A New Arrival, Jupiter 6-2 180/2,8 - with some questions.

[JWH]

Came across this one on the dutch ebay-like equivalent and could get it for a very reasonable prize, compared to the ebay listings on this item.

It arrived earlier today and that box was way heavier than I expected! Whilst unpacking it revealed the fully silver Jupiter 6-2 which was so cold that I could barely even hold it! It's quite cold these days here in the Netherlands. First thing that struck me was the size, it is enormous!

I also ordered a M39-EOS adapter as I thought I would need it for this one. Seeing it was silver I automatically assumed it was the M39 version of this lens. However the M39 adapter didn't fit and it fitted nicely in a normal M42 adapter. Then I also noticed the Serial being 004049.

Could this be a rare bird? It's hard to find info on this thing on the web.

Also the focus ring seems a bit stiff and focussing literally turns the lens out of the adapter. I have cleaned and re-lubricated lenses before but I can't seem to find any major screws sitting on this one. Anyone has any idea?

Added are several photo's of this lens and a test snapshot. Sorry for the bad cropping, Lightroom didn't want to cooperate for once.







Test shot with one of my 2 pet rats as subject. The shot was taken wide open at f/2.8! Flashed with a Vivitar SB-4, bounced of ceiling. Shows some CA but I am still impressed with how sharp it is.

[Attila]

Superb portrait!

[egidio]

lots of ca but great bokeh, looks like a more BW lens

[ChrisLilley]

Interesting lens and a characterful portrait (but with huge amounts of axial CA).

[aoleg]

[Olivier]

Hello JWH.

Wow, what a nice catch !

Having a look at the pictures and its serial number, I would guess :
1/ it was made for foreign trade as Jupiter is not written in cyrillic.
2/ It is a Jupiter-6-2 which is M42 mount
3/ the serial number beginning by 00, it seems to be a preseries made for VIPs as marc "themoleman" told us.

http://translate.google.fr/translate?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.photohistory.ru%2Findex.php%3Fpid%3D1207248189136931&sl=ru&tl=en&hl=&ie=UTF-8

http://translate.googleusercontent.com/translate_c?hl=fr&ie=UTF-8&sl=ru&tl=en&u=http://www.zenitcamera.com/archive/lenses/jupiter-6.html&rurl=translate.google.fr&usg=ALkJrhiVDwi-YqQQ_cRdxnPercjK52cTTw

Here a link to the MFLenses topic about russian serial numbers
Russian serial numbers

[themoleman342]

It's an odd hybrid to be sure. I wouldn't be too quick to call it a 6-2 though. It is possible to just swap out the nameplates. This doesn't really matter, I've just never seen a soviet silver version of any lens to have the -2 designation, and not be black. I don't mean to burst anyone's bubble, it could in fact be a very rare transition piece.

You're also absolutely sure it's a native m42 mount? I've encountered some m39 zenit lenses that have had m39-m42 rings on them for so long it looks almost natural.

The rat picture is superb! The lens shows a truly distinct character.

~Marc

[JWH]

Thanks for the replies everyone.

@Olivier - Thanks for the info's, wasn't aware that the serial numbers were for most Russian lenses! As I looked into those for the Helios I own.

@themoleman342 - It is hard to say if there's a ring on the mount or not. I've read some people saying that these rings are sometimes nearly impossible to get off. I've tried to see if something would move at the mount side for a while and put quite some strength into it, but nothing would move. Also when feeling at the area you don't feel any space between the mount part and the body itself. Also at the inner part, as the rear element is quite far up, you don't feel anything that might indicate a ring. You can feel the inner part of the mount go to the M42 mount pretty smoothly without spaces or sharpish ends. Which leaves me to believe that there is no ring attached, however I am not able to say this with full 100% certainty.

I've added a photo of the mount part which hopefully could help.

[themoleman342]

There is certainly no adapter ring, but the mount may not be original. It probably was a professional job. Considering the typical expense of these lenses, it is not unlikely that someone would want this done. That would just be my guess.

[JWH]

Just a thought;
Could it be professionaly and exclusively made lens made in M42 mount / or silver for a certain customer? Seeing the serial number is 00xxxx and according to your guide to serials that means it was made for VIP's. If it really were to be adjusted for M42 the job is very professional. Even the part of the base of the lens is made to fit to M42, rather than M39, seeing the silver incline is definately part of the base.

Pardon me if I am going too far in my mind here, I just like to know everything about it!

[Olivier]

Maybe not, JWH.

I say that because I own a beautiful silver Helios-40 which has been modified to fit M42 and your above picture of your Jupiter-6 makes me think about that. When I received the Helios-40, I didn't see any additional ring or any adapter from M39 to M42.

Then, it is written Jupiter-6-2 on the front label ring, and those Jupiters were for M42 mount. So, it could be a preserial lens.

[themoleman342]

More than likely it was a post-factory job. Customization and special orders weren't really a feature of soviet production lines. I've since come full-circle on the serial number post. I think most read a little too much into it. Maybe there was a heightened quality control for pre-production lenses, which may reduce the number of lemons, but this did not necessarily mean that the materials were better. While I do believe it still may be worth while to search for a lens beginning with 0, 00, or 000 you do have to understand that party membership was at 19 million people by 1986. Party membership was maintained and increased through incentives. One of the methods of social control was sustained scarcity. If the party could in fact say that optics (or any goods) were set aside for specific members, perhaps some would join for this reason. But yes, I could go on, but the history lesson is over for now. Back to the original question, I think you just have a really professionally replaced mount. Perhaps the original was damaged in some way and instead of just putting the old back the owner 'upgraded' it to m42.

[aoleg]

[Misha_M]

It can be an early production version of the jupiter 6-2 (due to the numbers and the mount), or a very good mount change job.
It was a common thing for Soviet 'master' (people with good hands and technical skills) to change \ modify stuff to fit their needs.
Many people did that in improvised workshops in their studies \ garages.
And it can also be a case of an old lens getting to the hands of a professional who preferred to change the mount for a newer camera rather than use adapter rings.

Anyway, wonderful lens - enjoy it!