Kodak Aero-Ektar 178mm F2.5 question

[Rick1779]

How much is worth the Kodak-Aero Ektar and there's any way to adapt it to a nex?

[iangreenhalgh1]

Value varies considerably depending on condition. There are two elements in the rear group that are made from rare earth glasses and are radioctive due to Thorium content. Over time, this radiation causes the glass of this rear group to turn brown. All copies of the Aero-Ektar do this, some worse than others, so the lens is no longer f2.8, it becomes more like f4 or even less due to this brown glass.

It's a good lens, but not really worth adapting to a NEX imho, it would be difficult and costly to adapt, requiring machine work. You wll find on the net many examples of this lens adapted to 35mm or 6x6 cameras, it was done by removing most of the bulky housing and creating a helicoid and tubular mount, which required skilled machine work.

My advice is to sell it and buy a CZJ Sonnar 2.8/180.

The Ektar sells for good prices because some people like to mount them on 4x5 Speed Graphics.

[kansalliskala]

More generally: can't really expect very much from LF lenses on crop cameras?

[Rick1779]

Thanks, I was just wondering since this one Click here to see on Ebay is going pretty cheap

[berraneck]

I've seen them going between $100-400 depending on shape and craziness of buyer

It is possible to adapt it to NEX, but it's not worth it. All the special effects of the lens are great on 4x5", but not on small format like NEX.

Ian: the lens is simply f2.5 I follow what you want to say, but you can simply use t-stops (which describe light transmission) instead of f-stops (which is geometrical parameter of lens)

[Xpres]

[guardian]

I have the Aero Ektar 610mm (that's two feet!!) bought many years ago.

I have no plans to buy a second copy and would not buy this lens today. It is more an old telescope than anything else.

[iangreenhalgh1]

Thanks for the info guys, I've never had an Aero-Ektar so I was just repeating what I'd read about the browning problem. I wish I'd bought one years ago when they were cheap. Same with the Dallmeyer Pentac 2.9/8", they used to be a third of what they cost now

[David]

Sure, it could be adapted to a Nex. Get an old bellows that extends to at least the focal distance (for infinity focus, a longer bellows if you want closer focus) and use that. Simply make an adapter for it. Perhaps a piece of plastic with a hollowed-out body cap somehow attached. Then the body cap could mount on the bellows and away you go.

Kansalliskala raises a good point. LF lenses have, in general, fewer lines per millimeter (lpmm) than do small format lenses. If the difference is, say, 80 lpmm versus 110 lpmm, then you'll have noticeable softness. I'm not sure what the Aero Ektar rates at, but you'd probably find that you'd get meaningully better (and easier-to-achieve) results buying a 200mm lens from another make (the 200mm f4 Nikkor is great, but much slower than the Ektar.)

If you have a 4X5 camera and can mount the Ektar in it, you can make a rear-standard mount for your Nex as an alternative. But that's going to be big and somewhat counter (more like completely antipode) to the Nex's intended pocketable size.