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**ismaelg** · 08-29-2021, 07:50 AM - **5 Likes**

Hello,

A long time ago in a galaxy far far away...
I don't recall posting this before, as this was shortly before getting hit by hurricane Maria in 2017.
You may remember elsewhere in this forum I painted an un-repairable Minolta SRT100( Hopeless Minolta SRT 100 - PentaxForums.com ) I was given by a fellow photographer.
It came with a tired T2 mount Spiratone 400mm f6.3

You know where this is going, right?

Cleaned up nicely.

A T2 to K-mount adapter

Tested in my K100D Super

Distance reference pic with a 50mm

and the result: A hint of sharpening and a hint of contrast boost and I was pleasantly surprised.

The included original hood threads were bent and damaged. It won't attach to the lens. I've been fighting it but I may take it to a machine shop for proper threading.

Thanks,

**clickclick** · 08-29-2021, 08:38 AM

Looks like you've had some fun - nice! You might want to check out one of these thread repair tools. You need to be careful not to distort the area opposite of the original damage, but I've had some success using them by rotating into the damaged area and slowly working the metal back out:

amazon.com: Neewer Camera Lens Vise Repair Tool for Lens and Filter, Ring Adjustment Range 27mm to 130mm, Steel Construction : Electronics?tag=pentaxforums-20&

**UncleVanya** · 08-29-2021, 09:54 AM

Originally posted by clickclick

Looks like you've had some fun - nice! You might want to check out one of these thread repair tools. You need to be careful not to distort the area opposite of the original damage, but I've had some success using them by rotating into the damaged area and slowly working the metal back out:

amazon.com: Neewer Camera Lens Vise Repair Tool for Lens and Filter, Ring Adjustment Range 27mm to 130mm, Steel Construction : Electronics?tag=pentaxforums-20&

Doesn’t that only work on the inside (female) threading of the lens? My understanding of this is that the (male) hood threading is what’s damaged.

**ismaelg** · 08-29-2021, 10:32 AM

Hello,

Correct. I was able to get it round enough with the tool but the outer threads are damaged. Haven't played with it in a few months.

Thanks,

**pentaxus** · 08-29-2021, 01:55 PM

BTW, that was considered to be one of the best $79 lenses around when new.

**Bob 256** · 08-29-2021, 03:59 PM

Good looking restoration and the photos aren't bad at all - very little color and with your post processing, sharp at the scale shown. I remember Spiratone and bought a number of things from them though I can't recall what they were. That was a long ways back.

Have fun with that lens and hope you can fix your thread issue. If you had access to a lathe, you might be able to run a tool over the threads while carefully turning the lathe by hand. Might be hard to chuck up the parts though and get them centered but a machinist might be able to help.

**clickclick** · 08-29-2021, 07:11 PM

Originally posted by UncleVanya

Doesn’t that only work on the inside (female) threading of the lens? My understanding of this is that the (male) hood threading is what’s damaged.

Yep. My mistake. I was thinking the threads were on the other side.

**cobbu2** · 09-07-2021, 07:14 PM

Thanks for the lens test; I have the Quantaray version that I bought from Ritz Camera in my high school days and it still performs well!

**UncleVanya** · 09-08-2021, 07:55 AM - **1 Like**

Originally posted by cobbu2

Thanks for the lens test; I have the Quantaray version that I bought from Ritz Camera in my high school days and it still performs well!

That’s a blast from the past. My dad worked at Ritz at one point.

**cobbu2** · 09-08-2021, 08:25 AM

Originally posted by UncleVanya

That’s a blast from the past. My dad worked at Ritz at one point.

I loved Ritz! There was a large one in Beltsville, Maryland close to where I grew up (it might have been the HQ store?). I bought some lenses, and many accessories and darkroom supplies from there.

**UncleVanya** · 09-08-2021, 09:04 AM - **1 Like**

Originally posted by cobbu2

I loved Ritz! There was a large one in Beltsville, Maryland close to where I grew up (it might have been the HQ store?). I bought some lenses, and many accessories and darkroom supplies from there.

Dad worked in Charlotte. Small store inside the local mall. My recollection is the plan of that placement (near the entrance) was to get dads to stop while their wives shopped. It seemed to work. Long time ago.

**TwoUptons** · 09-08-2021, 09:19 AM

Originally posted by UncleVanya

Dad worked in Charlotte. Small store inside the local mall. My recollection is the plan of that placement (near the entrance) was to get dads to stop while their wives shopped. It seemed to work. Long time ago.

Was that one of the Ritz stores that got turned into Wolf Camera?
And then back again... before the whole thing collapsed...

-Eric

**UncleVanya** · 09-08-2021, 09:29 AM

Originally posted by TwoUptons

Was that one of the Ritz stores that got turned into Wolf Camera?
And then back again... before the whole thing collapsed...

-Eric

Yes indeed. Chuck is well known to me. But I was a kid back then.

08-29-2021, 07:50 AM - 5 Likes	#1
ismaelg Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Puerto Rico Photos: Gallery Posts: 2,685	Restoring an old Spiratone 400mm f6.3 Hello, A long time ago in a galaxy far far away... I don't recall posting this before, as this was shortly before getting hit by hurricane Maria in 2017. You may remember elsewhere in this forum I painted an un-repairable Minolta SRT100( Hopeless Minolta SRT 100 - PentaxForums.com ) I was given by a fellow photographer. It came with a tired T2 mount Spiratone 400mm f6.3 You know where this is going, right? Cleaned up nicely. A T2 to K-mount adapter Tested in my K100D Super Distance reference pic with a 50mm and the result: A hint of sharpening and a hint of contrast boost and I was pleasantly surprised. The included original hood threads were bent and damaged. It won't attach to the lens. I've been fighting it but I may take it to a machine shop for proper threading. Thanks,

08-29-2021, 03:59 PM	#6
Bob 256 Site Supporter Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Idaho Photos: Gallery Posts: 2,379	Good looking restoration and the photos aren't bad at all - very little color and with your post processing, sharp at the scale shown. I remember Spiratone and bought a number of things from them though I can't recall what they were. That was a long ways back. Have fun with that lens and hope you can fix your thread issue. If you had access to a lathe, you might be able to run a tool over the threads while carefully turning the lathe by hand. Might be hard to chuck up the parts though and get them centered but a machinist might be able to help. Last edited by Bob 256; 08-29-2021 at 04:09 PM.

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08-29-2021, 08:38 AM	#2
clickclick Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: May 2016 Location: East Coast Posts: 2,904	Looks like you've had some fun - nice! You might want to check out one of these thread repair tools. You need to be careful not to distort the area opposite of the original damage, but I've had some success using them by rotating into the damaged area and slowly working the metal back out: amazon.com: Neewer Camera Lens Vise Repair Tool for Lens and Filter, Ring Adjustment Range 27mm to 130mm, Steel Construction : Electronics?tag=pentaxforums-20&

08-29-2021, 09:54 AM	#3
UncleVanya Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Jul 2014 Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 28,476	Originally posted by clickclick Looks like you've had some fun - nice! You might want to check out one of these thread repair tools. You need to be careful not to distort the area opposite of the original damage, but I've had some success using them by rotating into the damaged area and slowly working the metal back out: amazon.com: Neewer Camera Lens Vise Repair Tool for Lens and Filter, Ring Adjustment Range 27mm to 130mm, Steel Construction : Electronics?tag=pentaxforums-20& Doesn’t that only work on the inside (female) threading of the lens? My understanding of this is that the (male) hood threading is what’s damaged.

08-29-2021, 10:32 AM	#4
ismaelg Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Puerto Rico Photos: Gallery Posts: 2,685 Original Poster	Hello, Correct. I was able to get it round enough with the tool but the outer threads are damaged. Haven't played with it in a few months. Thanks,

08-29-2021, 01:55 PM	#5
pentaxus Site Supporter Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Central Coast, CA Posts: 1,320	BTW, that was considered to be one of the best $79 lenses around when new.

08-29-2021, 07:11 PM	#7
clickclick Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: May 2016 Location: East Coast Posts: 2,904	Originally posted by UncleVanya Doesn’t that only work on the inside (female) threading of the lens? My understanding of this is that the (male) hood threading is what’s damaged. Yep. My mistake. I was thinking the threads were on the other side.

09-07-2021, 07:14 PM	#8
cobbu2 Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: May 2013 Location: North Potomac, MD Photos: Albums Posts: 1,444	Thanks for the lens test; I have the Quantaray version that I bought from Ritz Camera in my high school days and it still performs well!

09-08-2021, 07:55 AM - 1 Like	#9
UncleVanya Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Jul 2014 Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 28,476	Originally posted by cobbu2 Thanks for the lens test; I have the Quantaray version that I bought from Ritz Camera in my high school days and it still performs well! That’s a blast from the past. My dad worked at Ritz at one point.

09-08-2021, 08:25 AM	#10
cobbu2 Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: May 2013 Location: North Potomac, MD Photos: Albums Posts: 1,444	Originally posted by UncleVanya That’s a blast from the past. My dad worked at Ritz at one point. I loved Ritz! There was a large one in Beltsville, Maryland close to where I grew up (it might have been the HQ store?). I bought some lenses, and many accessories and darkroom supplies from there.

09-08-2021, 09:04 AM - 1 Like	#11
UncleVanya Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Jul 2014 Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 28,476	Originally posted by cobbu2 I loved Ritz! There was a large one in Beltsville, Maryland close to where I grew up (it might have been the HQ store?). I bought some lenses, and many accessories and darkroom supplies from there. Dad worked in Charlotte. Small store inside the local mall. My recollection is the plan of that placement (near the entrance) was to get dads to stop while their wives shopped. It seemed to work. Long time ago.

09-08-2021, 09:19 AM	#12
TwoUptons Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Nov 2015 Photos: Albums Posts: 4,227	Originally posted by UncleVanya Dad worked in Charlotte. Small store inside the local mall. My recollection is the plan of that placement (near the entrance) was to get dads to stop while their wives shopped. It seemed to work. Long time ago. Was that one of the Ritz stores that got turned into Wolf Camera? And then back again... before the whole thing collapsed... -Eric

09-08-2021, 09:29 AM	#13
UncleVanya Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Jul 2014 Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 28,476	Originally posted by TwoUptons Was that one of the Ritz stores that got turned into Wolf Camera? And then back again... before the whole thing collapsed... -Eric Yes indeed. Chuck is well known to me. But I was a kid back then.

Restoring an old Spiratone 400mm f6.3

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