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Should I return this Summaron?


costa43

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Hi all

i purchased a Summaron recently and the description of the glass was perfect. The person selling has no idea about lenses and the internal workings etc. I’ve just received the lens and on inspection have found some nasties lurking inside. I paid a great price and until you stick a flashlight through it you cannot see anything but if it needs returning then so be it. See attached pics. Your advice is appreciated.

I've not mounted it yet as I do not have an LTM adapter with me.

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Edited by costa43
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It will cost you about $100 to have cleaned. Is it worth it? Was the price that good? 
On the other hand, I always assume that every older lens I buy will need to be cleaned, and factor that into my decision making. 

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For haze, old nice read here

"

My concern with the 3.5 is it's propensity to develop haze/fog which I understand is because of the glass used. If I found a clean,

clear sample how does one go about the prevention of haze developing?

"

...

and here for more

Edited by a.noctilux
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IMHO you should have asked pointed questions before purchasing it, often providing a little guidance to uninformed sellers can help you better evaluate the offerings. Having said that, I agree with the other posters...if the price was right, a CLA may provide you with a great lens.

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Enlarging your second picture, it looks like there's coating damage and from the pattern of the marks that look like tool marks I'd be suspicious that someone has had a go at cleaning it or removing the haze already. 

Personally I would return this lens to the vendor for a refund because quite clearly the glass is not perfect regardless of the experience of the vendor.  If elements need stripping and re-coating then you're looking ay much more cost than cleaning.

Pete.

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  • 2 weeks later...

An update. I negotiated a partial refund towards a cla and decided to keep it after these shots. Worth £180 imo.

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57 minutes ago, costa43 said:

An update. I negotiated a partial refund towards a cla and decided to keep it after these shots. Worth £180 imo.

Congrats! Did the person who carried out your CLA have anything to say with regards the condition of the optics?

Philip.

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13 minutes ago, farnz said:

That's great news, Costa! 

What are pictures into the light like?

Pete.

Hi Pete

 

some flaring and a little loss of contrast. Not sure how much the middle element condition attributes to this. If someone has experience with a clean example, I’d be grateful for input. My local lens chap said he can work with it after inspecting. Test pic below

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Edited by costa43
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7 minutes ago, costa43 said:

Hi Pete

 

some flaring and a little loss of contrast. Not sure how much the middle element condition attributes to this. If someone has experience with a clean example, I’d be grateful for input. My local lens chap said he can work with it after inspecting. Test pic below

It looks like the coating damage is producing some flare but there are those who wouldn't be unhappy with it.  The problem is that it's likely to be inconsistent under different lighting conditions so it would be difficult to predict for any given shot.

Pete.

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13 minutes ago, costa43 said:

The CLA has not been done yet. These pics are with the lens with the hazy/damaged middle element.

If I were in your shoes I'd definitely hand it over to your lens guy.

FWIW I treated my 35mm f3.5 (M) to a CLA(*) and it came back behaving like a brand-new lens.

Philip.

(*)I've owned it for over 40 years and several years ago noticed its performance wasn't quite as 'crystal' as it once had been...

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1 minute ago, pippy said:

If I were in your shoes I'd definitely hand it over to your lens guy.

FWIW I treated my 35mm f3.5 (M) to a CLA(*) and it came back behaving like a brand-new lens.

Philip.

(*)I've owned it for over 40 years and several years ago noticed its performance wasn't quite as 'crystal' as it once had been...

Thanks Philip. I will do for sure. 

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