Voigtländer Apo-Lanthar 300mm shutter

[Marco Annaratone]

Hi!

I thought this lens was normally delivered mounted on a Compur Electronic 5FS or on a Compound V shutter. I stumbled on a French catalogue on Voigtländer LF lenses from the 70s where there is a table showing shutter compatibility with the lenses in the catalogue and for the Apo-Lanthar 300mm it says: Compound IV.

Is it a mistake? Do you happen to know of an Apo-Lanthar 300mm mounted on a Compound IV?

Tnx.

Marco

[Hugo Zhang]

Must be a misprint. No way that lens can fit into a Compound IV shutter. I have an Apo-Skopar 45CM in Compound IV. But I have seen pictures of Apo-Lanthar 30cm mounted in Ilex #5 shutter.

[David Lindquist]

Was the catalogue anything like this: https://web.archive.org/web/20170123201946/http://cameraeccentric.com/html/info/voigtlander_2.html

It shows the 30 cm Apo-Lanthar in a Compound No. IV and the 30 cm Heliar in a No. V Compound. The Apo-Lanthar appears to be a bit larger physically with a stated lens hood size of 90 mm vs. 85 mm for the Heliar so from that standpoint I'd think it would also be in a No. V Compound. Maybe they did figure out how to shoe-horn it in to a No. IV, or as Hugo suggests, the No. IV is a mis-print. Last page of this catalog has a possible date code indicating 1964.

I have some Linhof literature that shows the App-Lanthars but doesn't detail the shutter sizes.

David

[Hugo Zhang]

David,

If I understand it correctly, No. IV has the fastest speed of 75 of one second and V has that of 50. I do have another lens mounted on another Compound shutter which as an opening bigger than the one with Apo-Lanthar 30cm.

Hugo

[Hugo Zhang]

Apo-Lanthar 30CM has a front diameter 90mm (outside rim to rim) and 85mm hole size into the shutter.

[Chris7521]

210730
210729
I have seen them here and there on eBay. A quick search found a few.

[Marco Annaratone]

Yes, David, the one I have is in French but it is exactly this booklet.

[Marco Annaratone]

210730
210729
I have seen them here and there on eBay. A quick search found a few.

I am not able to figure out from the pix that it is a IV. Can’t see the fastest speed. Is it a IV?

[Chris7521]

I am not able to figure out from the pix that it is a IV. Can’t see the fastest speed. Is it a IV?

Its a Compound V shutter, 1/50th

[Marco Annaratone]

My reason for asking is that I have an Apo Lanthar 300/4.5 on a Compur 5FS that has stopped working. After going through a couple of 5FS’s I gave up and my best bet is now a Compound V. These are less common than white truffles in February :-) though, especially if you want them in good working order, cosmetically ok and maybe even with a shutter scale starting with 4.5 ( but this latter I can survive without). The idea that you could use a IV was intriguing then, I have seen at least a couple of excellent ones in the past three months.

But I agree with Hugo, it must be a typo. The distance of the front cell from the shutter is such that one could conceivably machine a spacer ring that fits into the diameter of a IV, but even if this is mechanically possible I am pretty sure you lose some speed (forget f/4.5) because of the smaller diameter. And if you are unlucky you get also some serious mechanical vignetting.

I think it’s a typo.

Interesting the Ilex #5 solution. They may be not be as rare as the Compound V, but are still quite difficult to find though.

Oh, well, I will let my Lanthar take a well deserved vacation ....

[Hugo Zhang]

Well, there are some old 12" f/4.5 lenses mounted in Compound shutters that appear at ebay now and then. You have to watch and ask the sellers. Many times I get my shutters this way. Buy them and take off the lenses and put shutters into better use.

[David Lindquist]

My reason for asking is that I have an Apo Lanthar 300/4.5 on a Compur 5FS that has stopped working. After going through a couple of 5FS’s I gave up and my best bet is now a Compound V. These are less common than white truffles in February :-) though, especially if you want them in good working order, cosmetically ok and maybe even with a shutter scale starting with 4.5 ( but this latter I can survive without). The idea that you could use a IV was intriguing then, I have seen at least a couple of excellent ones in the past three months.

But I agree with Hugo, it must be a typo. The distance of the front cell from the shutter is such that one could conceivably machine a spacer ring that fits into the diameter of a IV, but even if this is mechanically possible I am pretty sure you lose some speed (forget f/4.5) because of the smaller diameter. And if you are unlucky you get also some serious mechanical vignetting.

I think it’s a typo.

Interesting the Ilex #5 solution. They may be not be as rare as the Compound V, but are still quite difficult to find though.

Oh, well, I will let my Lanthar take a well deserved vacation ....

You may know this already but just in case. The No. 5 Ilex and the No. 5 Compound are not interchangeable. The lens thread diameter on the No. 5 Ilex is described as 2.988 inches (= 75.89 mm) with a pitch of 30 threads per inch. On the No. 5 Compound the lens thread diameter is described as 82.77 mm with a pitch of 40 threads per inch. Source for the Ilex information is the SK Grimes website, for the Compound shutter, a repair manual originally from Compur Werk, available online (at least the last time I checked).

David