older Nikkor S 50mm f1.4 on a Nikon FE2

I was comparing two side by that are very good condition. I paid for under 50 bucks for a 200mm Q that is in every sense a "beater".

fstop said:

The older lenses simply don't have the advanced coatings.

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What do you mean by "advanced?"

And what effect will lack of whatever "advanced" coatings are have in practice? I.e. what does your statement mean to the OP? Are you saying he/she should not use the pre-AI glass for general purposes?

Coatings used in the 80s are certaily more advanced than what was used in the 60s.The better coating is a benefit that you don't get with a converted lens.

The ability to work with any lens is why I have FMs FEs and a F3.

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That is a quote from me earlier in this thread. I went on to explain that using a suitable camera instead of converting lenses is more economical and preserves the value of the older lenses.
I never suggested not using pre AI glass, I have time and time suggested using cameras that can utilize these lenses starting with my first post in this thread informing the gentleman that I was going to sell a body that could use those lenses.

But why use an older converted lens when you can buy an AI lens for approximatly the same as the non AI or within the total cost for a conversion.
I'll type this slower so that maybe people can understand it.
If I plan on buying a XXmm non AI lens and the same XXmm AI lens costs within the $50 that it would cost for a conversion (50 includes the conversion and shipping both ways) why would I give up the better coating and go through the trouble of shipping a lens,waiting for it to come back and have a lower value?
Forget the coating, lets consider that you buy a lens for $100 and then spend another $50 on converting it. You have $150 into it or you could have bought a an AI lens for the same or less.
Further,the non AI lenses lack the speed indexing post of factory AI lenses so if you shoot an FA converting a non AI lense really doesn't do you much good.

fstop said:

Coatings used in the 80s are certaily more advanced than what was used in the 60s.The better coating is a benefit that you don't get with a converted lens.



That is a quote from me earlier in this thread. I went on to explain that using a suitable camera instead of converting lenses is more economical and preserves the value of the older lenses.
I never suggested not using pre AI glass...

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Initially you said "the advanced," not "certai[n]ly more advanced."

As for "better," that word used without criteria attached to it carries a lot of weight, and is rarely useful. "More advanced" is really good enough.

There were some implications, via diction and tone, that pre-AI glass is unsuitable; they would not have been there with a few simple word changes that would have lent more objectivity to the statements.

Just to clear up why I am talking about this; pre-AI glass is more than technically sound enough for use today, and I would have no qualms about ever using it simply because of a technical issue related to coatings. I just wanted to clear up what might be read as an implication otherwise.

I would not convert pre-AI glass either. If the market for pre-AI bodies was much different (i.e. if they were really expensive), then maybe I would.

Strangely enough, the factory AI'd Nikkors go for more than the unaltered lenses. With respect to AIS lenses, they are no better than a factory AI lens on an F4. An F4 cannot do Program or Shutter-Priority without a chipped lens. So, that's a moot point. As a user of Nikon gear and not a collector (more of an accumulator of gear), I see no qualms modifying a Nikkor lens to work on a newer body. The only ones I won't touch are the ones that are actually collectible, like a 58/1.4 or a 50/2 Nikkor-S, etc. In other words, those lenses that weren't made for long or were so rare that they are worth more as a conversation piece than something to shoot with.

With respect to the coatings, the single coated Nikkors are actually pretty darn good. My only normal lens is an early 1969-vintage 50/2 Nikkor-H with a factory AI ring on it, but with the original prong from the original non-AI aperture ring. In fact, I would rather shoot with a Nikkor-S 50/1.4 than a Nikkor-SC 50/1.4 or some of the later versions of the same lens. Contrast seems lower on the multicoated versions. Noticed the same with the 24/2.8 Nikkor-N versus the NC version. Give me the earlier single-coated lens. Also, there were certain lenses that were only available in a non-AI version that are better than the AI versions that replaced them. Example: the 85/1.8. Was replaced with the 85/2, which is an inferior lens. Again, both of the 85/1.8's I've owned have been factory AI'd lenses. Current one is the final "K" version with the rubber focus ring and black barrel. At the moment, my 1997-vintage F4s is wearing the 50/2 H, and my F5, which was built in 2001 or so, wears the 85/1.8. My older bodies are wearing the AI and AIS lenses.

To the OP, I'd find a factory AI'd 50/1.4 Nikkor-S. KEH sells them as an AI lens, however, they are, of course, AI'd lenses. Expect to pay somewhere between $85 and $125 for a decent one. Use that on your FE2, instead of trying to use your non-AI lens.

-J