[rollei_list] Re: Rolleiflex TLR Viewing Lenses and Nomenclature
- From: Jerry Lehrer <jerryleh@xxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: rollei_list@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Mon, 07 Mar 2005 17:22:44 -0800
Marc,
Excellent job! Worthy of printing and retaining.
Jerry
Marc James Small wrote:
> I am cross-posting this to the Rollei List and to the Zeiss Ikon
> Collectors' Group as it has some interest to many of the members of both of
> these esteemed lists.
>
> First, Frank & Heidecke and Rolleiflex only numbered viewing lenses from
> the 3.5A (Rolleiflex MX in the US) through the F models. Prewar models and
> the Postwar Automats had unnumbered viewing lenses, most of which were
> produced by the Zeiss Jena subsidiary OAS at Saalfeld, though, on most
> Prewar models, these were marked "Heidosmat-Anastigmat" together with the
> focal length, in cm, and the aperture; I will omit the citing of the focal
> length and aperture below. =20
>
> This works out as follows:
>
> Prewar 3.5 120 cameras (Standards, Automats, Standard Neu's, Rolleicords)
> generally have unnumbered viewing lenses simply marked
> "Heidosmat-Anastigmat". =20
>
> The Automat, Type 3, adopted the practice of not having any markings on the
> viewing lens from its introduction in 1939 until its demise in 1949 (the
> factory saw this as one continuous production but, in the US, Postwar
> production is generally y-clept "Automat, Type 4", a designation not
> adopted by the factory). This practice was continued with the Rolleiflex
> 3.5 (the Rolleiflex X in the US).
>
> With the Rolleiflex 3.5A (Rolleiflex MX in the US), Franke & Heidekce began
> to number its viewing lenses whether from Carl Zeiss Jena, Carl Zeiss, or
> Schneider. OAS was no longer a supplier after 1951 or so, though Jena
> continued to supply F&H up to 2.8B in 1953 and continued to supply Zeiss
> Ikon with Flektometer reflex housings and lenses for the Contax RF into the
> later 1950's. The practice of numbering the sucherobjektiv survived until
> the demise of 3.5F production at some point around 1965.
>
> All Rolleiflex T, Rollei-Weitwinkel, Tele-Rollei, and Rolleimagics had
> numbered viewing lenses. Interestingly, the viewing lenses supplied by JSK
> for the Rolleimagics were also four-element Xenars. (I would hestitantly
> propose that production economics simply made it easier and cheaper for JSK
> to crank out a double run or so of Xenars to be used both as taking and
> viewing lenses than to have to set up a special production line for a
> triplet not otherwise saleable. Why the production of the viewing lens was
> not hived off onto ISCO-G=F6ttingen, I will probably never know, as that
> subsidiary was where Schneider normally sent the simple jobs.)
>
> The Rolleiflex 2.8's are a simpler tale, as none of these existed before
> the War. The 2.8A's had either CZJ or CZ Tessar taking lenses, and had
> viewing lenses entitled "Heidoscop-Anastigmat"and, apparently, all produced
> by OAS and numbered. The 2.8B had a CZJ Biometar lens and a
> Heidosop-Anastigmat produced by CZJ. The 2.8C, D, and all E and F variants
> had Planar taking lenses produced by either CZ or JSK and viewiing lenses
> from the same manufacturer, all marked as "Heidosmat", numbered, and
> produced by the house which produced the taking lens.
>
> The GX and FX Rolleiflex cameras lack any marking on the viewing lenses
> though I understand these are triplets produced by Rolleiflex at
> Braunschweig as are the taking lenses.
>
> For the Rolleicords, the Prewar Cameras and the Postwar Rolleicord II,
> Model 4, continued marking the viewing lens only with
> "Heidoscop-Anastigmat" and without a serial number. With Model 5, the
> practice was continued with the Triotar-equipped models but the
> Xenar-equipped models lacked any markings at all, though, again, the
> viewing lenses were also four-element Xenars and not the triplets normally
> used for viewing lenses. The later Rolleicord III, IV, V, and Va, all have
> viewing lenses marked "Heidoscop-Anastigmat" or, in at least one Rolleicord
> V example (mine!) simply "Heidosmat" without numbering.
>
> Finally, for the Baby Rolleis, the practice was as follows:
>
> First and Second Prewar Models: "Heidoskop-Anastigmat" with focal length
> in cm and aperture. Produced by OAS. Unnumbered.
>
> Third and Fourth Prewar Models: "Heidoscop-Anastigmat" with focal length
> in cm and aperture. Produced by OAS. Unnumbered.
>
> Postwar Baby Grey & Baby Black "Heidoscop" with no numbers. Produced by=
> JSK.
>
> Here is a rough table of equivalents between the factory designations and
> those used by its US agents for the 1940's and 1950's 7.5cm or 75mm/f3.5
> models:
>
> Factory Designation body serial numbers US Designation
> Automat, Type III 805,000 - 999,999 Automat, Type III
> Automat, Type III 999,999- 1,099,999 Automat, Type IV
> Rolleiflex 3.5 1,100,000 - 1,168,999 Rolleiflex X
> Rolleiflex 3.5A 1,200,000 - 1,298,999 Rolleiflex MX, Type 1
> Rolleiflex 3.5A 1,401,000 - 1,427,999 Rolleiflex MX, Type 2
> Rolleiflex 3.5B 1,428,000 - 1,499,999 Rolleiflex MX-EVS, Type 1
> Rolleiflex 3.5B 1,700,000 - 1,737,999 Rolleiflex MX-EVS, Type 2
> Rolleiflex 3.5C 1,740,000 - 1,787,999 Rolleiflex 3.5E, Type 1
> Rolleiflex 3.5C 1,850,000 - 1,868,999 Rolleiflex 3.5E, Type 2
>
> If this comes through as gibberish, as I suspect it will, I can send it to
> those interested in a WordPerfect7 file.
>
> Marc
>
> msmall@xxxxxxxxxxxx=20
> Cha robh b=E0s fir gun ghr=E0s fir!
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