Got a G-Claron 150/9 cells for free, front one has some marks - does it hurt? :)

[eumenius]

Hello friends,

with the aid of some good luck I've got a set of G-Claron 150/9 cells, very clean, but the front cell has some marks right on its center. I also have a Copal Press #0 to fit them in (the scales, alas, is another story - the irony is that I've got a factory set of them for Copal 0, not the Press variety). There are couple of very very minor tiny scratches in coating (filled them with black ink with permanent marker), and a smallish cloud of bad coating. Looks like the lens was put face down on something bad, or it was just improperly stored. The defective spot is visible in passing light - when I look on it on a black background of lens innards. Well, the question is simple: I know by heart that some small defects of front lens are OK while they are not dispersing too much stray light, because the front lens surface image doesn't show up focused anywhere in a final picture. Would this Claron be a fine performer, or I'm wrong? And while it's a copy lens, is its usage limited only to macro work?

The original lens that came in Claron-destined shutter was King CRT 75/3.5 lens, apparently a Tessar derivative. Is there a reason to try it as a close-up lens on 4*5? Anybody knows what was it for originally?

Cheers, and fine light - Zhenya

 

[Nick Zentena]

You've got the lens shoot some film.

http://www.schneiderkreuznach.com/foto/gcn/gcn.htm#

They sold it in shutters for normal infinity work.

 

[Capocheny]

Zhenya,

As Nick suggested... shoot some film with it and see what happens.

However, I doubt that it'll be overly problematic. That said, I would suggest you shoot with a lens shade though.

Cheers

 

[TheFlyingCamera]

Even though it is "only" a copy lens, the G-claron series is very popular for infinity work. Try it out on something in the 13x18 cm size range. You might be pleasantly surprised.

 

[jimgalli]

Zhenya, the G-Claron is a fine lens for just about everything. I doubt the defects mentioned will subtract any contrast or resolution at all. The 75 scale should be exactly 2 stops removed from what the G-Claron is. King CRT must have been a cathode ray tube camera ie. an oscilloscope camera. Couldn't hurt to try those cells on something close, but likely not color.

 

[epatsellis]

Zhenya,
I have a 201 5.6 Componon in a #1 synchro-compur that has a rather nasty chunk out of the front element, about 2 mm x 4 mm. after blacking it out with flat black paint, the only time it shows up in the image is in the shape of out of focus specular highlights. Other than that, it's a keeper. I also have a 360 5.6 Componon with some snowflake seperations, same thing.

erie