Jupiter-3 50mm on a Leica CL

[timj]

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Hi,

 

Just bought a Jupiter-3 50mm f1.5 on ebay. I tested it on my olympus E-P1 with adapter and it's very soft at any aperture (doesn't quite seem to focus). I have a jupiter-8 which tested on the same olympus is pin sharp.

 

I hope to also use this on my Leica CL, I presume if it focuses well on the olympus it will do the same on the Leica?

 

I have read about possibly needing to shim these lenses? Does anyone have experience of this on the Jupiter-3. I don't really understand the process and how do I know if that is the problem or is it just a glass problem? The glass looks pretty clean but there are some scratches possibly from cleaning.

 

Any advice what be appreciated!

 

Thanks, Tim

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[JeTexas]

Yes and no.

 

If you can't get it to focus on the Olympus, then it may need to be shimmed under the collar to move it the correct distance from the sensor and it probably won't focus on the CL either since theoretically the distance between the film and the lens on the CL would be the same as the distance between the sensor and the lens on the Olympus (with the adapter in between).

 

If it focuses correctly on the Olympus, it still doesn't mean it will focus correctly on the CL because the Olympus is giving you "live-view" focusing through the lens. On the CL you are focusing with the rangefinder, so if the lens and rangefinder aren't calibrated the same, your rangefinder will show focus when the lens may not be focused at all.

[payasam]

The J-3 will not focus correctly on a R/F Leica at near distance. This is a known problem with lenses that follow the Contax standard (the J-3 is a copy of the Zeiss Sonnar). The lens can be modified, but few people do that.