[fwcetus]

PentaxForums.com Marketplace Listing

Item for Sale
SMC K 28mm f/2.0 28/2 [Zeiss 'Distagon'/'Hollywood'] [w/ optional dedicated hood]

Asking Price
699.00 USD

Item Location
New England (United States)

Item Description


Looking for another good home is this SMC Pentax K 28mm F/2.0 full-frame lens. The K 28/2 (optically not the same lens as the M 28/2 or the A 28/2, by the way) is well known for its excellent sharpness, color, and "3-D" rendering -- check out the rave PF lens reviews at SMC Pentax 28mm F2 Reviews - K Prime Lenses - Pentax Lens Reviews & Lens Database . The K 28/2 is also sometimes named (or nicknamed) for its Zeiss "Distagon" and/or "Hollywood" roots from back in the mid-1970's -- well, more about that heritage later on, below...

This copy of the lens is in Excellent condition. The optics show no scratches, haze, or fungus, and there's only a minimum of dust. The mechanics are solid and focusing is buttery smooth. The aperture ring moves exactly as it should and the aperture blades are "snappy". Cosmetically, there are no dents or scratches -- just a few tiny paint nicks on the outer edge of the front bezel and just a bit of aperture ring wear on one side (visible in one of the images below). This is quite a pretty sample of a 40-year-old Pentax masterpiece.

Well, here are a few links that might be of interest to anyone curious about the legendary K 28/2 "Distagon"/"Hollywood" -

First, a few general articles about the Pentax/Zeiss collaboration that begat the K 28/2 -

SMC Pentax 1:2/28: the poor man's Distagon?

The Pentax Distagon 28mm f/2: Pentax SLR Talk Forum: Digital Photography Review

Poor man's Zeiss Distagon 28mm f/2 "Hollywood"?

$60 Pentax that's actually a $800 Zeiss by designer of Stanley Kubrick's NASA glass - EOSHD

(although I have no idea where the "$60" in the above article could have ever come from, even in the 1970s).

Then, an Italian article with a lot of the technical details, along with a Google translation (that works well enough) -

SMC PENTAX 28mm f/2 : LA STORIA NON SCRITTA

SMC PENTAX 28mm f/2 : HISTORY NOT [yet] WRITTEN

And here's a nice graphic from the above Italian article -


[I am still in awe of the fact that fully two-thirds of the lens elements are ground from high refractive index glass -- this was quite a "deluxe" lens design.]

Well, thank you for your interest in this lens.

OK, here are a number of images showing this lens and its accessories (both "standard" and "optional"). [Please note that the original Pentax front and rear caps, along with a Pentax lens case (slightly oversize, and not the proper "SMC PENTAX 2/28" dedicated case) are included in this sale -- the optional Pentax PH-S52 dedicated hood (seemingly harder to find than the lens itself) and its hood case are available to the lens buyer only if he/she really wants them, and would cost $75.00 additional above the cost of the lens (since I can still use the hood on my K 28/3.5 lens as well).]



































Are you the original owner of the item being sold?
No

Are you selling or trading this item?
Selling

Item Condition (Key)
Used
Excellent

Shipping Destinations
United States

Shipping Charge
20.00

Shipping Services
USPS Insured Priority Mail

Accepted Payment Types
PayPal

Return Policy & Additional Details
[The "Fine Print"]

1. The buyer may return the lens and accessories within 7 days at the buyer's expense if the items are not as described.

2. Please note that the dedicated Pentax PH-S52 hood and its matching hood case are optional, at additional cost, and are not included in the price for the lens (which does include the lenscaps and the lens case), and that the camera body shown is not included as part of the sale.

3. Please note that payment must be made by PayPal only and that shipment will be made only to the buyer's verified PayPal shipping address.

Please send me a private message if interested in the item.

---

Last edited by fwcetus; 05-15-2017 at 04:42 PM. Reason: clarification

[niceshot]

Nice hunk of GLASS

[aseno]

Glass so good, owning one is not enough.

[fwcetus]

$60 Pentax that's actually a $800 Zeiss by designer of Stanley Kubrick's NASA glass - EOSHD

(although I have no idea where the "$60" in the above article could have ever come from, even in the 1970s).

Here's the Pentax price list for January 1978 -


Nope, definitely not "$60"...

[jumbleview]

I have no doubt as collection item this lens has an outstanding value. But, alas, it is hard to find examples of images made by it. On the review page here there are not that many. I tried lookup trough the whole forum but for this lens it does not work.

[fwcetus]

I have no doubt as collection item this lens has an outstanding value. But, alas, it is hard to find examples of images made by it. On the review page here there are not that many. I tried lookup trough the whole forum but for this lens it does not work.

There are some good examples right here on this forum at SMC Pentax 1:2/28: the poor man's Distagon? - PentaxForums.com .

[nzondlo]

Would jump on this in a second if I had the money. Thank you for showing it here. I picked up a BNIB Zeiss 2/28 back in November for $1000 and I wish I had this to compare. As I understand, the original K 28 has 1 less glass element but the optical formula is otherwise very similar.

[HarisF1]

If there was a way to get it posted to the UK within reasonable cost then I'd probably go for it.

[nzondlo]

Where in New England? I'm in PA. Can I come LOOK at this thing? Hah

[monochrome]

Would jump on this in a second if I had the money. Thank you for showing it here. I picked up a BNIB Zeiss 2/28 back in November for $1000 and I wish I had this to compare. As I understand, the original K 28 has 1 less glass element but the optical formula is otherwise very similar.

If I'm not mistaken the SMC Pentax 1:2 28mm is the same optical formula as the Contax Zeiss Distagon 28,2. They were co-developed by Zeiss and Asahi before Zeiss moved to a permanent collaboration with Contax/Yashica.

Poor man's Zeiss Distagon 28mm f/2 "Hollywood"?

Any differences between the SMC-identical Zeiss MM version and the later AEG version are discussed at Fred Miranda.

Distagon 28mm f2 C/Y or Distagon 28mm f2 ZE/ZF? - FM Forums

[fwcetus]

As I understand, the original K 28 has 1 less glass element but the optical formula is otherwise very similar.

If I'm not mistaken the SMC Pentax 1:2 28mm is the same optical formula as the Contax Zeiss Distagon 28,2. They were co-developed by Zeiss and Asahi before Zeiss moved to a permanent collaboration with Contax/Yashica.

Yes. Here are the optical diagrams of the three lenses in question -

[JBox]

First of all, PM sent.

Yes. Here are the optical diagrams of the three lenses in question -

Secondly, from the linked info, it seems that the most recent Zeiss ZK/ZF2/ZE versions of the 28/2 would fall under the diagram labeled "Zeiss-Cosina Distagon 28/2". Is that correct?

[fwcetus]

Secondly, from the linked info, it seems that the most recent Zeiss ZK/ZF2/ZE versions of the 28/2 would fall under the diagram labeled "Zeiss-Cosina Distagon 28/2". Is that correct?

Yes, that is correct. The original Zeiss 28/2 was made by Contax/Yashica, while the most recent Zeiss ZK (etc.) 28/2 was made by Cosina. [The (original) Pentax SMC "K" 28/2 was made by Pentax.]

[mwilky55]

Very tempting, Fred. Hope you are well. And good luck with your sale.

[fwcetus]

Very tempting, Fred. Hope you are well. And good luck with your sale.

Thanks for your wishes, Michael. And, yes, it just sold (along with the optional hood)...