about to buy this strange Componon 240 lens for my 8x10 enlarger but then I am not sure about it.
Looks to me like just half of a lens, regular Componons in that focal lenght are much bigger.
Could it be a front element alone? Or maybe a contraption for smaller formats?
Andrea,
I have both a 240 Rodagon 5.6 and a Fujinon W 6.7. I have used them both on 8X10 enlargers and I can't see a difference in the prints. The Fujinon is mounted on a Graphic board and I use it on my Toyo cameras with Graphic adapter boards. It goes on my Beseler enlarger with a 4X4 to Graphic adapter board. Perhaps I don't need the Rodagon at all, but it is a little more convenient. However, it is very useful to have an enlarging lens in a shutter for some applications and I have done so.
The whole unit should be 75mm front to back.Originally Posted by Andrea Gazzoni
And whatever the lens itself is, it's in the wrong barrel for a Componon, which is an f5.6 lens...
Edit: found the auction - it's unlikely to be similar to the contemporary or later Componons optically - to me it looks much more like a potential prototype for a Comparon 240 (possibly from an intermediate stage before it was decided that all Componons were to be 6-element?). If that's the case it might cover 5x7/ whole plate, but probably not 8x10.
Last edited by interneg; 21-Aug-2020 at 06:15. Reason: New Information
Look for this one:
I don't think that could be a Componon having a maximum aperture of f/4.5. The Comparon (Tessar formula) had a maximum aperture of f/4.5 but my one piece of old literature does not show it available as a 240 mm lens. Maximum focal length was 300 mm, next shorter was 210 mm.
David
forgot to add, it is sold as a prototype
Ah, interesting.
Also I made a mis-statement as a result of looking at my piece of Comparon literature in haste. Comparons with a focal length of 135 mm or less had a maximum aperture of f/4.5, well the 50 mm had a maximum aperture of f/4. The 150, 210 and 300 mm Comparons had a maximum aperture of f/5.6.
From ic-racer's post it looks like they later dropped the 210 and 300 mm Comparon.
David
That is a lens barrel from a f4.5 Schneider Xenar without the front element cell and maybe the rear element cell. Not a functional lens as illustrated.
It is possible to use a f4.5 xenar as an enlarging lens, it is FAR from ideal in many ways.
240mm IMO is way too short a focal length for 8x10 enlarger. Short focal lengths for 8x10 enlargers are often considered due to lack of enlarger height and space. While there are short focal length wide angle of coverage enlarging lenses for 8x10, they are not ideal in many ways.
Bernice
I have collected the old Schneider chrome barrel lenses, I have most all of them . That is not a 240mm Componon. Here is one of mine:
Schneider 240 f5.6 Componon by Nokton48, on Flickr
Wasp shaped cells very similar to the Plasmat 240mm f5.6 chrome Symmar. Excellent for enlarging or as a taking lens.
I think that is a 240mm f4.5 chrome Xenar, a good lens also, but not a Componon. I have three or four 240mm Xenars for different cameras.
For enlarging 8x10 I have the 300mm f5.6 chrome barrel Componon, and the 360mm f5.6 chrome barrel Componon.
All very usable if you can get a good one, and if it fits your intended purpose(s).
Flikr Photos Here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/18134483@N04/
“The secret of getting ahead is getting started.”
― Mark Twain
AFAIK, Componons are f 5.6 lenses, not 4.5. What does it say in the front ring? L
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