Doubts about Schneider Tele-Xenar 360mm 5.5

[afotandolaciudad]

Hello

I've just bought one of these lenses. Serial number tell it is from 1954.

Shutter is copal 3 but it isn't its original shutter (max aperture is 4.5 instead of 5.5. See pic #1. I guess this can be corrected with the new focal lenght and shutter data.

But I'm worried about cells separation. I need to know how it is mounted other lenses like mine. I have several brochures about tele Xenar lenses. They say that total lenght (h1) is 110mm. Mine is 102.5mm (!). And rear leght to seat is 27.1mm. Mine is 22.3mm. See pics #2 and #3.

I wonder if can be different versions of this lens. I have different data on angle and IC as you can see in pics #4 and #5. One says 32 degrees and 206mm. Other says 35 degrees and 230mm. What a mess!

Csn somebody give me advice on this. Maybe I have to ad shims to get the correct distance...

[afotandolaciudad]

Pic #5

[Leszek Vogt]

Have you to had a chance to install this lens on the camera ? Just measured mine (w/o calipers) and it's very close to 108mm. My shutter (Copal No.3) is from F5.5 to F32, however when I checked it physically, it opens up little more and closes more beyond F32....there is that. Part of this conundrum is that Copal No. 3 could also be 3S or any number of imposter shutters, where the thread can be different....and not annotated properly. There was a thread on this some time ago....no solid conclusions. Hope this is of some help.

Les

[afotandolaciudad]

Thanks for you reply.

So your h1 (overall length) is 108 (aprox). Mine is 102.5mm and a friend's copy is 109.6mm.

How about h2 (shitter seat to lens rear). Mine is 22.3mm. My friend has 19.22mm. Brochure says 27.1mm (pic #3) and other brochure says 30.8mm (pic #5). What's yours? I guess the fifth number here.

[Bernice Loui]

Copal# 3S shutters were not made circa 1954. This means the 360mm Tele Xenar lens cells were re-mounted into this Copal# 3S shutter. Given this, the original lens cell setting has been lost over those decades. The only way to have some assurance of proper lens cell fitment to this Copal# 3S shutter is for a qualified optical specialist to check and re-set up the lens cell set to this shutter.

Anything less than this cannot assure proper optical performance. Guesses on "length and etc.. are of little value other than entertainment value as the tolerances involved are in the 0.001" or 0.04mm range.

Give up any expectations this 360mm Tele Xenar will have the optical performance it was originally designed-produced with.




Bernice

[Tin Can]

Bernice is right

It is hard to trust any old lense now and they are all old

I will try to remember to check mine tomorrow

Now I need to send myself an email delivered in the morning...

Mine is definitely original and works

[abruzzi]

I'll add that I'd be surprised if there weren't multiple version of this lens. I have a 360mm Tele-Arton and a 270mm Tele-Arton, and when I got them, I was looking things up and found evidence of some significantly different versions. Even if they are not opticallly different, the size of the front and rear groups are differen't making a simple measurement a little difficult to say much about. For example, my 270mm has a small front group and huge rear group like this:



But others have a huge front group and a small rear group:



So the point is, don't necessarily trust the spec sheet you have. A quick google showed me at least two physical versions--one with a tapered front barrel and one with a straight front barrel. The straight barrel looks newer. I see multiple different ones witha tapered barrel, but those may be cosmetic changes. I also see a very long M42 one, but that doesn't count.

[Leszek Vogt]

Thanks for you reply.

So your h1 (overall length) is 108 (aprox). Mine is 102.5mm and a friend's copy is 109.6mm.

How about h2 (shitter seat to lens rear). Mine is 22.3mm. My friend has 19.22mm. Brochure says 27.1mm (pic #3) and other brochure says 30.8mm (pic #5). What's yours? I guess the fifth number here.

Since I have a lens board in the way, my h2 reads as around 20.5mm....again, no calipers to read this more accurately. I had this optic on the camera, so I can verify that it functions accordingly.

Les

[Paul Ewins]

That era of Tele-Xenar would have been in a Compound III/7, which is the same as the 300/5.6 Symmar. Overall length is given as 110mm or 111mm in a few different brochures from the 50s and 60s. The tube length of a Compound III/7 is 37 mm while the thickness of a Copal 3 is 31.5mm so there is a potential discrepancy right there.

[Ari]

Have you tested by exposing any film using this lens? Or focusing it on a ground glass?
Maybe it's fine.