Military lens finally identified - Dallon

[IanG]

Earlier this year I bought a nice coated 17" f5.6 telephoto lens I paid £25 for it it's in excellent condition optically, the only identifying marks are on the lens cap WIS 8117 REF 3 17" f5.6. I found I had a brass retaining ring that fits and then made a board to use it on a Speed Graphic, Infinity focus is with the standard at the end of the retracted track bed and it'll focus down to about 8 feet.

http://lostlabours.co.uk/photography/cameras/images/dallon-tele.jpg

Initially because it's so well made and coated I'd assumed it was made by Ross but today I've identified it as a Dallmeyer 17" f5,5 Dallon, I've removed a superfluous mounting ring that was in front of the aperture diaphragm. It's never had any aperture markings on the aperture ringso I'll need to sort something out before I begin to use it.

I think it's going to be fun to use it's very bright on the focus screen and easy to focus, I plan to shoot the winter Steam Santa & Mince-pie specials on the local preserved railway, literally just down the road. A bonus is these lenses fetch high prices second-hand :D

Ian

[Pete Watkins]

Don't go photographing kids down there on the Severn Valley line, ya know what the thought police are like in this country.
See ya Sunday.
Pete

[IanG]

Don't go photographing kids down there on the Severn Valley line, ya know what the thought police are like in this country.
See ya Sunday.
Pete

I'm resurrecting an old project that I put on hold a few years ago, no people involved . . . . . . . . .

You're absence has been noted on the last few occasions :D

Ian

[Tin Can]

It will be interesting to see your results.

I have similar setup with Wollensak 15" f5.6 Tele on 4x5 Speed.

[Andrew Plume]

this 'covert' meet-up is almost certainly a Photo Fair at Wolverhampton Racecourse, not on the all weather track, that is

andrew

[Pete Watkins]

Hi Andrew, I'll e-mail tomorrow.
Ian Gawd knows why my absence has been noted, I never spend that much.
See you in Wolvo.

[IanG]

It will be interesting to see your results.

I have similar setup with Wollensak 15" f5.6 Tele on 4x5 Speed.

I would have tried the lens a lot earlier but having moved house a few months ago and not quite finished decorating or put the final touches to the new darkroom it got held up. I'm not generally a fan of long lenses in any format, I find my Nikon M 300mm f9 impractical with 5x4 (British weather), the extension needed is to long and makes the chosen camera unstable. However I have been out walking, looking, thinking and can see just how I will use this 17" lens.

Ian

[Andrew Plume]

I would have tried the lens a lot earlier but having moved house a few months ago and not quite finished decorating or put the final touches to the new darkroom it got held up. I'm not generally a fan of long lenses in any format, I find my Nikon M 300mm f9 impractical with 5x4 (British weather), the extension needed is to long and makes the chosen camera unstable. However I have been out walking, looking, thinking and can see just how I will use this 17" lens.

Ian

.......well Ian, I've always taken the line that moving house is not a reason to decorate, at all, yes, definitely not, it being a true pi*a

I didn't think that a 300mm Nikon M was that heavy, my 16 1/2" Heliar may just be

hope y'ure well

regards

andrew

[IanG]

.......well Ian, I've always taken the line that moving house is not a reason to decorate, at all, yes, definitely not, it being a true pi*a

I didn't think that a 300mm Nikon M was that heavy, my 16 1/2" Heliar may just be

hope y'ure well

regards

andrew

It's not the weight of the 300mm Nikon M it's relatively small and light, it's the need to use full bellows extension on my Wista 45DX, it's OK in good weather when you can use a fast shutter speed or there's no wind and longer shutter speeds are possible. It would be much better on a more rigid camera, I'd guess maybe on my Super Graphic or Speed/Crown Pacemaker Graphics I'd have fewer issues.

It's also about how these cameras balance on a tripod at full extension, the tripod mounds are fixed and near the camera back, this amplifies any slight movement/vibration of the front standard during exposures. The sliding block system on some US cameras like the Kodak 2d, Agfa Ansco's etc allow the camera to be better balanced, these cameras are also much more rigid but a lot heavier as a consequence.

In practical terms even though the Military 17" Dallon weighs 955g (over a kg with lens cap) it balances nicely on the Speed Graphic focused at Infinity, you could use it hand held with fast film and a fast shutter speed, that would be almost impossible with the 300mm Mikon M.

Will catch up with you & Pete sometime soon. Have a lot of brass retaining flanges to swap :D

Ian