[Canada_Rockies]

Right, I just got off the phone with Otto customer service. They'll pick up the lens hoods on monday and I got a 50€ rebate code.
It's not exactly maximising profit but it's decent money for next to no effort and I did get a good laugh out of it...

Worth the effort! Enjoy your rebate code.

[gaweidert]

That is one of the parts of the US I was talking about when I posted earlier about how ac had changed where people now choose to live

without ac being available some parts of the US would have much less population

40 years ago or so I subscribed to Forbes Magazine. They had an article in 1981 or so that predicted that the future growth area of the United States was in the northeastern quadrant of the country. Their reasoning seems dead on at the time. It had nothing to do with favorable tax policies, well educated workforce etc. It was based upon the simple precept that we had water, lots of it and people need water to live.

[BigMackCam]

Well, I'm pretty excited today...

Our fellow member @IgorZ very kindly put me in touch with a Russian photo equipment vendor that I didn't know of (thank you, Igor! ), and he had a lens in stock that I've been after for a little while now, at a fair price - the Rubin-1 2.8/37-80, which is a Soviet interpretation / modification of the Voigtlander Zoomar 36-82 f/2.8. It was designed for the Zenit-4 / 5 / 6 cameras with a Deckel DKL-compatible mount, adaptable to M42 with ready-made adapters.

This is one of those lenses that I wanted for my collection yet probably won't see a lot of use except for basic testing (at least, I don't think it will)... It's not exactly renowned for great IQ - not the sharpest, and out-of-focus specular highlights have a distinct dot in the middle which gives the bokeh a rather busy appearance But, it's a fairly uncommon lens, and it looks beautiful to me (I love that it has dedicated strap lugs at the rear of the body ). So, it might end up being a "shelf queen", but it'll be treasured like the rest of my lenses

This copy seems to be in great condition - not mint by any means, but good cosmetically, and - according to the seller - excellent optically, with zoom and diaphragm working perfectly. I'm reasonably confident that I can add it to the collection with no immediate work required

It's leaving Russia on Monday, so I don't expect to receive it for a couple of weeks. Photo below is one of many provided by the seller...

[Jonathan Mac]

Well, I'm pretty excited today...

Our fellow member @IgorZ very kindly put me in touch with a Russian photo equipment vendor that I didn't know of (thank you, Igor! ), and he had a lens in stock that I've been after for a little while now, at a fair price - the Rubin-1 2.8/37-80, which is a Soviet interpretation / modification of the Voigtlander Zoomar 36-82 f/2.8. It was designed for the Zenit-4 / 5 / 6 cameras with a Deckel DKL-compatible mount, adaptable to M42 with ready-made adapters.

This is one of those lenses that I wanted for my collection yet probably won't see a lot of use except for basic testing (at least, I don't think it will)... It's not exactly renowned for great IQ - not the sharpest, and out-of-focus specular highlights have a distinct dot in the middle which gives the bokeh a rather busy appearance But, it's a fairly uncommon lens, and it looks beautiful to me (I love that it has dedicated strap lugs at the rear of the body ). So, it might end up being a "shelf queen", but it'll be treasured like the rest of my lenses

This copy seems to be in great condition - not mint by any means, but good cosmetically, and - according to the seller - excellent optically, with zoom and diaphragm working perfectly. I'm reasonably confident that I can add it to the collection with no immediate work required

It's leaving Russia on Monday, so I don't expect to receive it for a couple of weeks. Photo below is one of many provided by the seller...

I didn't know that there were FSU fast zooms until I saw this. I'll bet it looks good on a camera body - you'll need to post some pictures when it arrives.

[BigMackCam]

I didn't know that there were FSU fast zooms until I saw this. I'll bet it looks good on a camera body - you'll need to post some pictures when it arrives.

I'll definitely post some pics once I've received the lens. In the mean-time, you can see how it looks on the Zenit-6 (with which it was supplied as a kit) here:

Zenit-6 with Rubin-1 2.8/37-80

Looks to be chunky, and it's clearly heavy, as evidenced by strap rings and and tripod mount that form part of the lens body

[IgorZ]

Well, I'm pretty excited today...

Our fellow member @IgorZ very kindly put me in touch with a Russian photo equipment vendor that I didn't know of (thank you, Igor! ), and he had a lens in stock that I've been after for a little while now, at a fair price - the Rubin-1 2.8/37-80, which is a Soviet interpretation / modification of the Voigtlander Zoomar 36-82 f/2.8. It was designed for the Zenit-4 / 5 / 6 cameras with a Deckel DKL-compatible mount, adaptable to M42 with ready-made adapters.

This is one of those lenses that I wanted for my collection yet probably won't see a lot of use except for basic testing (at least, I don't think it will)...

Glad to hear that I could help. It would be interesting to see what this lens can do...

For my part, I just won a 180mm f4.5 lens for mamiya rb67. I've been looking at Pentax 67 for a while, but decided to go for mamiya in the end because of interchangeable backs. Now that I think about it, with 10 shots per roll I might not even be in a position when I feel pressed to finish a roll because I want to try a different film.

[lesmore49]

I have an older, Made in the USSR lens. It's a 500mm Mirror lens, F 8. It appears to be an MTO lens, but I'm not sure as I can't find any manufacturer's ID marking on it. It has some filters with it.

I don't know if anyone out there, can tell me anything about these lenses. It's an older Canon mount.

[BigMackCam]

I have an older, Made in the USSR lens. It's a 500mm Mirror lens, F 8. It appears to be an MTO lens, but I'm not sure as I can't find any manufacturer's ID marking on it. It has some filters with it.

I don't know if anyone out there, can tell me anything about these lenses. It's an older Canon mount.

The fact that it's a Canon mount (of any age) is extremely unusual... in fact, I'm not aware of any Soviet-era lenses that were made in any of the Canon mounts, though some were converted (rather well, in many cases) by enthusiasts and re-sold on the secondary market...

If you'd like to PM me with a few photos of the lens body, front trim ring, and mount, I'll almost certainly be able to identify the lens - and I might possibly tell if it's a mount-converted example

[WPRESTO]

I have an older, Made in the USSR lens. It's a 500mm Mirror lens, F 8. It appears to be an MTO lens, but I'm not sure as I can't find any manufacturer's ID marking on it. It has some filters with it.

I don't know if anyone out there, can tell me anything about these lenses. It's an older Canon mount.

It seems to me that Spratone was the first to introduce the Russian-made 500mm mirror to the American market.

[Marcus Rowland]

Nothing Friday or yesterday, but today I got a Canon Eos 300 with a Yongnuo 50mm 1.8 for £30, and ten packs of 5 Kodak mini-DVDs for cameras at 50p a pack. Could have got a lot more of the disks, but I have no idea how much I'll get for them (and they're fairly heavy since they're in little cases) so I played it safe.

[lesmore49]

It seems to me that Spratone was the first to introduce the Russian-made 500mm mirror to the American market.

When you mentioned the Spiratone brand I recalled many years ago...'60's, 70's,,,maybe '80's that this brand of lenses used to be sold by some U.S. Eastern Seaboard camera stores that advertised in either Modern Photography or Popular Photography magazine way back then. Think the stores may have been located in New York and / or Maine. I never got one, but I do recall super telephotos for the time, being sold as Spiratones.

I didn't know who made them, but as you mentioned Spiratone...well it has got me wondering. I assumed years ago that Spiratone was made in Japan, but that was just an assumption on my part. It would be interesting to know the history of this lens brand. I haven't seen the brand name advertised for awhile, so I don't know if the name is still current. Thx.

BigMackCam,

I have sent a PM. Thx. Les

[timw4mail]

• Pentax KM
• K 50/1.4
• Chinon AF Zoom 70-210mm ( For Chinon CP-9AF )

[BigMackCam]

BigMackCam,

I have sent a PM. Thx. Les

Hi Les... no PM received yet

[WPRESTO]

When you mentioned the Spiratone brand I recalled many years ago...'60's, 70's,,,maybe '80's that this brand of lenses used to be sold by some U.S. Eastern Seaboard camera stores that advertised in either Modern Photography or Popular Photography magazine way back then. Think the stores may have been located in New York and / or Maine. I never got one, but I do recall super telephotos for the time, being sold as Spiratones.

I didn't know who made them, but as you mentioned Spiratone...well it has got me wondering. I assumed years ago that Spiratone was made in Japan, but that was just an assumption on my part. It would be interesting to know the history of this lens brand. I haven't seen the brand name advertised for awhile, so I don't know if the name is still current. Thx.

Spiratone was a store, originally a one-of in Manhattan, and I did visit it a couple times way early when I was doing 35mm (late '50s into '60s). They sold some Japanese(?) made lenses and other products under their store name. Other items they sold under the manufacturer's name. As I recall, they always indicated that the 500mm f8 was a Russian made MTO. On the other hand, some of their "Pluracoat," an Olde-Tyme portrait lens (= short tele with a simple lens sytem that gave soft, romantic images), a short-mount bellows lens, etc. were of unstated original source. They offered a T-mount 400mm f6.3 at an extraordinary low price compared to name-brand 400mm lenses, and it was/is quite decent. The basic lens design was later offered in different lens-tubes and sold under a variety of names.

[lesmore49]

Hi Les... no PM received yet

Sent another PM a few minutes ago

---------- Post added 07-08-18 at 03:10 PM ----------

Hi Les... no PM received yet

I've taken a few photos of my Made in the USSR 500 mm F 8 lens. I've not very adept at sending photos through the computer. My kids have shown me how to do it, but I'm a poor student.

I noted that it has the same symbol on the lens that your recent lens acquisition displays and I wonder if this indicates that it is of the same manufacture. I'm not sure of this as I believe, perhaps incorrectly that Russian made camera equipment sometimes involved 'badge' engineering...same lens...but labelled as different brands.

I indicated it was a Canon mount as I recall the fellow who gave it to me, told me that this was his understanding and the rear lens cap has Canon embossed on the cap. He got the lens from another person and never used it on his modern Canon equipment. I believe this lens may go back to the late 1950's, perhaps the 1960's...but I don't know for sure, just speculation on my part.

The number inscribed on the inside of the lens reads " N*02915 Mirror Telephoto F=500mm 1:8 " , but no brand, except the symbol, similar to your symbol.

Les

---------- Post added 07-08-18 at 03:13 PM ----------

Spiratone was a store, originally a one-of in Manhattan, and I did visit it a couple times way early when I was doing 35mm (late '50s into '60s). They sold some Japanese(?) made lenses and other products under their store name. Other items they sold under the manufacturer's name. As I recall, they always indicated that the 500mm f8 was a Russian made MTO. On the other hand, some of their "Pluracoat," an Olde-Tyme portrait lens (= short tele with a simple lens sytem that gave soft, romantic images), a short-mount bellows lens, etc. were of unstated original source. They offered a T-mount 400mm f6.3 at an extraordinary low price compared to name-brand 400mm lenses, and it was/is quite decent. The basic lens design was later offered in different lens-tubes and sold under a variety of names.

Thanks for the detailed info. My Russian lens has no brand name on it, but I've thought it might be an MTO ...going by pix of MTO lenses on the internet.