KSX Ricoh with Leica Screwmount

[Mustafa Umut Sarac]

I have a Ricoh KSX - one of a generous apug member donated it - and I want to use it with leica screwmount lenses. I found that screwmount teles goes less than 150 dollars at usa and i want to play on this card.
How can I connect this camera to that lens ? What can be the problems ?

Best ,

Mustafa Umut Sarac

 

[Michel Hardy-Vallée]

Your camera uses a Pentax K mount, and is an SLR. You should get Pentax K mount primes, they sell for very little money these days, and are actually meant for being used on your camera. They will be as good as any Leica Screw Mount lens.

Leica screw mounts lenses are not designed for SLR cameras, and even an adapter wouldn't necessarily make them work.

 

[Mustafa Umut Sarac]

Can I use leitz lenses with feds ?

 

[Jersey Vic]

You can use Leitz lenses with the Feds and the Zorki's too.
I believe that Pentax lenses are at least as 'good' as Leica screwmount lenses-especially the teles- which are great in their own right, but not as sharp as the more modern K mount lenses.
The Fed and Zorki lenses can be very good too.

 

[Michel Hardy-Vallée]

Can I use leitz lenses with feds ?

In general, I think the answer is yes. Some more knowledgeable members might tell you which are the particular exceptions, but they are using the same mount and rangefinder coupling system. Given that the FEDs are imperfect copies of the Leica, there are occasional cases where a given lens does not work on a given body, but they are not the majority.

 

[lens_hacker]

At worst, you will have to shim the Leica lens to work with the FSU camera; or calibrate the camera's RF to coincide with the focus of the Leitz lens.

 

[Dan Fromm]

Hmm. Leica thread mount flange-to-film distance is 28.80 mm, K-mount is 45.46 mm. An LTM mount lens can't be focused to infinity on a K-mount SLR.

 

[lens_hacker]

You can adapt the K-Mount camera to use M-42 screw mount lenses, but not "most" Leica lenses. Some Leica lenses, like the 9cm Elmar and 13.5cm Hektor, have lens heads that unscrew. They can then be used with a bellows on an SLR. Or on a "hacked lens mount". It's easier to go the other way- I have a 42mm thread mount Tessar adapted to a Leica with RF coupling. Used a lens mount from a disassembled I-61L/D. But it is more trouble than it is worth. Get the Russian Leica copy.