Dating a 50mm Hektor lens

[nf3996]

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I have a 50mm f/2.5 Hektor lens and I'm curious to know when it was manufactured. It's nickel and without a serial number, and is marked 50mm not 5cm. It is standardised with a 0 beside the infinity lock (there is also a 0 on the rear of the lock itself) and rangefinder coupled. The infinity lock is at 7 o'clock and has a flat top. Do these features point to any year in particular? I've added a couple of images of the lens below.

Alan

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[jerzy]

vor 2 Stunden schrieb nf3996:

Do these features point to any year in particular?

to some extent yes. No doubt that the lens has been converted - at the time when 7 oclock mount was introduced all lenses were numbered, Hektor (and Elmar 5cm) on the black front ring. Flat button indicates conversion date as of 1932, I believe 2nd half of the year. Flat button is rare, soon was replaced with regular, domed button. Hektors with flat button may be found in SNs between 121xxx until 140xxx, but not all lenses from this period have flat button. Similarly Elmars with flat button may be found, same period of time.

How was your lens "born"? Could be it was fix mounted on IA, could be it was 11 oclock non standard or even 11 oclock standartized. Opening the lens could possibly shed some more light, but not sure.
Below Elmar flat button, non converted.

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[nf3996]

Thank you. I was beginining to wonder if it's aconversion as the lack of a serial number plus the 7 o'clock lock seemed to conflict.

I'm not sure how the lens was 'born', but I acquired it attached to a slightly more recent Leica II body. I bought the lens with the intention of using it, and it will get an outing this coming  weekend at a local historical re-enactment event.

Alan

[willeica]

I have a Hektor with a 7 O'Clock flat top infinity knob which has SN 121464, which is the range given by Jerzy above.

I also have a flat top infinity knob on an Elmar which is shown on the left in the group below. The other two are converted to 7 O'Clock Elmars and have the characteristic shorter length of such lenses. The one on the left does not have an SN, but the black lens ring might have come from an FSU lens - note the indents. I have shown these to Jerzy before.

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I hope this is not all too confusing. My surmise would be that the Hektor had been altered to 7 O'Clock during the period when the flat top infinity knob was in use, which was for a short period in 1932.

William 

 

 

[ironringer]

Interesting to see some old Hektors. Could users comment on their picture performance, compared to the common Elmar lens?

[JMF]

1 minute ago, ironringer said:

Interesting to see some old Hektors. Could users comment on their picture performance, compared to the common Elmar lens?

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Taken with a 7 o'clock standardised 5cm un-numbered Nickel Hektor wide open on a M10M .

 

[JMF]

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2 more shots , same specs as above :

 

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Best

JM

[ironringer]

Thank you Hektor users, for these excellent examples. Now I want one !

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[ALUX]

This is my Hektor f:2.5/5cm. It has no serial number and comes in a standard 7 o clock chromed housing. I guess it must also be a converted very early sample, maybe taken out of a Leica Ia?

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Here are some pictures taken with this lens in full resolution: https://flic.kr/s/aHBqjAoB9V

Edited January 17 by ALUX

[ALUX]

Actually, this is a nicer picture of it:

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[jerzy]

vor einer Stunde schrieb ALUX:

maybe taken out of a Leica Ia?

most probably yes, looks like converted postwar

[ALUX]

Thanks! But would a post war conversion not have the modern f-stops?

[jerzy]

good point! although i never spotted Hektor with modern f-stops. And in addition I made a mkistake, conversion could have been done earlier. Distance scale with markings like on your lens may be found on some wartime and early postwar Elmars. I am referring here to Elmars as few years ago I collected details of approx 500 Elmar lenses and engravings of distance scale was one of the features that I noted. What I found that markings like on your lenses are on wartime in combination with old f stops and on postwar but in combination with new f stops. 
And I spotted only one another Hektor with the same distance scale, as well 7 oclock but nickeled. No SN, lens was on IA converted to Standard

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[UliWer]

Doesn't the fact that this Hector is in chrome and not in nickel indicate a version which was not originally fixed to a IA? 

[ALUX]

vor 14 Stunden schrieb UliWer:

Doesn't the fact that this Hector is in chrome and not in nickel indicate a version which was not originally fixed to a IA? 

I don't think so. Why should anybody convert a normal coupled nickel lens into a chrome one? I guess it would have been cheaper in such a case  just exchange it at a photo store. However, once the first rangefinder coupled lenses were out, the old uncoupled lenses became undesirable and diffucult to sell. And the Hektor was certainly much more expensive than an Elmar, so it should have made a lot of sense to upgrade the barrel. Maybe the owner had meanwhile bought a chrome Leica and so he had it upgraded to chrome, because it looks better on the new body. 

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[sabears]

Interesting topic. We often talk about the old hektors... but what can we say about the last ones? Does anyone have photos of specimens with high serial numbers? Information on the latest official shipments?...

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Hallo,

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