Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 1996/11/28
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]Chris Fortunko has commented on the decreasing number of aperture blades in Leitz/Leica lenses in recent years. I suspect two factors -- reducing production costs while designing the lens with extreme precision to minimize the adverse effects caused by the smaller number of blades -- have combined to bring this about. In a similar vein, Wartime lenses have few blades, too, this having been caused by the extreme scarcity of the sort of fine steel used in these blades. Nonetheless, the Summitar -- the star lens of the Leica line-up -- had thirteen blades or so in its aperture assembly, though this was reduced to six by 1950 (or so the books say, but my '49 739077 also has six). At the very end of production, from '51 on, the aperture assembly is back to eleven blades, but by now doubled, so that the aperture assembly looked like a process lens of some sort. I don't know what this means! Hassie lenses and most Rollei TLR lenses have cheerfully lived with five blades for decades. Marc msmall@roanoke.infi.net FAX: +540/343-7315 Cha robh bas fir gun ghras fir!