited by iangreenhalgh1 on Tue May 17, 2011 5:11 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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Excalibur
Joined: 19 Jul 2009
Posts: 5017
Location: UK
Expire: 2014-04-21
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| Posted: Tue May 17, 2011 5:09 pm Post subject: |
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Excalibur wrote:
On my monitor the Rolmax set is sharper.
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Canon A1, AV1, T70 & T90, EOS 300 and EOS300v, Chinon CE and CP-7M. Contax 139, Fuji STX-2, Konica Autoreflex TC, FS-1, FT-1, Minolta X-700, X-300, XD-11, SRT101b, Nikon EM, FM, F4, F90X, Olympus OM2, Pentax S3, Spotmatic, Pentax ME super, Praktica TL 5B, & BC1, , Ricoh KR10super, Yashica T5D, Bronica Etrs, Mamiya RB67 pro AND drum roll:- a Sony Nex 3
.........past gear Tele Rolleiflex and Rollei SL66.
Many lenses from good to excellent. |
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iangreenhalgh1
Joined: 18 Mar 2011
Posts: 15679
Expire: 2014-01-07
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| Posted: Tue May 17, 2011 5:13 pm Post subject: |
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iangreenhalgh1 wrote:
| Excalibur wrote: |
| On my monitor the Rolmax set is sharper. |
Yes, for me too, the Rolmax is sharper, the last set of crops with the silver Nissan car and the For Sale sign show that clearly.
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luisalegria
Joined: 07 Mar 2008
Posts: 6602
Location: San Francisco, USA
Expire: 2018-01-18
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| Posted: Tue May 17, 2011 6:32 pm Post subject: |
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luisalegria wrote:
Do you have pictures of the lenses / We may be able to ID them.
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I like Pentax DSLR's, Exaktas, M42 bodies of all kinds, strange and cheap Japanese lenses, and am dabbling in medium format/Speed Graphic work. |
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iangreenhalgh1
Joined: 18 Mar 2011
Posts: 15679
Expire: 2014-01-07
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| Posted: Tue May 17, 2011 8:50 pm Post subject: |
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iangreenhalgh1 wrote:
| luisalegria wrote: |
| Do you have pictures of the lenses / We may be able to ID them. |
I shall take some for you now.
Already, I think I'll get rid of the Unitar and might keep the Rolmax. I'll compare the Rolmax to my Primagon tomorrow, see how it matches up, probably won't be as good.
Let me share some economics that show why trying out these bargain basement lenses is worthwhile:
Unitar 3.5/35 - 4ukp
Rolmax 3.5/35 - 11ukp
Primagon 4.5/35 - 39ukp
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luisalegria
Joined: 07 Mar 2008
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| Posted: Tue May 17, 2011 9:38 pm Post subject: |
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luisalegria wrote:
The Primagon is a bit of a collectors item, so that price is understandable.
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iangreenhalgh1
Joined: 18 Mar 2011
Posts: 15679
Expire: 2014-01-07
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| Posted: Tue May 17, 2011 10:20 pm Post subject: |
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iangreenhalgh1 wrote:
| luisalegria wrote: |
| The Primagon is a bit of a collectors item, so that price is understandable. |
I'm delighted to have got a excellent example for that price, they seem to fetch 2-3x that value often.
Here are the pics as requested. I got it wrong, its Unistar, not Unitar...
BTW, what does that symbol on the Meyer lens mean? Is that the '1Q' I have heard mentioned? What does '1Q' denote?
Unistar:
Rolmax:
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David
Joined: 13 Apr 2011
Posts: 1869
Location: Denver, Colorado
Expire: 2013-01-25
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| Posted: Tue May 17, 2011 11:55 pm Post subject: |
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David wrote:
For the second and third, the Rolmax is clearly better. But, to my eyes, the Unitar is better for sharpness and colors on the car's grill.
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walter g
Joined: 20 Feb 2010
Posts: 2463
Location: NC, USA
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| Posted: Wed May 18, 2011 12:02 am Post subject: |
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walter g wrote:
The Unistar looks like a Komine made lens to me.
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Panasonic G5,Nikon J1,Pentax Q10,Sony Nex 6
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Various Soligor,Sun,Fujita,Komura,Spitatone, etc. Lenses
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iangreenhalgh1
Joined: 18 Mar 2011
Posts: 15679
Expire: 2014-01-07
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| Posted: Wed May 18, 2011 12:44 am Post subject: |
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iangreenhalgh1 wrote:
| walter g wrote: |
| The Unistar looks like a Komine made lens to me. |
Well spotted, it is clearly the same as this Vivitar badged lens which could also be a Komine although the serial doesn't start with 28. A 13 serial should be Schneider, but this is a Japanese lens...
http://forum.manualfocus.org/viewtopic.php?id=13436
[img[http://forum.mflenses.com/userpix/1100_IMGP1499_1.jpg[/img]
It's a T-mount lens so maybe it is actually a Tamron?
Two experienced people in that thread call it a sharp lens, especially when stopped down, so maybe I'm being too harsh on my copy and should do some more test shots with it.
So I've now got the Unistar, Rolmax and Primagon in 35mm to test against each other, just waiting for some sunshine!
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iangreenhalgh1
Joined: 18 Mar 2011
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| Posted: Wed May 18, 2011 1:39 am Post subject: |
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iangreenhalgh1 wrote:
Some more shots I took with the Rolmax but didn't upload because I didn't have an equivalent shot with the Unistar.
As you can see in the crop, the pic was snapped at 22 minutes and 17 seconds past 11 o'clock in the morning, I think it's quite impressive to have picked up the detail of the watch hands, shot was at f5.6.
My dad inspecting his Rover P4 110, made in 1955. The sun is glinting off the chrome, not sure if reflections are a good way of judging flare or CA but to me it looks like there isn't much CA going on as I don't see any obvious colour fringing on highlights. There is some flare to the bottom right of the reflection but I actually like that as long as it's not obtrusive, just another cool little detail within the frame.
My mum and her friend, shot about 6.35pm so the sun was low in the sky and over my left shoulder as I took the shot, hence they are squinting a bit.
My mum, a minute later, sun is now coming from left of frame, hence the shadows on her face, I thin kthis lens has decent contrast, none of the shots I've posted have had any PP at all apart from resizing.
I like this lens, it's certainly sharp. I need to try it out more, see how the bokeh is and how it handles CA and flare.
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woodrim
Joined: 14 Jan 2010
Posts: 4060
Location: Charleston
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| Posted: Wed May 18, 2011 1:53 am Post subject: |
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woodrim wrote:
Ian: Love the Rover. 1Q=IQ= Image Quality, a subjective assessment.
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Woodrim |
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iangreenhalgh1
Joined: 18 Mar 2011
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| Posted: Wed May 18, 2011 1:58 am Post subject: |
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iangreenhalgh1 wrote:
| woodrim wrote: |
| Ian: Love the Rover. 1Q=IQ= Image Quality, a subjective assessment. |
My dad has a love-hate relationship with the old girl, had a lot of trouble getting her to run right, had umpteen minor breakdowns since he did a total engine rebuild he thought had fixed it. Not much he hasn't rebuilt on her now I think.
Does the IQ denote a higher quality version than other Meyer lenses? None of my other Meyers have this mark.
What do you think of the Unistar and Rolmax? You see anything there that would merit further use?
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luisalegria
Joined: 07 Mar 2008
Posts: 6602
Location: San Francisco, USA
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| Posted: Wed May 18, 2011 3:44 am Post subject: |
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luisalegria wrote:
I agree on the possibility of Komine.
The early Vivitars did not have the serial number system that came in post-1970.
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iangreenhalgh1
Joined: 18 Mar 2011
Posts: 15679
Expire: 2014-01-07
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| Posted: Wed May 18, 2011 4:19 am Post subject: |
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iangreenhalgh1 wrote:
Hmm, so this is likely to be made in the 1960s? It is brand new, in the box with the cleaning cloth still shrink wrapped, the Rolmax has never been used either.
Just under 4ukp for a Komine lens is not a bad buy I suppose.
Anyone got any idea who made the Rolmax?
The Unistar is T-mount, did Komine make T-mount lenses?
I also have a Hanimex 3.5/35 in T mount that has a stuck aperture, it's similar but different.
Here are some better pictures of the lenses:
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Excalibur
Joined: 19 Jul 2009
Posts: 5017
Location: UK
Expire: 2014-04-21
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| Posted: Wed May 18, 2011 5:49 am Post subject: |
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Excalibur wrote:
****My dad has a love-hate relationship with the old girl, had a lot of trouble getting her to run right, had umpteen minor breakdowns since he did a total engine rebuild he thought had fixed it. Not much he hasn't rebuilt on her now I think. ****
Lucas electrics? I think the Americans call Lucas the "prince of darkness" 
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Canon A1, AV1, T70 & T90, EOS 300 and EOS300v, Chinon CE and CP-7M. Contax 139, Fuji STX-2, Konica Autoreflex TC, FS-1, FT-1, Minolta X-700, X-300, XD-11, SRT101b, Nikon EM, FM, F4, F90X, Olympus OM2, Pentax S3, Spotmatic, Pentax ME super, Praktica TL 5B, & BC1, , Ricoh KR10super, Yashica T5D, Bronica Etrs, Mamiya RB67 pro AND drum roll:- a Sony Nex 3
.........past gear Tele Rolleiflex and Rollei SL66.
Many lenses from good to excellent. |
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iangreenhalgh1
Joined: 18 Mar 2011
Posts: 15679
Expire: 2014-01-07
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| Posted: Wed May 18, 2011 6:09 am Post subject: |
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iangreenhalgh1 wrote:
If the sun appears today I'll get the car out and use it as a subject for some more test shots with all three of my 35mm lenses.
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luisalegria
Joined: 07 Mar 2008
Posts: 6602
Location: San Francisco, USA
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| Posted: Wed May 18, 2011 1:49 pm Post subject: |
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luisalegria wrote:
Yes, these are certainly 1960's - early 1970's (presets were still being sold into the mid 1970's on off brands - like these).
Komine did make T-mount lenses. There are many in the Soligor brand.
The Rolmax probably isn't -
- Tokina
- Sankyo/Sankor
- Komura
- Komine
- Sigma
- Kiron
Maybe -
- Sun
- Itoh
- Kawakami/Kawanon
I have a 180mm Soligor made for Miranda that has very similar markings. I still haven't identified the maker but I suspect Kawanon.
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I like Pentax DSLR's, Exaktas, M42 bodies of all kinds, strange and cheap Japanese lenses, and am dabbling in medium format/Speed Graphic work. |
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iangreenhalgh1
Joined: 18 Mar 2011
Posts: 15679
Expire: 2014-01-07
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| Posted: Wed May 18, 2011 3:06 pm Post subject: |
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iangreenhalgh1 wrote:
Thankyou Luis, your encyclopaedic knowledge never ceases to amaze!
Some sunshine today so will quickly get some shots taken before I go to work.
One interesting point about both the Unistar and Rolmax - they only focus as close as 1m, which is unusually long for a 35mm lens, the Primagon focuses to 0.4m.
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woodrim
Joined: 14 Jan 2010
Posts: 4060
Location: Charleston
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| Posted: Wed May 18, 2011 6:07 pm Post subject: |
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woodrim wrote:
| iangreenhalgh1 wrote: |
| woodrim wrote: |
| Ian: Love the Rover. 1Q=IQ= Image Quality, a subjective assessment. |
My dad has a love-hate relationship with the old girl, had a lot of trouble getting her to run right, had umpteen minor breakdowns since he did a total engine rebuild he thought had fixed it. Not much he hasn't rebuilt on her now I think.
Does the IQ denote a higher quality version than other Meyer lenses? None of my other Meyers have this mark.
What do you think of the Unistar and Rolmax? You see anything there that would merit further use? |
Love-hate, but I mostly love the old British iron when not rusted. Lots of character. Have had many and still some.
IQ is just an expression we use, it is not a desination on the lens. Consider IQ a level higher than bokeh, which is one element of IQ.
I would say the same as what I have suggested before, resist the cheap stuff unless you really enjoy the discovery that much. They are usually cheap for a reason and you're not likely to discover some unknown jewel. All those small amounts you're spending on paper weights will add up and can go toward a really good lens. But if you want to buy more cheap stuff, I've got some here for you. Although I did like what I saw from the Meyer.
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Woodrim |
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