Pricing beat-up soft focus lenses

[Tim Meisburger]

I travel a lot for business in Southeast Asia, and after a while the cities and hotels all start to look the same. Over the last few years to combat boredom between meetings I've been seeking out antique stores looking for old LF stuff, and have now accumulated a dozen or so old brass lenses. Some of them would be valuable if they were in good condition, but most are pretty beat up, I assume because they were used in these developing countries long after they would have been set aside for 35mm stuff in developed countries.

Some of them are too big or long to fit my camera and, while visiting the US at Christmas I am thinking of selling some of them to fund a new camera, but wondering how to price them given their condition. For example, I have four soft focus lenses and am thinking of selling three, but if their condition means they are not worth much, its probably better to just keep them, as I am unlikely to run across similar lenses in the future, and I may some day want to move to a bigger format They are:

- an aluminum Dallmeyer 6D. I have loosened all the elements now but one set, and I think I will be able to do that in the US where I have access to better tools, and the elements themselves are in good shape, but the soft-focus ring is stuck, and the black paint of the outside is in poor condition, and it is missing a flange.

- Voigtlander Universal Heliar 1:45./30cm. Also missing a flange, and the paint is far from perfect, but most worrying is that the lens coating is clearly missing in visible patches, Also it has some small rust spots on the diaphragm (although it works fine).

- Cooke Portrait Anastigmat No. 415841 10 ½ Inch 270mm Series II E f4.5. Outside the varnish has been rubbed off and some of the paint on trim rings and there are numerous little nicks in the brass. The knuckler is wobbly, and the aperture ring stiff. Inside there are some tiny nicks in the rear element, and the central element has patchy coating.

Would lenses like these be worth half what a excellent example would bring? Less than that? What is the best way to sell them? I would be happy to sell them on the forum, but it would seem that ebay is a better venue to establish an unknown value. I could then do a little video of each one so people could better assess their condition. Does that sound a reasonable plan? (I've never sold anything on ebay).

Advice is welcome!

Cheers, Tim

[eddie]

i see a complaining individual on ebay.....looks like it would be a perfect avenue for someone to extort you in some way.....at the very least to leave you with negative feedback.

not sure how you should price them with out seeing them to asses how bad they really are. bad glass, damage and missing flanges does not sound good.

hell, you may as well sell them on e bay.......you will g et "market price" for them....i would sell them from the USA so your location does not say BKK....i am sure a BKK location and damaged stuff will hurt you when added together.

there is a guy from india that sell some (nicer) stuff. see how he does to try and get a handle on what india and BKK may do to your asking/bidding prices.

[alex from holland]

Tim, please drop me a message at collodion-art at onsmail dot nl
your message box is full

thanks

Alex

[Tim Meisburger]

Thanks Eddie. I'll try to post some pictures or a video tomorrow if I can figure out how to do that. Alex, I cleared out my inbox.

[Tim Deming]

Quite a few desirable, but poor condition, vintage big barrel lenses have sold for lots of money recently on e-bay. Dont know why, collector mania? ignorance? In any case, list the items as "for parts, non working", post detailed pictures that show the condition, and I think you will do fine

cheers

Tim

[Tim Meisburger]

Thanks Tim. I made a video of the lenses and posted it here: http://youtu.be/pPLqKZSvk6g

Its not nice like Eddies are, but does give a better idea of the lens condition.

[taulen]

Those doesnt look that bad at all, I would have no problem buying them, if I had the money :P

[Steven Tribe]

Tim, these are absolutely acceptable.
I have seen lots of "deep storage/unloved SF" lenses in Europe in exactly the same "below average" condition - which will still give modern pictorialists wet dreams.
All aluminium alloy lenses shed their black enamel - it is not something to do with the Monsoon in SE Asia.

[Tim Meisburger]

Thanks Steven. That is good to know. When I got them they were all remarkably filthy, especially considering that in several cases the considerable energy had been expended to polish the brass. I still have not gotten the 6d completely apart yet, but getting all the components loose but one has given me confidence I can do the other as well when I have the right tools (which I think are correctly sized oil filter wrenches padded with leather).

[alex from holland]

Tim, be aware the using an oil filter can damage the glass. One part has very thin glass inside. To much pressure would crack it.
Just leave it that way. Nobody is using the sf function of a dallmeyer because it isn't a real sf function.
It just isn't worth the risk