LTM / M39 mount question

[69xchange]

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Looking to buy a M39 / LTM Leica summilux pre asph v3.

Just wondering if anyone knows this is normal for this Leica lens to be misaligned on a native screw mount camera?  (See picture below for example, centre marking is more towards 1-o clock when looking at camera with lens pointed towards you).
 

I know for adapters from LTM > M, it can be misaligned, but for native LTM, would it be possible for the centre marking to to not be at 12 o clock position and slightly off??
 

I have 35mm cron apsh v1 and 50mm cron v4/v5 (both in LTM version and they are both perfectly at 12 o clock when mounted on a native screw mount body such as my Canon P. Does anyone know if this varies from copy to copy?

 

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[UliWer]

I don't know the Summilux with LTM but it is normal that  LTM lenses are not exactly aligned at a 12-o-clock position. This is no fault but was done on purpose so that you could easily read the scale even when a viewfinder like the VIDOM or VIOOH with a long "nose" was on the camera which would have covered the scale if it was exactly aligned. This is true not only for Leica lenses but also for old Canon LTM-lenses and even for brand new Voigtländer lenses of 28 and 40mm with LTM. I'd even say your Summilux is not misaligned enough for the purpose though this insufficient misalignment may be caused by the fact that it is no "proper" LTM lens. 

Here is an illustration of what I tried to describe: 

 

Edited March 7, 2024 by UliWer

[250swb]

If you scroll down this thread you'll see the LTM Summilux mounted on a body and it's also off centre as it's designed to be

https://www.l-camera-forum.com/topic/159459-summilux-50mm-screw-mount-vs-ltm/

 

Edited March 8, 2024 by 250swb

[williamj]

Fwiw I just checked my lenses on my Leica iiif and they are not aligned to the 12 o’clock position either on the native LTM mount or via the adapter onto the M mount. 

[spydrxx]

IMHO if the lenses align with 12 o'clock, that's a bonus. Most of mine (Canon, Leica, CV) vary by camera.

[69xchange]

Thanks for the replies guys! This gives me a better peace of mind that it isnt a bad copy!

[luigi bertolotti]

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10 hours ago, 69xchange said:

Thanks for the replies guys! This gives me a better peace of mind that it isnt a bad copy!

Well.. it's very probable it is not a "bad copy".. but this does not mean that some little adjustment could be necessary... after all is a f 1.4 lens mounted on a very very old body with a RF mechanism built when 1,4 aperture simply didn't exist (1,5 was not so far, anyway... 😁) ; if you plan to use it wide open maybe a control/adjustment by a good lab could be useful.

 

[qqphot]

Here is a 50mm Summicron (#11619), rather than Summilux (#11621), but from the same set of "modern" LTM lenses from 1999, on an M2, a IIIf, and a IIIg. It is offset slightly left on each of them, by slightly varying amounts.   It focuses quite accurately on all three cameras, which I regard as somewhat miraculous.

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Edited March 9, 2024 by qqphot

[69xchange]

16 minutes ago, qqphot said:

Here is a 50mm Summicron, rather than Summilux, but from the same set of "modern" LTM lenses from 1999, on an M2, a IIIf, and a IIIg. It is offset slightly left on each of them, by slightly varying amounts.   It focuses quite accurately on all three cameras, which I regard as somewhat miraculous.

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Wow, thanks for the comparison pictures. Out of curiosity, aryou using the Leica adapter??

[qqphot]

27 minutes ago, 69xchange said:

Wow, thanks for the comparison pictures. Out of curiosity, aryou using the Leica adapter??

Yes, it's as far as I know the "official" one.

I haven't tried it extensively with other ones because I don't want to discover discrepancies I'd then feel compelled to address.

 

 

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Edited March 9, 2024 by qqphot