Lloydc

Thanks.

Bill 45

Having own a Leica IIIb I found the 135mm lens on the camera became hard to hold. 90mm lens had no problem. Remember the lens for a Leica is M39, Canon, Nikon made M39 lens so did other company make M39 lens.

AndyH Loc: Massachusetts and New Hampshire

I do not think they often need service, unless there is delamination of the balsam or fungus growth. Dust isn't usually a problem. Buy from a trustworthy dealer who accepts returns. It's fairly easy to inspect the lens and see whether there are problems. If there are, return it.

The Elmar short telephotos are abundant and inexpensive - it's the normal and wide angles that get pricey real quickly. I have a Russian 35 on my IIIc, which was clean and functional on arrival. The helical grease was sticky and hard, but I was able to disassemble and clean it without difficulty.

I'd take Bob Malarz's advice on a technician; I know it's sound. There may be others as well, but if Bob says this guy is the best, I'd take that to the bank. Good luck! Those old Barnacks are a lot of fun to shoot!

Andy

Lloydc

Thanks. My IIIf takes screw mount lenses. Those are harder to find. I really want to stay with Leica.

Lloydc

Hi Andy,

Thanks for the information and advice.

Lloyd

Blurryeyed Loc: NC Mountains.

I have successfully bought several old vintage lenses on Ebay, the seller rating and seller comments are very important as well as a full description of the lens. The diaphragm, focus throw as well as the absence of haze or fungus in the lens is very important and hopefully your seller addresses each of these. The grease in old lenses can deposit oils on the iris diaphragm making it sticky and inoperable, in older lenses those same lubricants loose viscosity causing the focusing to become stiff or even locked. Of course haze and fungus is always a bad thing.

Having said all that I have several old lenses that are in pristine condition that I have purchased from Ebay sellers.

Blurryeyed Loc: NC Mountains.

I have bought from Roberts, always been happy.

Darkroom317 Loc: Mishawaka, IN

You may also want to look at the Canon S Mount (LTM) 100mm f3.5 lens. I have it and it is a fantastic lens that has a good reputation.

https://filmosaur.wordpress.com/2015/07/28/meet-the-lens-canon-1003-5-ltm/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FatPA5x2DZw

Screamin Scott Loc: Marshfield Wi, Baltimore Md, now Dallas Ga

I have a IIIc with a 5cm F3.5 Elmar but no other lenses for it. I'm assuming that since they are rangefinder cameras, that they would need some sort of parallax compensation, which I'm sure would be costly as well. Mine seems to function well for a camera made in 1950. The faster shutter speeds seem a bit off though and the rangefinder is a bit iffy.

AntonioReyna Loc: Los Angeles, California

Also look at the Canon LTM lenses. They are excellent glass, comparable.

Darkroom317 Loc: Mishawaka, IN

The 50mm 1.4 is an amazing lens

Blurryeyed Loc: NC Mountains.

The 50mm f/1.2 creates some of the most artistic bokeh (I hate that word) of any of the old lenses, the issue is that on Ebay they sell for about $2500.

Screamin Scott Loc: Marshfield Wi, Baltimore Md, now Dallas Ga

The 5cm F3.5 is no slouch in that regard either...

Darkroom317 Loc: Mishawaka, IN

Another thing. If looking for vintage equipment (especially rangefinders) look for ebay sellers in Japan. Everything I have bought from Japanese sellers has been in incredible condition, almost like new

amfoto1 Loc: San Jose, Calif. USA

Things to look for in lenses...

First, I'd recommend 90mm (9cm) over 135mm (13.5cm).... The longer focal lengths are just more difficult to handle on the older rangefinder cameras.

Inspect the lenses for smooth focus and that the aperture opens evenly.

With lens wide open, shine a flashlight inside and check for separation around the edges of the compound groups. It's usually pretty easily seen. Also look for dust or fungus.

Look closely at the front element. Older lenses seemed to use softer glass (or coatings) that are more prone to "cleaning marks", which are micro-scratches in the surface. Those can look like a haze on the outer surface of the front element. I mostly blame the use of paper lens cleaning tissues for those marks. Most paper is made from wood pulp, which can contain minerals that are hard enough to scratch glass or the coatings on it. Modern lenses seem to be more resistant... harder glass and better coatings on it.... but I still won't use paper tissues to clean them!

Obviously you need to be a little careful to get L39 "screwmount" lenses. Many of the same or nearly identical lenses were produced later with bayonet mount too, which cannot be fitted to your camera. L39 lenses can be adapted for use on the later, bayonet mount, M-series cameras, but not the other way around.

You won't have any trouble finding Leica 9cm f/4 Elmar in screwmount. There are some variants.... black painted, chrome, black & nickel, "fat" and "slim" versions. The vast majority you'll find are the slim, chrome (with a black leather strip around the base). Those sell for between $150 and $200 in usable condition. The others are rarer and can be pricey. The black lenses also tend to show wear and tear, with "brassing" where the painted finish has worn off. That can happen with the chrome finished lenses, too, but it's less apparent. There also is a Leica 9cm f/2 Summicron, but those are uncommon in L39 and are quite pricey.... figure on spending at least $1500 for one!

You also may want to look for an external viewfinder, to mount atop the camera in the flash cold shoe, matched to the lens you buy. The Leitz 9cm "brightline" finder is known as "SGVOO". Many Leitz accessories from that era used strange, five letter model designations. There's also the "IUFOO" clip-on lens hood specifically for the 9cm Elmar. An alternative is the adjustable "FIKUS" hood, which can be used on the 9cm, as well as some of the 5cm and 13.5cm lenses.