Variations in A36 Lens Caps

[landsknechte]

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I'm curious as to the story behind these lens caps.  Did certain lenses come stock with certain caps?  Are these representative of different eras?

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[alan mcfall]

 Yes flat caps were earlier. See Van Hasbroeck " A history of every model and accessory", page 146 for a dozen variations in the A36 cap.

[luigi bertolotti]

Are you sure that the one at left is A36 ? It resembles to me the cap for Xenon, which has a larger diameter...

[landsknechte]

5 hours ago, luigi bertolotti said:

Are you sure that the one at left is A36 ? It resembles to me the cap for Xenon, which has a larger diameter...

It's the same size as the other two.  I've got a few lenses that require that size, and the caps can be swapped between them without any issues.

[landsknechte]

16 hours ago, alan mcfall said:

 Yes flat caps were earlier. See Van Hasbroeck " A history of every model and accessory", page 146 for a dozen variations in the A36 cap.

I'll have to try to track down a copy of that one.  Does it list the dates or approximate dates when these variations were in circulation?

[willeica]

2 hours ago, landsknechte said:

I'll have to try to track down a copy of that one.  Does it list the dates or approximate dates when these variations were in circulation?

No, it is just a page with photos of caps with no details attached. I have a large number of caps which came with many different lenses. It is virtually impossible to say whether any of the caps originally came with the same lens. Only the Mountain Elmar has a truly distinctive cap because of its small size. Some people like to be certain about such matters, but I have found no consistency, even from advertisements, manuals and catalogues. Generally the very earliest caps were black. Some say that the original black caps were flat metal ones, but I have found the black plastic (bakelite?) cap on quite a few very early lenses. The chrome caps would be from 1933 or later when chrome cameras and lenses appeared. I believe that most of what I have read about early caps is just pure speculation. Ever ready cases also have a similar amount of variation. Leica rarely sought consistency in regard to smaller parts and accessories.

We have a saying where I come from that 'if the cap fits, wear it'. I believe that we should adopt the same approach with lens caps.

William

[landsknechte]

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3 hours ago, willeica said:

We have a saying where I come from that 'if the cap fits, wear it'. I believe that we should adopt the same approach with lens caps.

My inner pedant wants to at least display lenses on the shelf with the most historically appropriate cap, but if there never was enough structure to the system to begin with...

 

Thanks!

[willeica]

6 hours ago, landsknechte said:

 

My inner pedant wants to at least display lenses on the shelf with the most historically appropriate cap, but if there never was enough structure to the system to begin with...

 

Thanks!

If your inner pedant follows approximately the order which I give above, you won’t go too far wrong. I have, for example, a black metal cap that fits over the early FISON hood and it is clear what that is for. Some of my I Model As came with flat back metal caps and some came with black plastic caps and some with none at all. Early catalogues sometimes refer to a lens cap but there is no illustration. Likewise what is shown in advertisements and manuals varies. Looking for military style precision in early Leica accessories is a waste of time. A lot of aspects of the company production lines in those days were more craft- like in nature than anything else. I have discussed this with Jim Lager and he agrees generally with my conclusions.

William