info on Astragon?

[dof]

I bought a bunch of old Exakta stuff at a yard sale and this was part of it.
Haven't been able to find much info on it. Anyone know anything?

It's marked "400mm f/5 Astragon C Fernobjectiv Berlin" and "Made in
Germany for Sterling Howard - New York, NY"

Mount is Exakta.

Is "Astragon" the makers name? I've never heard of it before. Appears to
be a quality lens.

[walter g]

That's a new one on me. Sterling Howard did sell a Astranar 400mm lens
AKA the famous (girl Watcher). Which was a competitor of the Spiraltone
400mm built at the same time The (sharpshooter).

[luisalegria]

It looks like a relatively uncommon item, an Astro-Berlin.

http://www.exaklaus.de/astro.htm

Sterlling Howard did import and relabel Astro-Berlin lenses for a while, just as it much more commonly did so with Piesker, before switching to Japanese suppliers and going into huge volumes with the Kawakami/Kawanon 400mm "girl watcher'.

If the glass is good this might be worth @$200+

[exaklaus]

Hi, that should be a TEWE Berlin lens.

Will have to set up an internet-site about TEWE, like I did for Astro. Matter of time....

Greetings
klaus

[Helios]

Is "Girl watcher" equivalent to "Wundertüte" ?

[exaklaus]

[walter g]

The ads for the Asrtanar in the 60's and 70's featured a girl in a bikini in the top part of the ad, with the lens in the bottom part.

It was actually called the girl watcher in the ad.

[luisalegria]

Hi Klaus, you are the Astro Berlin expert indeed.

Was Tewe the same company, or were the products the same after the merger ? Did Tewe have products competing with Astro Berlin in earlier times ?

[dof]

Thanks for the info! According to Stephen Gandy's site:

"Astro-Berlin lenses were first listed in the US by Sterlng Howard in 1951.
The first imported was the 400/5 in Exakta, Contax S, and reflex housing
lenses for Leica RF and Contax RF. "

and

"Astro Berlin was a quality independent German lens manufacturer famous
for fast lenses, especially 300mm and longer lenses. Successful before
WWII in the 1930's, the firm somehow survived the war to continue lens
production in the 1950's. Apparently Astro Berlin was acquired by Tewe,
another German firm by the 1960's."

[exaklaus]

[luisalegria]

Klaus, you are correct, Tewe lenses are uncommon in any form.

Then this is indeed a rare lens, a Tewe imported by Sterling Howard.

In rarity from less to more rare of Sterling Howard imports -

Kawakami and other Japanese makers
Piesker
Astro
Tewe

I don't think there is that much collector interest in such a detail, but its an interesting selling point.

[dof]

The lens is in near mint condition with clean glass and smooth function.
I don't have a use for it myself. If anyone in the USA is interested in it
please PM me. Thanks.