Ross No.10 WA Symmetrical 16 in.

[Proteus617]

Greetings! I picked up one of these is a junk shop over the weekend and know very little about it. Looks like a symmetrical double with rotating stops F16-64. Plenty of junk and haze inside, a nice little gouge on the periphery of the front element and the slightest hint of separation (the slight ghost of a beautiful rainbow) right across the face. That's honest and harsh, but "Ex-" in EPay terms. I've used worse and not complained. Basically the big brother of this (http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&item=270011616853) (but not as pretty).

I've done a bit of research and found out that WA symmetricals were made quite a few companies and they aren't nearly as desirable as users as opposed to some of the other big brass designs of the era.

What do I do with this thing? Currently my largest camera is a 6x9cm. I'm thinking about building a box and sticking it on the front to play for a while then trading it out to someone who will get some use out of it. Any idea of it's value? I realize the pricing of the above auction is on the very far side of delusional. Any hints on how to crack it open so I can clean the internal surfaces?

Regards,
Matthew

[goamules]

I've bought several similar WA lenses from Dallmeyer and Wollensak. I've never paid more than about $100, so that one you link to needs to drop a few zeros. But they are nice, sharp lenses for WA work.

As to cleaning, like most old ones you just unscrew things. I found one element that was difficult to unscrew on one lens, but there was room to very carefully clean from the other side, through the aperture. Separation you can't do anything about, at least not cheaply.

Good luck.

[Proteus617]

Thanks! The separation is VERY mild. As for the value, I paid very little. It just looks too cool to be a paperweight, so I'm hoping to get some use out of it or pass it along to someone who will.