50 elmarit question

[tbarker13]

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I know I've seen this mentioned in other threads, but I just want to make sure before I do what I am thinking about doing.

I'm really intrigued by the idea of pairing one of the new 28 elmarits with the newest 50 elmarit collapsible for a lightweight M8 travel kit. (I've got a 35 lux, 50 lux and 28 Ultron for lower light work)

Reading the docs that came with the M8, I thought the 50 elmarit could not be collapsed into the body. (I don't have my manual handy, as it has been boxed up for my move from Florida to Missouri).

Did I read it wrong? Can we, indeed, fully collapse that lens into the body without fear of damaging anything?

[SteveP]

The manual says no to collapsing any lens into the body. The new 90 macro is OK as it does not protrude past the mount when retracted.

 

In the old days, Leica used to describe how you could stick a piece of plastic tape (from a labeller) onto the tube so it did not collapse too far. But the depth of the 50 Elmar is so short you would only get about 7mm shortening before the tube started protruding from the mount. No doubt one could go a bit further as many lenses protrude further into the chamber. The modern 50 Elmar seems to extend about 20mm back when collapsed, which is too far for my comfort level. I would only use it on an M8 with some restrictor in place.

[Shootist]

Scratch my reply

[carstenw]

All the lenses in the current lineup are fully compatible with the M8, i.e. the current 50 Elmar and the 90 Macro Elmar can both be collapsed. Several threads in the recent past had several owners confirming this. The manual is overly pessimistic.

[tbarker13]

"overly pessimistic"

Nice way to describe it.

It certainly would raise the comfort level if Leica would officially sanction the collapsing of this lens. But if users on this board have been doing it without incident, that will have to suffice.

[4season]

Mine could only be collapsed part-way before it hit the walls of the camera's interior. But I had dropped this lens years ago, and some of the metal got a little bent. Leica USA didn't replace the bent part at the time, but we'll see if they do so now that they've got the lens back for 6-bit coding. In any event, clearances are very tight at best.

[carstenw]

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The clearance with the side walls is so tight that some were not able to mount it collapsed, but had to open it, mount it, and then collapse it. Someone measured its length, and IIRC it is 1-2mm shorter than the distance to the back.