Greetings,
I just acquired a B&L Zeiss Tessar IIb "6-1/2 x 8-1/2" size barrel lens. It is of the old style, with brass finish and the manufacturer's name engraved on the aperture ring.
It is apparently the No. 8 size of the Tessar IIb, which in the 1906 B&L catalog is in fact "rated" to cover a 6-1/2" x 8-1/2" plate wide open. By 1920, the same size of this same model lens (with the same parameters) was rated to cover an 8" x 10" plate, larger yet at smaller apertures. (Marketing engineering!) This is discussed here in this thread:
http://www.largeformatphotography.in...ad.php?t=23243
The lens has serial number 1052620. Can anyone relate this to the date of manufacture of the lens?
An interesting piece of trivia is that engraved on the retaining ring of the reamost element is: "BACK." (period and all).
Thanks.
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