Help with a Leica camera and a Wollensak lens

[Kcropper2]

Well I'm hoping for some help. I am doing some research in preparation to liquidate some things of my neighbor, which my wife is guardian and POA, as she will be going to a full-time facility to handle her dimentia. I came across a sealed box with photography equipment and this appears to be the oldest. From what I can find it is a 1935 Leica I, #161135. It has a Wollensak 127mm f4.5 Raptar lense and what I do not know is what is the lense attached too? looks like an extension tube with a srew hole for? Any help would be appreciated.

 

[MattKing]

Welcome to Photrio @Kcropper2 .
We have moved your post to its very own thread, because it is much more likely to get appropriate responses.
We hope that you get the help you need.

 

[Mr Flibble]

The tube is part of the lens itself, the 127mm is a long lens.
The socket is located at the best balance point for mounting this lens+camera combination to a tripod.

Interesting to note that these lenses are somewhat uncommon and were specifically made for Leitz New York by Wollensak, when German sources were unavailable during WW2.

 

[250swb]

It's essentially a coated version of the Wollensak 127mm enlarger lens mounted on a bespoke tube to allow for use on a 35mm camera.

 

[Dan Fromm]

It's essentially a coated version of the Wollensak 127mm enlarger lens mounted on a bespoke tube to allow for use on a 35mm camera.

Are you sure that it isn't a taking lens? Wollensak began coating in 1944, there's no guarantee that the lens is coated.

 

[Ballinderry-Michael]

I'm inferring that you have unscrewed the lens from the tube. No problem with that: it's part of the design. But if you haven't tried unscrewing the tube from the camera, do that and you'll find whether it's a good, neat fit.

This lens in appearance is very like the 135mm Hektor and Elmar lenses that Leitz made. They work in much the same way and illustrations of them could help with any puzzles you have with the Raptar.

 

[mshchem]

That's pretty neat. Not sure if anyone collects these lenses. Leica people go nuts for weird things.

 

[reddesert]

In one of the OP's photos, the printing at the front of the lens shows a CW symbol, C with a W inside it, which was Wollensak's symbol for a coated lens ("Wo-Coated" or something like that).

 

[George Collier]

The Leica Forum is another global community like Photrio, but with many experts in Leica hardware. A friendly community like this one. Free membership. Give it a try for this question. This is the thread I would start with.

Leica M-A / M7 / MP and Film M

The Leica Film M Forum is dedicated to everything around the Leica M-A / M7 / MP and other Film M cameras

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