Adventures in Helios 44-3 Land

stevebrot · 10-14-2018, 11:43 AM - **8 Likes**

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Shopping for Soviet or former Eastern Block products can be an adventure, particularly since product knowledge is essential, but hard to come by, and also because delivery takes forever and few, if any sellers offer returns (duh!). I might add that there are a fair number of crooks out there too.

I was looking for a clean/cheap Helios 44-3 58/2 last night and happened upon these three strange items from sellers in Ukraine.

$190 USD

HELIOS 44-3 f2/58mm -13 aperture blades - ?? version (Multi Coating) ?9320991 | eBay

$120 USD

16 iris blades silver Lens Helios 2/58mm mc Helios 44-3 for CANON eos EF mount | eBay

$140 USD

16 iris blades silver Lens Helios 2/58mm mc Helios 44-3 for sony E mount | eBay

The prices on all three are fairly high and the lenses (all three) are bogus. First off, one's basic Helios 44-3 has the following characteristics:

All black
Pre-set aperture
Made in Minsk, Belarus by MMZ/BeLOMO
Eight (8) aperture blades
Multi-coated with possibly the best resolution of the Helios 44 variants

Why these three listings are suspect:

No Helios 44-3 came from the factory as "zebra" (bright/black combo). The paint on these lenses was sanded off to make them look cool.
The body shell for all three is genuine for late-manufacture BeLomo Helios lenses, but the optical blocks and/or aperture mechanisms are not. They are from other Helios 44 variants or non-Helios 44 lenses. The tip-off is the number of aperture blades. 13 blades would be from a Helios 44 (quite common, despite early dates). Who knows where the 16-blade assembly came from; all other Helios 44 variants have 6 or 8 blades.
2nd and 3rd item above have the same serial number, but quite different descriptions from the same seller. Fake face rings are stock-in-trade for creators of faux Soviet lenses. A tip off is multiple lenses from the same serial number. Another is poor engraving/paint work on the face ring.

The take-away is to be very cautious when buying Russian or former Soviet camera goods. The goods are often good value, but the opportunity for fraud and faux product is fairly high. I ended up finding one in apparent excellent condition from a low volume seller in Belarus for $40 USD. We will see what it looks like when it gets here (ETA week of Nov1).

Steve

Last edited by stevebrot; 10-14-2018 at 01:44 PM.

**pres589** · 10-14-2018, 11:47 AM

Eventually, if my Ricoh Singlex TLS ever comes back from the shop with a working light meter, I think I will eventually acquire one of these. I like how the aperture ring came out, visually, on that first image you shared. The one you bought looks good from here; good luck, fingers crossed that it is a good copy.

**BigMackCam** · 10-14-2018, 11:54 AM - **1 Like**

Excellent post, Steve - thanks for sharing this information.

I saw these lenses for sale on eBay a couple of months ago and came to more-or-less the same conclusions as you, although I missed the duplicate serial numbers. Good catch

One useful tip I can offer is that for rarer lenses, try to find clearly used / unserviced examples. The fraudsters usually try to make their lenses look as close to new as possible. Few, if any, will go to the trouble of adding dirt and usage marks, and in any cases it's a little harder to fake those convincingly. Of course, the downside to this approach is that you'll almost certainly need to clean and service the lens yourself, but at least that will be under your own control...

pinholecam · 10-14-2018, 10:00 PM - **1 Like**

I think they are just Franken lenses that are "crafted" to look more unique and has some sort of adapter "pre-mounted" for the respective mounts

chimera15 · 10-31-2019, 07:21 PM

These arent really "fake" they're modified with 16 blades to keep the bokeh circular.

stevebrot · 10-31-2019, 08:23 PM

Originally posted by chimera15

These arent really "fake" they're modified with 16 blades to keep the bokeh circular.

Welcome to the Pentax Forums! You seem to know some of how these modified lenses are crafted.* Do you care to elaborate how this is done using the existing optical blocks and pre-set mechanism? I also very interested in knowing what lens was used as the 16-blade donor.

FWIW...I have done a full tear-down on my Helios 44-3.

Steve

* I call them fakes because the listings made no effort to indicate that they were "Frankenlens" rather than factory stock.

zapp · 11-01-2019, 04:30 AM

I bought two 44s version 2 and 7. 2 is the most swirly, 7 was cheap.
Cost 75€ together add a Pentax M42 adaptor and fun starts.

Returns on a 40€ item that goes across customs borders... no way. Were descriptions correct, not really.Are the lenses fun, yes.

**BigMackCam** · 11-01-2019, 04:38 AM

Originally posted by zapp

I bought two 44s version 2 and 7. 2 is the most swirly, 7 was cheap.
Cost 75€ together add a Pentax M42 adaptor and fun starts.

Returns on a 40€ item that goes across customs borders... no way. Were descriptions correct, not really.Are the lenses fun, yes.

That's a very good deal for both lenses. It's an especially good deal if the 44M-7 - which is what I assume you mean by "7" - is actually genuine. I say that because many 44M-7 examples on eBay are fake... other versions that have had the trim ring unscrupulously replaced with a non-genuine 44M-7 version, so that the seller can charge a premium

chimera15 · 11-01-2019, 08:58 AM

Someone who knew a lot about them told me how they were made a while ago..I forget the exact story but basically there were a lot of shops in former eastern block countries doing the modifications. Ukraine maybe? Maybe Still? This is one I recently purchased. The seller lists the correct serial, and the date and all the other facts about them. This one is from 1990 I guess one of the later ones, most of the ones are from the 70's. It seems like most of the modified ones are this, "Helios-44 (MMZ logo) made by Belarus Optical Mechanical Association (Minsk, Belarus) are considered the best among Helios lenses. " and have the zebra thing done to them. I think there are youtube videos about them?

chimera15 · 11-01-2019, 08:59 AM

Ops I forgot to put the link into mine. HELIOS-44 f2/58mm -16 aperture blades - MADE in USSR ?9077919 | eBay

chimera15 · 11-01-2019, 09:03 AM

Yeah here's the youtube video about one of the people modifying them.

You Tube

10-14-2018, 11:43 AM - 8 Likes	#1
stevebrot Otis Memorial Pentaxian Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Vancouver (USA) Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 42,007	Adventures in Helios 44-3 Land Staff note: This post may contain affiliate links, which means Pentax Forums may earn a small commission if a visitor clicks through and makes a purchase. If you would like to support the forum directly, you may also make a donation here. Shopping for Soviet or former Eastern Block products can be an adventure, particularly since product knowledge is essential, but hard to come by, and also because delivery takes forever and few, if any sellers offer returns (duh!). I might add that there are a fair number of crooks out there too. I was looking for a clean/cheap Helios 44-3 58/2 last night and happened upon these three strange items from sellers in Ukraine. $190 USD HELIOS 44-3 f2/58mm -13 aperture blades - ?? version (Multi Coating) ?9320991 \| eBay $120 USD 16 iris blades silver Lens Helios 2/58mm mc Helios 44-3 for CANON eos EF mount \| eBay $140 USD 16 iris blades silver Lens Helios 2/58mm mc Helios 44-3 for sony E mount \| eBay The prices on all three are fairly high and the lenses (all three) are bogus. First off, one's basic Helios 44-3 has the following characteristics: All black Pre-set aperture Made in Minsk, Belarus by MMZ/BeLOMO Eight (8) aperture blades Multi-coated with possibly the best resolution of the Helios 44 variants Why these three listings are suspect: No Helios 44-3 came from the factory as "zebra" (bright/black combo). The paint on these lenses was sanded off to make them look cool. The body shell for all three is genuine for late-manufacture BeLomo Helios lenses, but the optical blocks and/or aperture mechanisms are not. They are from other Helios 44 variants or non-Helios 44 lenses. The tip-off is the number of aperture blades. 13 blades would be from a Helios 44 (quite common, despite early dates). Who knows where the 16-blade assembly came from; all other Helios 44 variants have 6 or 8 blades. 2nd and 3rd item above have the same serial number, but quite different descriptions from the same seller. Fake face rings are stock-in-trade for creators of faux Soviet lenses. A tip off is multiple lenses from the same serial number. Another is poor engraving/paint work on the face ring. The take-away is to be very cautious when buying Russian or former Soviet camera goods. The goods are often good value, but the opportunity for fraud and faux product is fairly high. I ended up finding one in apparent excellent condition from a low volume seller in Belarus for $40 USD. We will see what it looks like when it gets here (ETA week of Nov1). Steve Last edited by stevebrot; 10-14-2018 at 01:44 PM.

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10-14-2018, 11:47 AM	#2
pres589 Site Supporter Join Date: Jan 2014 Location: Wichita, KS Photos: Albums Posts: 4,529	Eventually, if my Ricoh Singlex TLS ever comes back from the shop with a working light meter, I think I will eventually acquire one of these. I like how the aperture ring came out, visually, on that first image you shared. The one you bought looks good from here; good luck, fingers crossed that it is a good copy.

10-14-2018, 11:54 AM - 1 Like	#3
BigMackCam Digitiser of Film Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: North East of England Posts: 20,669	Excellent post, Steve - thanks for sharing this information. I saw these lenses for sale on eBay a couple of months ago and came to more-or-less the same conclusions as you, although I missed the duplicate serial numbers. Good catch One useful tip I can offer is that for rarer lenses, try to find clearly used / unserviced examples. The fraudsters usually try to make their lenses look as close to new as possible. Few, if any, will go to the trouble of adding dirt and usage marks, and in any cases it's a little harder to fake those convincingly. Of course, the downside to this approach is that you'll almost certainly need to clean and service the lens yourself, but at least that will be under your own control...

10-14-2018, 10:00 PM - 1 Like	#4
pinholecam Pentaxian Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: North Photos: Gallery Posts: 4,706	I think they are just Franken lenses that are "crafted" to look more unique and has some sort of adapter "pre-mounted" for the respective mounts

10-31-2019, 07:21 PM	#5
chimera15 New Member Join Date: Oct 2019 Posts: 5	These arent really "fake" they're modified with 16 blades to keep the bokeh circular.

10-31-2019, 08:23 PM	#6
stevebrot Otis Memorial Pentaxian Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Vancouver (USA) Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 42,007 Original Poster	Originally posted by chimera15 These arent really "fake" they're modified with 16 blades to keep the bokeh circular. Welcome to the Pentax Forums! You seem to know some of how these modified lenses are crafted.* Do you care to elaborate how this is done using the existing optical blocks and pre-set mechanism? I also very interested in knowing what lens was used as the 16-blade donor. FWIW...I have done a full tear-down on my Helios 44-3. Steve * I call them fakes because the listings made no effort to indicate that they were "Frankenlens" rather than factory stock.

11-01-2019, 04:30 AM	#7
zapp Pentaxian Join Date: Jul 2011 Posts: 2,385	I bought two 44s version 2 and 7. 2 is the most swirly, 7 was cheap. Cost 75€ together add a Pentax M42 adaptor and fun starts. Returns on a 40€ item that goes across customs borders... no way. Were descriptions correct, not really.Are the lenses fun, yes.

11-01-2019, 04:38 AM	#8
BigMackCam Digitiser of Film Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: North East of England Posts: 20,669	Originally posted by zapp I bought two 44s version 2 and 7. 2 is the most swirly, 7 was cheap. Cost 75€ together add a Pentax M42 adaptor and fun starts. Returns on a 40€ item that goes across customs borders... no way. Were descriptions correct, not really.Are the lenses fun, yes. That's a very good deal for both lenses. It's an especially good deal if the 44M-7 - which is what I assume you mean by "7" - is actually genuine. I say that because many 44M-7 examples on eBay are fake... other versions that have had the trim ring unscrupulously replaced with a non-genuine 44M-7 version, so that the seller can charge a premium

11-01-2019, 08:58 AM	#9
chimera15 New Member Join Date: Oct 2019 Posts: 5	Someone who knew a lot about them told me how they were made a while ago..I forget the exact story but basically there were a lot of shops in former eastern block countries doing the modifications. Ukraine maybe? Maybe Still? This is one I recently purchased. The seller lists the correct serial, and the date and all the other facts about them. This one is from 1990 I guess one of the later ones, most of the ones are from the 70's. It seems like most of the modified ones are this, "Helios-44 (MMZ logo) made by Belarus Optical Mechanical Association (Minsk, Belarus) are considered the best among Helios lenses. " and have the zebra thing done to them. I think there are youtube videos about them?

11-01-2019, 08:59 AM	#10
chimera15 New Member Join Date: Oct 2019 Posts: 5	Ops I forgot to put the link into mine. HELIOS-44 f2/58mm -16 aperture blades - MADE in USSR ?9077919 \| eBay

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