Nikkor ai lenses with black numbers for feet scale

[Exopix]

I have seen a couple of Nikkor ai 35 mm lenses on Ebay where the feet scale numbers are black, and not yellow as is standard. Anybody know anything about these lenses?

 

[AgX]

Likely some user has either blackened the imperial figures or removed the respective varnish.

 

[Exopix]

Well maybe, but a little strange, I have seen that on a number of different lenses that otherwise are in really "almost mint" condition. Why would somebody bother do do it?

 

[tedr1]

Possibly the lenses have been owned by someone who inhabits "metric world" and wished to not see the scale in feet. Sometimes the engraved letters are filled with black wax crayon and this can be removed.

 

[LeftCoastKid]

"Metric World"? That would mean the entire planet excepting Liberia, Myanmar (formerly known as Burma),and...The United States.

 

[MartinCrabtree]

I'm fluent in both and reside in the USA. I seem to recall in high school learning metric as it was the coming standard. Never happened though.

 

[RalphLambrecht]

"Metric World"? That would mean the entire planet excepting Liberia, Myanmar (formerly known as Burma),and...The United States.

in other words, the real world!

 

[wyofilm]

in other words, the real world!

Makes me want to go shoot some 101.6mm x 127mm film.

 

[BrianVS]

They've changed the metric standard since I learned it. They keep changing the base from diameter of the Earth to Cesium atoms to whatever they changed it to again.
Much less stable than the nose of a dead English King.

 

[AgX]

Well maybe, but a little strange, I have seen that on a number of different lenses that otherwise are in really "almost mint" condition. Why would somebody bother do do it?

I would not do it on typical SLR lenses, as there I do not use the distance scale other than looking for the twisting direction or a rough presetting. But there are lenses with very tiny scales as the Scalematic, where even different versions of lenses existed (or two scales were offered).
With cameras for mere scale focusing though hiding one distance seems benefitial to me.

 

[blockend]

On the subject of blacked out lens markings, I have a 28mm Yashica ML with the latter part blacked out. It was new old stock and identical to my other ML (multicoated) lenses in every way. Best guess is they were sold for surveillance work, and the overstocks never used. Why the ML part was blacked out is unknown, but it was extremely cheap! It has seen lots of films through and the shots are very sharp.

 

[mweintraub]

Makes me want to go shoot some 101.6mm x 127mm film.

You're right. They should change this forum to "1.37795" Cameras and Accessories"

 

[MattKing]

Makes me want to go shoot some 101.6mm x 127mm film.

How about some quarter plate?
FWIW, I don't think 4x5 film is actually exactly 4" x 5".

 

[John Koehrer]

^^^Of course it's not it's 127X101.6mm.

 

[jim10219]

The metric system sounds all well and good until some has to figure out how many microDays equal 1/250 of a second.

 

[RalphLambrecht]

The metric system sounds all well and good until some has to figure out how many microDays equal 1/250 of a second.

actually, you could!

 

[jim10219]

actually, you could!

It's 0.047 microDays, according to Google. But are those solar days or sidereal? It didn't say. In any case, it would make sunny 16 a whole lot less fun.

As an American who studied engineering in college, I'm all for switching over to the metric system. Conversions suck. At least yards and meters are close enough that you can stop down to compensate.

 

[Theo Sulphate]

I prefer kilograms to pounds because I weigh less.

Anyone got any Nikkor tick-mark lenses?

 

[AgX]

As an American who studied engineering in college, I'm all for switching over to the metric system. Conversions suck. At least yards and meters are close enough that you can stop down to compensate.

But what lens has a distance scale in yards?