Topic: I just picked up...

[Francois]

Also sold as a Canon Dial 35 iirc.

Yep, it's the same thing but with American branding.
I must admit that to this day, I still consider it one of the most interesting and beautiful cameras ever made.
The industrial design aspect is just fascinating and the arrangement of the parts just good to the eye.
Who needs good ergonomics when it looks this good 😁

[Indofunk]

That looks really cool!

[Phil Snaps]

I picked up an Agfa Isolette II. I didn't know if it was in good condition, only that the shutter worked. I thought I could always use the shutter for one of my frankencamera projects. But it looks pretty good, door is smooth, the bellow has repairs, so I will shoot a test roll someday!

[Francois]

Don't you just hate it when you buy something for hacking and it turns out it's actually too good to do so?

[Bryan]

I picked up an Agfa Isolette II. I didn't know if it was in good condition, only that the shutter worked. I thought I could always use the shutter for one of my frankencamera projects. But it looks pretty good, door is smooth, the bellow has repairs, so I will shoot a test roll someday!

What, the grease isn’t solidified!  That’s a rare find. 

[Phil Snaps]

Don't you just hate it when you buy something for hacking and it turns out it's actually too good to do so?

Well it was a good surprise, but I hate to dismantle a working camera so I'll have to find a shutter somewhere else 

What, the grease isn’t solidified!  That’s a rare find.

I has probably been CLA'ed at some point.

[Francois]

Yesterday I got my hands on a nice Canon EX.
I always wanted to get a camera that uses the FD mount and I thought I had found the holy grail... but there was something weird about it. I couldn't figure out how to remove the lens.
It turns out that this is not an FD mount camera! It's an EX mount camera... which makes this all even more puzzling.
The EX mount was a failed design by Canon that was produced for just one year. And lets just say that when they came out with this, they probably were hitting the sake pretty hard.
The camera has a fixed focusing mount with a fixed rear lens element. The lenses are just the front optics set on an m39 screw mount... but not Leica compatible.
It's got a movable prong that can lock on the focus in order to get automatic flash.
And the lens has no aperture setting! Instead, there is a dial around the rewind knob that moves a needle in the viewfinder to set the aperture (f/1.8 to f/16).
The camera is entirely mechanical (1/8 to 1/500).

Mine came with the 35mm, 50mm and 125mm lenses. They also made the 95mm which is missing.
Not too shabby for a whole 10$ at a charity shop.

[Indofunk]

That's crazy! So basically you're stuck with this exact kit, unless by some miracle another EX lens pops up somewhere 😁

[Francois]

That's pretty much it.
At first I thought it came with a bunch of lens adapters. But it turns out it wasn't the case.
I'll definitely have to do a bit more research on this thing as it is really a fascinating piece of kit, albeit not a convenient one.

I did look at the models they made and it is essentially a Canon FP with a fixed lens... or at least it looks like that. It is the the successor to the Canon EX EE.

I wonder if there isn't a way I can use this to add some home-made lenses?

[Bryan]

That’s similar to the way the lenses work on the Retina IIIc, but with a leaf shutter that makes sense to leave the rear element attached.  With a focal plane shutter it doesn’t make sense. 

[Francois]

As far as I'm concerned, nothing on this thing makes sense.
Putting the aperture on the rewind button? That was definitely a new one for me!

[Kai-san]

Last week I picked up two heavy chunks of metal and glass, better known as lenses. They are both M42 mount, and the Isco-Göttingen Edixa-Westagon 2.0/50 is the odd one out here. They were made from 1954 to 1970. and this one is probably from the fifties. No auto aperture but with a spring loaded lever that opens the aperture when activated. Isco-Göttingen started making Schneider lenses in the thirties and is today part of Schneider Kreuznach.
Sears on the other hand never made any lenses, the Sears 1.4/55 pictured here is said to have been made by Tomioka, but nobody can prove it
I'm posting two shots from the Westagon in the weekend thread, the Sears will have to wait till next week.

[Francois]

The funny thing about those store brand lenses is that you never really know what you'll get. They can either be rubbish or incredible pearls.
I have grown to love shopping for them as they are usually cheap and a true bag of surprises.

So far, my favorites so far are those from the "Image" brand that was sold through the Astral Photo and Miracle Mart chains in Canada. They are often a bit weird but usually quite interesting.

[Kai-san]

This Sears lens was also issued under other brand names as Mamiya, Ricoh, Cosina, Chinon etc. I think the only thing we can assume with some certainty is that it is Japanese made.

[Francois]

Most probably as there wasn't many countries producing 3rd party lenses at that time.
I have a Deitz Premium sitting on my desk that I need to fix. Under the nameplate is a Soligor CD lens...

[Kai-san]

.....another Isco-Göttingen lens, the Westar 4.5/100mm in M42 mount. The only problem with these lenses from the fifties and older is odd filter sizes. Info from internet says 40mm for this lens, but I tried a 40.5 and it's a bit too small. So I've ordered two step-up rings, 41.0 and 41,5mm. Fingers crossed!

[Francois]

Could it be that it wasn't made for screw-on filters but for using System type press on adapters with a drop-in threadless filter instead?
I know I have an old Wollensak lens that uses just that. I eventually made my own threaded adapter using a System adapter, step-down filter ring and UV filter to the final size.
Here's the instructable I made a very long time ago
https://www.instructables.com/Filters-for-lenses-without-threads/

[Bryan]

I've been able to make those Kodak slip on adapters work with a lot of odd sizes.  A little self adhesive felt can make up for a loose fitting one. 

[Kai-san]

Could it be that it wasn't made for screw-on filters but for using System type press on adapters with a drop-in threadless filter instead?
I know I have an old Wollensak lens that uses just that. I eventually made my own threaded adapter using a System adapter, step-down filter ring and UV filter to the final size.
Here's the instructable I made a very long time ago
https://www.instructables.com/Filters-for-lenses-without-threads/

It definetively has filter threads, so I expect one of those step-up rings to do the job.

[Francois]

It definetively has filter threads, so I expect one of those step-up rings to do the job.

That's where I've been had with the Wollensak. It has threads, but they are not standard (I believe they are imperial and not metric like all filters).

[Kai-san]

It definetively has filter threads, so I expect one of those step-up rings to do the job.

That's where I've been had with the Wollensak. It has threads, but they are not standard (I believe they are imperial and not metric like all filters).

Reminds me of a Leica filter I once bought. It was metric, but the thread pitch was non-standard. I believe it's in a drawer somewhere......

[Francois]

It definetively has filter threads, so I expect one of those step-up rings to do the job.

That's where I've been had with the Wollensak. It has threads, but they are not standard (I believe they are imperial and not metric like all filters).

Reminds me of a Leica filter I once bought. It was metric, but the thread pitch was non-standard. I believe it's in a drawer somewhere......

Leica did produce a lot of non-standard stuff.