Repro Claron APO II (320mm)

[Lachlan 717]

There’s currently one of these listed on eBay (for a significant chunk of $$$ as well).

I can’t find anything out about this particular model, nor on a search of “Repro Claron APO II”.

Anyone know of this line of Repro Clarons?

228524
228525

[Drew Wiley]

An old process lens somebody got mounted in a Shanel shutter. Don't know why it would realistically actually fetch a high price; but that's what some sellers are fishing for these days, realistic or not. Maybe someone else knows the actual optical formula, perhaps tessar as betrayed by its asymmetrical profile; certainly not an improved plasmat like later GC's. There is no waterhouse filter slot, or second set of aperture blades, so maybe it started out in some kind of shutter, perhaps a Synchro Compur, and marketed for Linhof Technika use. The listing itself plainly states that the present Japanese shutter is aftermarket. Perhaps a dealer there did that. Doesn't look coated at all. Probably pre-60's.

[Bernice Loui]

Real question is... who might bit into this "bait"
228538

Note lack of good images of the aperture scale in the eBay listing.. why?

Full aperture on the scale of f4.5, nothing like that written on the lens barrel..
Most likely a lens cell "re-mount" job into a Shanel# 5 shutter from a 210mm f4.5 Fujinar.. watch to see if this seller list a set of 210mm f4.5 Fujinar lens cells.

Appears now is the time of odd re-mounted lenses for those new to this LF view camera stuff fishing to snag their _$_..
This marketing scam worked for 35mm and Digital, should work much the same for those new to LF view camera, "one born every minute."

Bernice

[Lachlan 717]

It still interests/concerns me that I can find nothing on this branding, let alone focal length.

[Oren Grad]

The item has been withdrawn from eBay, though it is still listed as "in stock" at the website of the seller, Jo Geier in Vienna. The listing acknowledges that the shutter is aftermarket.

Afraid I have no idea what this is. The fact that there's no serial number visible anywhere does make me wonder about the legitimacy of the branding.

[Lachlan 717]

It’s still listed on eBay. Can’t see the S/N. Can see the aperture in one image.

[Oren Grad]

It’s still listed on eBay.

OK, now I see it listed twice on US eBay.

[Dan Fromm]

It has to be a confection. There IS a 420/9 Repro Claron, it is a dialyte type.

f/3.5 is very unlikely for a process lens. The ebay listing gives a serial number, 412. This isn't in the Schneider s/n sequence. The brochure doesn't mention "APO II."

Something is wrong in ebay or with the seller's account. The seller has feedback which shows that it sold photographic equipment but the seller has no other listings. The "completed auctions" button on that page returns nothing.

Short answer, stay away.

[John Layton]

Yup...at first glance this looks way too good to be true (which it is), but in considering this further...how would it even be possible to combine the terms repro and apo with a 320mm f/3.5 optic? Sounds more like an oxymoron, Unless perhaps designed to be used wide open at a fixed reproduction ratio...like to enable old monitor screen recordings faster than their scanning rates? So maybe the "snake oil" in this case is that this optic has been mounted into a shutter with an adjustable iris? Hmmm...

[Kevin Crisp]

I have an original circa 1969 Schneider sales brochure. The available R Clarons were: 55, 135, 210, 305, 355, 420, 485 and 610. No "APO 1s," or APO 2's.

[Greg]

Probably 4 or 5 years ago I saw a quite similarly described lens up on eBay. Buy it Now price was too good to pass up on, mainly because the optic was mounted in a pristine Copal #3 shutter with mounting flange. The seller I believe found front and rear mismatching groups of elements that he was able to screw into the shutter. I was never able to use the glass, but the Copal shutter alone was worth it. In the late 1980s, I was at Lens & Repro in NYC, and Stu or Jeff Kay spend a few minutes with me showing me how to ID real Golden Dagors as opposed to Dagors that had gold dots added on to them. He told me that is quite common for someone to come into his store and try to get him to buy a "Mongrel" optic.

[Lachlan 717]

The branding is the interesting thing here.

It is branded as being a “Repro Claron APO II”, SK and “1:3.5/320”.

Doesn’t strike me as being a Frankenstein; it’s quite specific.

And it appears the correct SK font, unlike those weird Schneider knock off lenses from 10-15 years ago.

[Drew Wiley]

The posting has been corrected. It's now re-listed as f/9. If it had been f/3.5 it would be as big as a horse and not fit any kind of Shanel shutter. Probably an innocent typo.
The "Claro" series was basically a process lens marketing category, with factory shutter mounted lenses being marketed for tabletop studio applications. But these caught on for other uses two, especially the late G-Clarons which many of us prize for even infinity view camera usage. Unfortunately, vintage lens dealers like Lens & Repro and knowledgeable sales people like Geoffry are rare themselves these days. Perhaps Linhof has some historical data base of the original version in Syncho-Compur shutter, most likely.

[Oren Grad]

I'm going to add the link, as this kind of use is allowed within our guidelines ("Links to active or inactive eBay (or similar sites) listings are allowed if the purpose of the post is to discuss or ask questions about a feature or the technology used in the product."):

https://www.ebay.com/itm/144620210595

Still listed as f/3.5 because that's what the front cell has engraved on it. As Lachlan observes, the typography does look more or less Schneiderish, say '50s-'70s vintage. If I had to make a wild guess, I'd wonder whether Schneider ever OEM'd this sort of lens in barrel for use in something like copy machines. If so it wouldn't necessarily have ever shown up in catalogs aimed at photographic users. But the dimensions still seem not quite right for the FL/aperture combination.

EDIT: Went rummaging through my collection of digitized Schneider literature and re-discovered that I do have an old - I'd guess '60s vintage - catalog for the C-Claron series, lenses in barrel that were explicitly marketed for copier use. But the longest FL listed in that catalog is 240/5.6.

ANOTHER EDIT: For when the eBay listing scrolls off:

https://web.archive.org/web/20220626235035/https://www.ebay.com/itm/144620210595

[Drew Wiley]

What is going on????? Whether it's a Franken-lens or not, I can't say; it certainly is a Franken-Ad listing. It's probable that the Seller is not familiar with lenses and doesn't understand the ramifications of combined or mis-matched elements. And in that case, nor do we know the actual effective focal length, but only that of the front set of elements. Interesting; but I certainly don't need it.

[Greg]

Schneider did in fact make many optics for copy machines. I had come across two of them over the years. Both of them were most probably excellent optics for copy work, but lacked irises. The one I acquired and I thought might be an excellent optic to use on my view camera... but mounting it into a shutter with an iris was very cost prohibitive and not guaranteed... I stuck to tried and proven shutter mounted G-Clarons.