Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2003/01/30

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Subject: [Leica] 1.5/5.8cm Sonnarex
From: Marc James Small <msmall@infi.net>
Date: Thu, 30 Jan 2003 17:41:59 -0500

There are an odd family of 1.5/5.8cm lenses in Leica thread-mount.  These
are clearly of Postwar provenance and are almost certainly not true Zeiss
products, though their exact provenance remains more than a bit of a
mystery.  Most are simply marked "Sonnar" though a few are marked
"Leica-Sonnar" and two are marked "Sonnarex", an otherwise unremarked moniker.

Forty of these lenses are known to exist.  I recently acquired my third, a
"Sonnarex" bearing serial number 1498512.  Unlike my other two, which are
in shiny aluminium mounts, this one comes in a rather bronze-tinged
aluminium finish and with a completely flat front lens-ring.  Its markings
are identical to my others (f/1.5 to f/11, DOF and distance markings in
meters, a small "m" for meters instead of the large "M" used on
Soviet/Post-Soviet lenses), though my earliest lens turns clockwise for
both distance and aperture while the later two turn withershins for both.

I guess I'll have to try it on my IIIc:  I think I have some film in it at
the moment.

Marc

msmall@infi.net  FAX:  +276/343-7315
Cha robh bąs fir gun ghrąs fir!

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Replies: Reply from Jerry Lehrer <jerryleh@pacbell.net> (Re: [Leica] 1.5/5.8cm Sonnarex)
Reply from Marc James Small <msmall@infi.net> (Re: [Leica] 1.5/5.8cm Sonnarex)