Vintage Lens Question

[Steve H]

All,
I've been hunting around for an old lens to mess with (I have been inspired by Mr. Galli and others). My requirements are that it is between 200-280mm in focal length, and have coverage for 4x5. I've been keeping a lookout on ebay, etc., but haven't come up with much that I would deem 'affordable', especially for a lens that seems to have been sitting in a pile for the last 80 years or so.
I did manage to find a petzval, but it was only 140mm in focal length. When I asked the seller if he had any others in longer focal lengths, he stated that the petzvals rairly came in a focal length much longer than 140mm, so finding one would be almost impossible. Any thoughts ? Perhaps Im just not looking in the right places ?

Thanks !

[Joe Smigiel]

...he stated that the petzvals rairly came in a focal length much longer than 140mm, so finding one would be almost impossible. Any thoughts ? Perhaps Im just not looking in the right places ?

Thanks !

Although the smaller focal lengths are more common there are plenty of longer Petzvals around. I've had two Dallmeyer 3As for example as well as a 16" and 20" Wollensak Vitaxes. I also just put an 8" Darlot on a box camera recently built and have a Dallmeyer 1A which I believe is about a 7" lens. Ebay is the place to find them though you may end up paying a premium. Look for old magic lantern projection lenses since those tend to be Petzvals (though they lack a slot for waterhouse stops).

Beware that as the fast Petzval focal lengths get larger, their size increases tremendously in order to maintain f/4 or thereabouts. You'll ned a sturdy camera with large lenboards to mount something like a 3A. I'm nervous even putting them on an 11x14 Burke and James.

Joe

[Steve Feldman]

Try a Kodak Ektar 203mm f7.7. Very sharp. Small. About $200.00 +- on ebay.

[Gordon Moat]

I managed to get a really old Zeiss Tessar 21cm f4.5 for near $10 including shipping. After cleaning the dust, it works fine. Unfortunately, it did not come with a shutter, though I managed to find another auction that had a slip-on Zeiss lens cap with felt lining that works okay. The other bad thing is the weird filter size, since I cannot seem to find any way to use filters with it.

Ciao!

Gordon Moat

[Scott Davis]

Try a Kodak Ektar 203mm f7.7. Very sharp. Small. About $200.00 +- on ebay.

Steve F-

you're missing his point in seeking out an old Petzval or similar. The Ektar 203 is such a sharp lens, and with the small maximum aperture you won't get the dramatic blurry bokeh or the field distortions an old Petzval or Rapid Rectilinear will provide.

[Jason Greenberg Motamedi]

I certainly wouldn't buy a lens from a seller who told you that Petzvals weren't commonly made longer than 140mm--this statement is sheer ignorance.

Keep on looking. There are thousands of them out there. The minimum FL you will need to illuminate 4x5 will be about 8".

[Steve H]

Gentlemen,
Thanks for your help, I'll keep the hunt alive. Im planning on taking a portrait of my grandmother (who turns 90 this year), and I don't believe my sinaron -s is quite the proper lens for the task.

[Jack Flesher]

There is a 240 Dogmar on eBay right now. Don't know the seller or anything about them but: http://cgi.ebay.com/Goerz-Berlin-240...QQcmdZViewItem

[Steve H]

Thanks Jack.
A question - Im an obvious newbie to the LF world...How do you know what construction a lens is ? For example, how would I know a 3A would be a petzval, as opposed to an rectilinear type of design ?

[John Kasaian]

How about a wolly model ending with an "ito" or "tax?"
Of course theres always Heliars.

For a lot less $$, 300mm Velostigmats are fairly common as is the Cooke series 2 Anastigmat