A Thread Thread

thuggins · Feb 24, 2020

I didn't know where to post this and it is a weird question. I have a Komaflex-S and would like to be able to mount a filter on it. 37mm was too small, 39mm was too big. I managed to find a 38mm step up ring, which was not an easy task. The 38mm does not fit; it seems a tad big. I checked with a loupe to verify that it is a thread.

43.5mm was a popular size among Olympus rangefinders. Is there a 37.5mm thread? Did Kowa use some different thread form?

Oren Grad · Feb 24, 2020

First, kudos for one of the best thread titles ever.

B&H shows UV filters available by special order in 37.5mm and 37.75mm sizes:

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/search?ci=132&fct=fct_circular-sizes_27|37.5mm+fct_circular-sizes_27|37.75mm&N=4026728359&

The manufacturers must have had a reason for offering these sizes - perhaps they can tell you which camera(s) or lens(es) they think need them.

BobD · Feb 24, 2020

There are 37.5mm filters. The Olympus Ace normal lens accepts them and so does one or more of the Pentax 110 lenses. I used to own a Komaflex-S but I don't recall ever having filters for it.

thuggins · Feb 24, 2020

Oren Grad said:
First, kudos for one of the best thread titles ever.

I was going to do THREAD^2, but felt it was a bit obscure.

BobD said:
There are 37.5mm filters. The Olympus Ace normal lens accepts them

By happy coincidence I have an Ace, an Ace-E (branded as a Tower 19) and a full set of lenses. One of those has a UV filter. So you can now add the Komaflex-S to the list of cameras that use a 37.5mm filter thread. The answer was sitting right next to me; I could have saved the cost of two step up rings. In my defense, the Ace's don't get out much (and step up rings are pretty cheap).

GRHazelton · Feb 24, 2020

I have a Komaflex S which I bought new in the early 60s. A nice machine, but the auto diaphragm stopped closing in about 1966; I couldn't then afford the repair, and, with the current cost scarcity of 127 film I haven't had it repaired. I shot closeups with it using an achromat from Edmund Scientific, excellent results, but I don't remember how I mounted the lens! Superslides were awesome, especially intermixed with 35mm slides.

thuggins · Feb 24, 2020

Ross Yerkes fixed mine up and just finished up a Kowa Six. He won't be around much longer, so leverage his skills while he is. The CLA was about $140 and it works like new. Ross has his quirks, but he's a legend when it comes to Kowas.

GRHazelton · Feb 24, 2020

thuggins said:
Ross Yerkes fixed mine up and just finished up a Kowa Six. He won't be around much longer, so leverage his skills while he is. The CLA was about $140 and it works like new. Ross has his quirks, but he's a legend when it comes to Kowas.

Thanks for the repair info! I should bite the bullet and get a CLA on my Komaflex, so its no longer a shelf queen

thuggins · Feb 25, 2020

It turns out that 37.5mm rings are a heck of a lot easier to find than 38mm rings.

thuggins · Feb 29, 2020

I just got the shutter for my Graphic back and put the glass back in. It's a 127mm Kodak Ektar. The filter diameter appears to be 37mm, but the thread pitch does not seem right. Apparently there is a .5 pitch as well as a ,75 pitch. Did Kodak pick the odd size?

nosmok · Mar 2, 2020

Maybe that's why every Ektar I've seen with a filter has one of the old Series adapter rings on it-- think it's a Series V. Most of the Kodak filters I have are Series filters as well; don't think they made a ton of threaded filters that have survived.

GRHazelton · Mar 2, 2020

thuggins said:
I just got the shutter for my Graphic back and put the glass back in. It's a 127mm Kodak Ektar. The filter diameter appears to be 37mm, but the thread pitch does not seem right. Apparently there is a .5 pitch as well as a ,75 pitch. Did Kodak pick the odd size?

There were indeed different thread pitches. See what Tim at Filterfind.com can offer. He knows his stuff! The advantage of the old Series system, of course, that one set of Series filters could serve several lenses.

thuggins · Mar 2, 2020

I have a number of Kodak Series filters. As the older ones have often degraded I have also made adapters so a modern threaded filter can be attached to it. This would be a Series 6. Although I'm not opposed to using a Series filter, a threaded one would be preferable.

Thanks for the heads up on Filterfind. I'll give him a try.

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