NEXotar

philslizzy · Joined: 07 Aug 2012 Posts: 4745 Location: Cheshire, England

Remembering Kuuan's post about adapting a Minotar lens from a dead Minox I did the same. I bought a bunch of cameras sold for spares repair. There was a Minox GL amongst them in its little jewel box. The camera was dead, half disassembled. So a prime candidate for some adapting. I removed it much as Kuuan did in his topic (http://forum.mflenses.com/gxrotar-or-nexotar-new-life-for-a-minotar-t59038,highlight,%2Bminotar.html)

The shutter was kept open by gluing it after removing the springs. The whole lens assembly was so neat. Just a couple of 'legs' where the body fitted to the camera. I snipped them off and ended up with a neat little lens complete with working focus and aperture.

I used a reverse adaptor to attach it to the camera. First I held the lens in front of the adapter, I found infinity was just about 1mm further out than the filter thread of the ring.

I cut a disc out of a piece of thin MDF from a picture frame, just a little wider than the 49mm filter thread using a hole saw. I then cut a a smaller hole out of it using a hole saw about the diameter of the lens. Then sanded all the bits. The lens fitted into the hole with about a millimetre to spare. I used electricians tape to wind round the end 4mm of the lens barrel. About 4 times round it fitted snugly.

I fitted the lens into the ring which I'd glued onto the reversing ring and set it to infinity. I focused on a roof about 150 yards away by sliding the lens in and out. When I got good focus I lay down the adapter and used a spirit level to get it straight. I re checked the infinity then glued the lens into place from the back of the adapter.

Like Yuuan I used the little 'cone' inside the lens to tidy up the inside, tacking it in place first I used epoxy putty to fill all the gaps and make the whole thing good and solid.

A little matt black paint and the job's a good un. I cant wait to try it out.

I recycled the viewfinder too, I'm going adapt that to use that on my Contax for the Jupiter 12.

Lloydy · Expire: 2022-01-01

Love it!

SonicScot · Posted: Fri Sep 13, 2013 12:32 am Post subject:

A grand bit of DIY there Very Happy

ForenSeil · Joined: 15 Apr 2011 Posts: 2726 Location: Kiel, Germany.

Nice! I would love to see some results

philslizzy · Joined: 07 Aug 2012 Posts: 4745 Location: Cheshire, England

Going to use it at weekend!!

kuuan · Expire: 2014-12-26

very nice Phil congrats!

my adaptation to M mount was a bit tricky, to keep the aperture ring working I had to recess the whole lens inside the cap used as mount.

I have seen very good photos taken with this lens, but I had been a bit disappointed with mine. Biggest reason is that coatings are not good. Only after having adapted the lens I learned that later Minotars have better coatings, mine comes from the very first line of Minox cameras and certainly has very weak coatings. I hope that your's will prove to be better!

cheers, andreas

philslizzy · Joined: 07 Aug 2012 Posts: 4745 Location: Cheshire, England