Goerz Dogmar 127mm - Any good?

Fotoguy20d · May 16, 2009

I just picked up this lens (attached to a 3x4 Speed). Is the lens any good? From what little I can find, is it a Dialyt type? What's the vintage of this lens - post-war or pre? Would it have come in the Raptar (hate those - never had one that works right) shutter originally or is that a later modification?

Just noticed the shutter says "made for kalart" - interesting.

Thanks,
Dan

Whiteymorange · May 17, 2009

The Dogmars are reputed to be pretty nice lenses. According to what is posted at cameraeccentric.com, the Goerz option is available in the 1941 catalogue, but it's missing from later price and option sheets. The Goerz catalogue available on the same site lists a 125mm lens and states that the Dogmar is actually a convertible lens, with the rear element having a focal length is 1.92X that of the whole lens and the front element at 1.52X. Might be fun to play with. The Lens Vade Mecum also lists a 125mm and says that the Dogmar was invented in about 1914.

Ian Grant · May 17, 2009

The lens number indicates it was made somewhere between 1948 and 54. The Dogmar wasn't Goerz Am Opt's best known lens that was the Dagor which has a wider field of coverage, but the Dogamar should be a good performer particularly as it should be factory coated by then.

Ian

MikeSeb · May 17, 2009

Ian Grant said:
The lens number indicates it was made somewhere between 1948 and 54.
Ian

Ian, I have a 10-3/4" Dogmar salvaged from a hundred-year-old plate camera, though it's not clear exactly the vintage of the lens. (For those interested, the APUG thread I posted on that is (there was a url link here which no longer exists). I blogged about it Dead Link Removed, also.)

Is there a place I can go to correlate lens number with lens vintage? I'm curious about my own Dogmar---which is not a convertible model, as far as I can tell.

Apologies to the OP for the hijack. Now back to your regular programming....

Ian Grant · May 17, 2009

The same information appears on various websites but this link has a few different companies Serial no's listed.

The Goerz Am. Opt. numbers aren't well catalogued and you'd have to say your lens was made sometime between 1918 &1927, sometimes shutters have serial numbers so the dates of manufacture of lenses fitted in Compur shutters can be tallied up with the lens no. I've never seen a list for Compound shutters.

Ian

JPD · May 17, 2009

The Dogmar is a derivative of the earlier Goerz Celor and Syntor. It's a dialyt and slightly unsymmetrical to allow for better corrections. I have an uncoated 6,3/135mm german Dogmar made in 1914-15 that's VERY sharp even by modern standards. I don't know if the american version is better or worse, but try it. You might be surprised.

guy1966 · Apr 3, 2010

That serial number says it came with that Rapax shutter. And yes, Kalart manufactured a Press Camera for a while.

Goerz Dogmar 127mm - Any good?

Fotoguy20d

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