1942 WWII Hektor 135mm f4.5, Anti-Reflective Coating?

[Robert Hooper]

Advertisement (gone after registration)

I have two Leica Hektor 135mm f4.5 lenses which have serial numbers indicating they were manufactured in 1942, during WWII. Total production of the Hektor 135mm in that year was 563, according to my Hove reference books. Both lenses are painted flat black except for a mat chrome ring with distance scales. These lenses are coated.

 

 

I remember reading in some Leica literature that by 1942 the Germans were mandating that all Leica lens production go exclusively to government or military use and that lenses produced during this period were applied with a newly developed Leica anti-reflective coating during production in 1942.

 

 

Can anyone substantiate that Leica coated lenses for the Reich during the war, before 1946, after which a lot of civilian Leica lenses were returned to the Wetzlar factory for the anti-reflective coating? Any references would be appreciated.

[lars_bergquist]

It is usually said that the 8.5cm Summarex, of 1942, was the first Leica lens to be factory coated (or, possibly, coated from the start of production). That may of course be an urban legend.

 

There are nevertheless quite a number of Leica lenses that were apparently produced during the war, and were and remain uncoated. Some of them are Summitar lenses. This fast seven elements/eight air surfaces lens would, one might think, be a far more likely candidate for coating than the Hektor. Sorry, no references available where I am now.

 

The fact that Leitz could begin to coat all their camera lenses as early as 1946, in spite of the dislocation and the cold and the lack of food in Germany at that time, attests however that Leitz already had some coating expertise -- and equipment -- by then.

 

One caveat: You may already be aware of the fact that there is some disorder and doubt about lens serial numbers from WWII times. Numbers from unused batches could be used after the war. One case in point is the early 3.5cm Summaron. This could be another case.

 

The old man older than the Summarex

[lars_bergquist]

Well here I am again. Dennis Laney (Leica Collector's Guide, 2nd ed.) and Erwin Puts (Leica Taschenbuch, 7. Auflage) disagree on when the first Summitar lenses were coated; that should be the earliest date when camera lenses were routinely coated. Laney says this was in November 1945. Puts claims that (a) the claim for November 1945 and the oft-quoted serial no. 587601 is wrong. His own claim is for no. 600000, but that would also mean very late 1945! Officially, 1945 lens serial numbers end at 601000. I seem to hear the sound of angels dancing on points of needles ...

 

Now, IF it is true that the Summarex was coated from 1942/43 (and no uncoated lenses seem to be known), and IF the lens elements were indeed coated in the Wetzlar factory and not elsewhere (which is possible considering that only 118 such lenses were produced 1943--45) then the equipment should have been in place, and your Hektors may have been coated immediately on production. But it strikes me as strange that Leitz then would have coated Hektor lenses and not Summitar lenses! The two lenses may of course have been coated experimentally. But my guess is that they have been returned later for coating, or that they had been resting on a shelf in Wetzlar, and coated after the war.

 

Still, the fact that Leitz could have the coating process up and running just half a year after Ilse Kuhn-Leitz rode out on her bicycle and offered the advancing Brits the peaceful surrender of Wetzlar, suggests to me that they were doing at least experimental coating before the end of the war. Much conjecture, few facts!

 

The old man older than the Summarex

[jaapv]

Don't forget, Lars, that the Oude Delft optical industry from Delft in the Netherlands had a coating process for exisiting lenses called "Delfineren" shortly before the war. It is likely the technology was "exported" to Germany after the German occupation of 1940. Of course Zeiss employee Alexander Smakula was the official inventor in 1935, so the process was not unknown.

[lars_bergquist]

Didn't know that, Jaap. But considering that the Zeiss patent was granted in 1935, export from a Dutch source is unlikely. German war materials production was very rigidly controlled.

 

But it is true that coating was in the air, if I may be permitted the expression. The physical principle was well understood. Dr. Smakula and his team in Jena developed a technical process, but the patent was kept secret for military reasons so a Dutch or any other patent later than 1935 would not have been challenged. Kodak was also dabbling in coatings at that time. Can you tell me more about what Oude Delft did? This seems to me to be a fact about as unknown as the story of how Swedish Military Intelligence forced the Enigma codes.

 

The old man older than the Summarex

[jaapv]

The company was started in 1938 or 1939 by Oscar van Leer. as it was a Jewish company it was in danger of being confiscated in 1941. But Philips, in the person of Albert Bouwers incorporated the firm and took charge, keeping van Leer on the books as a consultant. Philips used the firm as a supplier of X-ray imaging systems. Toward the end of the war production was reduced to carboard toy kaleidoscopes. After the war it was quite a job to prise the company away from Frits Philips, but in 1947 it was independent again. Oscar van Leer only made it into the board in 1957(!) They produced all kinds of optical instruments, including highly interesting photographic lenses, the LTM mount ones of which are sought after by collectors, although the main product range was military. In 1990 the company became part of Enraf-Nonius.

 

In the late 1950ies there was an USA branch as well (Old Delft Optical Corporation), producing military infrared systems for the Starfighter. That one was a joint venture with Aerojet general resulting in a company called Aerojet Delft. They produced an infrared system for fast processes for the civilian market called Cinelix, besides, again, military gear, which played a role in the Gulf war (sadly on the side of Sadam Hoessein:().

At a later stage the company diversified with an electronic-optical company calld Deltronic. That part was bought by Toshiba.

 

Oldelft Benelux still produces medical imaging equipment branded Delft Diagnostic Imaging.

 

 

Schouten select is selling a number of Oude Delft lenses

 

http://www.schouten-select.com/products.asp?page=2&gid=187

[scsambrook]

Advertisement (gone after registration)

I suppose it is entirely possible that these lenses could have been coated subsequent to manufacture by any of the firms who began to offer coating as an 'after-market' service during the later 1940s and the 1950s. How to verify the originality of early factory coatings would seem, at least to me, to be a particularly problematic exercise. But I realise that is quite a different thing from knowing when and on what system Leitz began to coat lenses, which is what Robert's really asking to know about.

[lars_bergquist]

Right. I was simply pointing out that the existence of two coated Hektor lenses with serial numbers from 1942 or thereabouts was not evidence for Leitz coating Hektor lenses at that time. I understand fully that the origin of these particular coatings must remain mysterious.

 

One of the companies that offered retro-coating of lenses was in fact AGA of Sweden, which had produced military optics for the Swedish Armed Forces during the war. I have myself used a m/1940 Husqvarna-Mauser sniper rifle equipped with a 3x AGA scope.

 

And thanks for the Old Delft info, Jaap.

 

The old man

[Robert Hooper]

Well, even though I'm not getting difinitive answers, the discussion is certainly interesting.

 

I wrote to James L Lager about this matter and here is his reply:

 

 

"Hello Robert, The Hektor 13.5cm optic at numbers 590201-591000 is still a fertile ground for research. As this grouping was not specifically marked ( engraved ) for the German military I did not take detailed notes during my research trips to Leitz Wetzlar. However, my hand written notes say late 1945-early 1946 to the Allied Forces. Other notes say 1943-1945. Other entries say October 1944 to some agency of the Reich. This means that unless and until I can actually inspect the delivery records held at Leica Solms we cannot be 100% certain about your specific lenses. My gut feeling is that your lenses were delivered after May 7th, 1945 ( capitulation day) to the occupying Allied Forces ( US Army). Factory coating supposedly began January 1946 with lens 590551. The key word is supposedly. Many optics were Leitz coated after the War. Many were coated by independent firms. As you can see all of this is a researcher's nightmare. If I can get back to Solms in September this year I will try to take better notes. In the meantime you should use those lenses, I think you will be astounded to see the results.

Best regards, Jim Lager."

[LeicaTom]

Leica produced "coated" lenses during WW2 in some 1942/43 issues

 

Some lenses like this went to the Luftwaffe PK units (Propaganda Kompanie) or high ranking individuals in the party, some were engraved with military markings others not, most weren't.

 

These lenses are known as belag lenses (German word for coated ~ and are marked in the Leitz delivery dockets as so) ~ they made every style of issued lens during WW2 with this mono coating, (Elmar's Hektor's Summitart's Xenon's) they were trying to catch up with Zeiss whom by 1942/3 had far superior coatings, that were being used together with the *widely available to the military* (but, not to the civilians) AGFA Color films.

 

I have a 1942 Elmar f3.5/35 that's a belag lens, use it often on my M8

 

Last year there was this beautiful 1943 issue Leica IIIC K sold on ebay that had a matching numbers Summitar that was coated and marked as "belag" in the records I received from Jim Lager.

 

 

1943 Leica IIIC K #389656 K w/ matching numbers Summitar f2/50 #560798

 

Also for many of the pre 1942 lenses, after the war there was a booming anti-reflective coating business, that even some private photo shops in Germany offered, many of the American GI's who started to shoot with Kodachrome "over there" also sent the lenses back to the factory to get coated as well, that's why you sometimes see early 50mm Summar's, Elmar's and Xenon's with coatings, while they were sent back......

 

Tom

 

PS: Too bad my 1943 IIIC K wasn't issued about the time this camera was....while I have matching numbers, my Summitar isn't coated, but since the camera is early 1943 it has the very rare Dark Red K stamped on the shutter