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Carl Zeiss S35mm Format T1.4 Full Set - Overhauled

J

Jorge Díaz-Amador

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I have just finished a very extensive complete overhaul on a set of Carl Zeiss Super Speed, first generation. (I call them Mk. I, but on the west coast the call them B-Speeds).

Price $34,500.- USD / €27,625.- EUR

Incudes:

Distagon f1.2/18mm
Distagon f1.2/25mm
Distagon f1.2/35mm
Planar f1.3/50mm
Planar f1.4/85mm

Max aperture: T1.4
Minimum aperture T16

PL Mounts, Delrin focus gears, Delrin 80mm fronts. Near perfect glass. NO fungus NO glass scratches NO image shift during focus.

These lenses were originally used by a company that did stop-motion animation. They did not experience the constant focusing that tends to create wear in the very fine focus threads. When I took these lenses apart, I was surprised to see that they did not appear to have ever been disassembled before. These lenses are in the best mechanical condition that I have ever seen for this generation of Super Speeds.

All the lenses are FULLY overhauled. Each has been completely disassembled, cleaned (mechanics and glass), and re-lubricated. The focus threads on all the lenses except the 85mm have been treated with Emralon (Teflon coating that reduces image shift during focusing and prevents wear long-term). The 85mm was already so tight that it did not need (and could not be) treated with Emralon. The other lenses only needed see-through thin coatings to take up the wear.

These lenses now have the smooth, heavy focus feel of a new Zeiss prime lens (and I know what that feels like, not just from Zeiss factory training, but because I also bought the last set of S16 T1.3's from ARRI USA). The focus feels much like panning a good fluid head. Nothing like the loose, inconsistent feel of most used T1.4 primes.

I'm sure I will get some complaints on the price, and if you look around (probably world-wide) you will probably find a cheaper set. But these lenses are VERY labor intensive to service. The cost of a full overhaul can reach $1000.- USD per lens, and that does not include the cost of replacing or reconditioning lens elements.

You might be looking at up to $5000.- USD to get a set of worn T1.4's up to the condition of these lenses, even if you get so lucky that you don't have to recondition or replace any glass (several hundred per element). That can be the hidden price of going with the cheaper set.

I am selling these for my customer. I got paid for the service and I am not making a commission on the sale (you will be paying the owner directly).

I will post some photos soon...
 
Photos:

Photos:

Here is a photo of the set:

NOTE: In this photo, the 80 mm fronts have not been installed yet. The engraving on the name rings is painted "Master Prime Gray" (to reduce reflections in filters) but it looks white in this photo.
 
Philipp,

Sorry, I can't split up the set. I did have an 18mm T1.4 and 35mm T1.4 available, both were sold at the end of last year.

It seems I always get requests for the same item once I have sold it. I do have another customer that has a partial set and may consider selling. Which focal lengths were you looking for?

The lenses have a case but it's very old-school (hammered aluminum type). I'm sure I can come up with something that protects better based on the buyer's requirements.
 
Valde said:
I'm looking for a 18mm T1.4, if your customer with a partial set has one ... thanks
Click to expand...

Sorry... I sold my 18mm T1.4 late last year, and I know my customer does not have that focal length. I had heavily advertised the 18mm T1.4 here on reduser, but as always, no one is interested until someone else buys the lens, then everyone wants it. I can't tell you how many times that has happened to me over the last 10 years. And I never have another one to sell.

I won't be surprised if I get multiple offers for the T1.4 35 HS (Super Speed) set after I sell it.

The selling price for the T1.4 35 HS set is based on advice I got from a prominent industry professional who shall remain nameless. However, if someone here wants to make a slightly lower offer and has money ready to go now, they should get in touch with me. I will forward all offers to my customer and he shall decide which one to accept. I'm not setting the price.

As they say on eBay... Bid now before it's gone.
 
BTW... The focus gears on these lenses are the black Delrin ones from Duclos Lenses. I am gearing up to make those gears in-house soon. At the moment, I can make the Delrin 80mm fronts.

I am in development of a new style PL mount for the Zeiss Mk. I primes. This would be a replacement mount, not an adapter, that would be different and superior in design to anything available at the moment.
 
what is the difference btwn the Mark I/II/III and I assume these have the PL mount and fit the Red as well as 16 and 35MM film cameras. I'm very interested and can purchase right away if everything is in order.
 
Ian Gelfand said:
what is the difference btwn the Mark I/II/III and I assume these have the PL mount and fit the Red as well as 16 and 35MM film cameras. I'm very interested and can purchase right away if everything is in order.
Click to expand...

Ian,

I have written an article about this on my website:

http://www.cinematechnic.com/resources/zeiss_super_speed_f1,2_lenses.html

It is the best source of info on these lenses on the internet (hopefully it hasn't been blatantly plagiarized or outright stolen like a lot of my other work).

The set I am selling looks almost identical to the first set pictured at the top of the page. The biggest difference is that the focus gears on the set I am selling now are black delrin, the pictured set has anodized aluminum clamp-on focus gears.

The old aluminum focus gears were a pain because they sat too close to the PL mount, making it very difficult to get the follow focus gear engaged. This was the cause of a lot of lost time on set.

The delrin focus gears sit closer to the front of the lens, allowing full visibility of both the English and metric focus scales.

Please PM me if you need more info. I prefer not to post my contact details here because of bots and spam.
 
PM sent.

I will be posting some detailed information comparing the Mk.I and Mk.II Super Speeds soon...
 
I've posted a very detailed and informative post on Carl Zeiss Super Speed pricing, both historical and corrected for inflation. It's a must-read if you can't understand why the price of these used lenses is so high at the moment (and especially if you think it's a scam created by the dreaded International Lens Cartel).

http://reduser.net/forum/showthread.php?t=26435
 
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