80mm Fronts for Zeiss Mk.I Primes...

[Jorge Díaz-Amador]

Now that I have sorted out my workshop configuration and tooling issues, I have begun making 80mm fronts for Zeiss Mk.I prime lenses (the 35mm T1.4's and the 16mm T1.3's).

Right now I am only making the Delrin ones, but I can make aluminum ones too. AL fronts need to be anodized (much longer turn-around), are costlier, and have to be bonded with epoxy to be secure.

My new Swiss lathe produces superb results. Very tight tolerances and smooth finishes. These 80mm fronts are dimensionally identical to the actual front rings on Zeiss Mk.II primes.

The great thing about these Delrin fonts is that they are very easy to install, so the lens does not need to be sent to me. Just heat the rings in a small oven and they slip right into place. Within minutes they cool down and shrink, gripping the front of the lens firmly and evenly.

PM me if you are interested in some of these. The ones I have made now are spoken for, but I will be ordering some more raw material to make a new batch.

I can make the bores in any diameter you need for other lenses, up to about 75mm. I use special Swiss 8-jaw chucks that have very light even gripping pressure, so I can make the rings concentric even when they need to be very thin (but about 2.5mm wall thickness is the practical minimum in Delrin)

 

[Jorge Díaz-Amador]

Sorry guys, I forgot:

Price for the Delrin 80mm fronts for Zeiss S35mm Mk.I is $75.00 per item. You need four (4) for a set, the 80mm T1.4 is already has an 80mm front. So $300.00 for a set of four.

OK, to hell with that, this is a recession.

$269.00 for a set of four (10% discount), introductory recession special. Subject to change at any time due to the price of raw materials/electricity/federal tax increases, whatever, but I'll try to hold the line as long as I can.

Singles are still $75.00 each.

 

[Jorge Díaz-Amador]

Oh, I forgot as well:

Would anyone be interested in 95mm fronts for the Zeiss Mk.II Primes to match up with Ultra Primes? I had that idea a while back. It would be made of anodized aluminum and screw in place of the original 80mm front.

Just want to see if there is any interest for such a product.

 

[Jorge Díaz-Amador]

I just ordered some more Delrin so I can make more of these. Anyone needing 80mm fronts for your Zeiss 35mm HS T1.4 or the 16mm HS T1.3, PM me.

I can also make them for just about any lens, but I would need to have the lens sent in for measurement and fitting.

 

[Tony Lorentzen]

Would you be able to offer these for the ZF series.

 

[albert rudnicki]

I have 4X s16mm MKI superspeeds, that needs both front and the gear. Are you able to supply both? or you need the lens on spot?
Thanks
BTW
I think if you made them for the ZF, you would get a lot of interest.

 

[M.Halsell]

Available for the ZF series?

 

[Jorge Díaz-Amador]

I just got in the raw Delrin, enough to make several fronts/gears.

Regarding the Zeiss Mk.I S16mm: I need to check my notes to see if I have these diameters already measured. I know I've made these before, at least for the 9.5/12mm. I don't have any Mk.I S16 in stock at the moment. There are only two diameters, 9.5 & 12 and 16 & 25.

I'm going to cut some test gears in the very near future. Once the gear cutting is dialed in, I can make the focus gears. I can cut commercially available aluminum gears, but these require anodizing which adds time. They also require set screws to hold them. This is problematic on the Zeiss Mk.I due to the very thin focus scale rings. They get distorted by set screw pressure and then the lens does not rotate properly.

One possibility would be a thin Delrin ring which would be shrink-fitted to the Zeiss focus scale, and then an aluminum gear that would attach to that with set screws. This would protect the Zeiss focus scale. A multiple-pice assembly would be more costly to manufacture though.

Regarding the ZF series: I need to get my hands on a set of them to measure. Regrettably the one client I had locally that had them sold the set.:angry02: I have always liked the idea of the ZF lenses.

If anyone in the South Florida area (or reasonably close travel distance) has a full set of ZF and would be willing to come to my shop so I can take the measurements, that would be greatly appreciated.

I'm also planning to make a Nikon mount for my lens projector. I'm really looking forward to projecting these lenses.

Thanks for your interest. I'll keep this thread updated.