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Aico - lens maker or reseller?
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PostPosted: Wed Jun 01, 2011 7:36 pm    Post subject: Aico - lens maker or reseller? Reply with quote
I've been trying to track down the maker of my old preset Vivitar 85/1.8, and randomly stumbled across a lens of the same style - a Vivitar 135/3.5. Now here's the weird bit, I've owned the same Vivitar 135mm lens branded Aico before.

A search on the other MF site revealed this thread:

http://forum.manualfocus.org/viewtopic.php?id=13414

So...my question is, was Aico a lens maker or reseller? Were they another name for AIC a.k.a. Soligor et al? If they were just the reseller, my search has clearly taken me no closer to the truth Laughing

My 85/1.8 looks like this one:

http://forum.mflenses.com/viewtopic.php?t=15751&view=next

And the 135/3.5 looks like this one:



Many thanks Smile


PostPosted: Wed Jun 01, 2011 10:50 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
Hi,

Maybe this can help.
I own a Cosinon 135 f=3.5 that looks just like your 85/1.8

only the preset aperture tings seems to be switched around.
( small difference, mine has a dot at the end of the red line yours a triangle and other text style).



PostPosted: Thu Jun 02, 2011 6:12 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
I have an Aico 200mm F4.5 which looks quite similar to this too. It's possible that they did make lenses.


PostPosted: Thu Jun 02, 2011 6:42 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
I am sure I have an AICO somewhere. I just can't find it !!!!!!

In the meantime....... 2 x 135/3.5

Branded "Mayfair Sankor" - similar layout, but not quite same - barrel goes the other way?



Branded "D&N" - again, similar layout.



PostPosted: Thu Jun 02, 2011 7:16 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
PS ---- As mentioned in the other forum, the Vade Mecum has several mentions of AICO at 15 Sheen Lane London SW14 as

"Agents with catalogues including enlarger lenses under their own names"

as well as being the agent for Arriflex lenses (c. 1968) plus a couple of German concerns including "Bolta Werk Gmbh., (Photovit), Nürnberg, Germany" (no dates) and "Dr Wohler, Merzig-Sarre" (1947-1952)


PostPosted: Thu Jun 02, 2011 10:23 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
From all the lenses posted in this topic only KarelDH's 135 and martyn_bannister's second 135 lenses seems identical to me.


PostPosted: Thu Jun 02, 2011 11:05 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
That is also the same as teh Doillands-s 135 I had one for about 2 days and then the blades completley broke
15 blades i seem to remeber


PostPosted: Thu Jun 02, 2011 11:35 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
Thanks Martyn, the Aico / Vivitar lens is a lot smaller / slimmer than the Sankor lens.

The link to Cosinon is interesting...I always thought that was Cosina's name?


PostPosted: Mon Feb 21, 2022 3:33 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
Reviving another old post here Wink

martyn_bannister wrote:
PS ---- As mentioned in the other forum, the Vade Mecum has several mentions of AICO at 15 Sheen Lane London SW14 as

"Agents with catalogues including enlarger lenses under their own names"

as well as being the agent for Arriflex lenses (c. 1968) plus a couple of German concerns including "Bolta Werk Gmbh., (Photovit), N�rnberg, Germany" (no dates) and "Dr Wohler, Merzig-Sarre" (1947-1952)


I think AICO were indeed an agent/reseller, likely UK based as suggested above. An eBay search on AICO lenses returns almost exclusively UK results, so that would make sense.

BUT, they did more than just lenses. I have an AICO bellows; all items on the bellows are marked "Japan" or "Made in Japan". The box is marked "AICO INTERNATIONAL GROUP" and has descriptions in English, German, and French, so they clearly had ambitions to sell outside of the UK as well. The manual is printed in Japan, but nowhere in the manual is any branding present, i.e. the unbranded manual has been designed for resellers.

The bellows is a rather well-made item, with interchangeable mounts and full automatic aperture control. Shown here with Minolta SR mounts on the bellows and a set of Contax mounts next to it:



The Minolta camera mount on this bellows is unique in that it allows the user to manually set the same aperture as set on the lens. This gives a semi-automatic meter coupling via the MC tab on Minolta cameras, so with this bellows it is not required to do stop-down metering. Even use of the Rokkor 58mm f/1.2 was catered for:



A very similar bellows, clearly made by the same Japanese supplier, was available in Germany from Photo Porst under the PORST branding, albeit with some minor cosmetic changes and without the same interchangeable lens mounts:


https://kamerastore.com/products/porst-macro-bellows-3


PostPosted: Tue Feb 22, 2022 7:35 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
Another thread from the past.

I actually sent my Aico to Martyn. No idea where it is now as he gave all his lenses away when he heard he was ill.


PostPosted: Tue Feb 22, 2022 11:59 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
These preset 135's are mostly Tokina with some exceptions


PostPosted: Mon Feb 28, 2022 12:42 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
RokkorDoctor wrote:
Reviving another old post here Wink

martyn_bannister wrote:
PS ---- As mentioned in the other forum, the Vade Mecum has several mentions of AICO at 15 Sheen Lane London SW14 as

"Agents with catalogues including enlarger lenses under their own names"

as well as being the agent for Arriflex lenses (c. 1968) plus a couple of German concerns including "Bolta Werk Gmbh., (Photovit), N�rnberg, Germany" (no dates) and "Dr Wohler, Merzig-Sarre" (1947-1952)


I think AICO were indeed an agent/reseller, likely UK based as suggested above. An eBay search on AICO lenses returns almost exclusively UK results, so that would make sense.

BUT, they did more than just lenses. I have an AICO bellows; all items on the bellows are marked "Japan" or "Made in Japan". The box is marked "AICO INTERNATIONAL GROUP" and has descriptions in English, German, and French, so they clearly had ambitions to sell outside of the UK as well. The manual is printed in Japan, but nowhere in the manual is any branding present, i.e. the unbranded manual has been designed for resellers.


I always wondered if it was a connection beetween AICO (uk) and AICo (Allied Impex Corp/USA) the owner of miranda & soligor
No connection at all OR a way to introduce self competition beetween Soligor & another brand with all buck going to the same pocket ???


PostPosted: Mon Feb 28, 2022 1:31 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
PBFACTS wrote:
I always wondered if it was a connection beetween AICO (uk) and AICo (Allied Impex Corp/USA) the owner of miranda & soligor
No connection at all OR a way to introduce self competition beetween Soligor & another brand with all buck going to the same pocket ???


It is tempting to think so. I would have thought AICo (Allied Impex Corp/USA) would have objected to a distributor called AICO (INTERNATIONAL) in the UK, unless they were somehow connected. It is possible that in Europe they wanted to differentiate between a premium (Soligor) and budget (AICO) line of accessories, but that the distribution of AICO accessories outside the UK to the rest of Europe never really got off the ground.

All speculation though.


PostPosted: Mon Feb 28, 2022 1:39 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
RokkorDoctor wrote:
PBFACTS wrote:
I always wondered if it was a connection beetween AICO (uk) and AICo (Allied Impex Corp/USA) the owner of miranda & soligor
No connection at all OR a way to introduce self competition beetween Soligor & another brand with all buck going to the same pocket ???


It is tempting to think so. I would have thought AICo (Allied Impex Corp/USA) would have objected to a distributor called AICO (INTERNATIONAL) in the UK, unless they were somehow connected. It is possible that in Europe they wanted to differentiate between a premium (Soligor) and budget (AICO) line of accessories, but that the distribution of AICO accessories outside the UK to the rest of Europe never really got off the ground.

All speculation though.


100% exact


PostPosted: Tue Mar 01, 2022 1:24 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
AICO stood for Allied Import Company.

not a manufacturer then


PostPosted: Tue Mar 01, 2022 7:56 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
philslizzy wrote:
AICO stood for Allied Import Company.

not a manufacturer then


And AIC (miranda/soligor) for Allied IMPortEXport Company ! you just have to add Export ! coincidence ?
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