Fujnon W 150mm f5.6

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Collas
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Fujnon W 150mm f5.6

Post by Collas » Thu Nov 24, 2011 3:34 pm Etc/GMT-1+01:00

This lens was bought from eBay and I've just started to use it. It's very difficult to focus when wide open, with low contrast and high flare, but when stopped down to f8 I can focus it on the ground glass of the Tachihara. I've just got back from a visit to Shropshire and Herefordshire and paid a visit to Malcolm Taylor as I had concerns about the lens having a finger print etched into the front element. Malcolm took a look at it, rubbed it with his magic chammy and came to the conclusion that it was probably not the right kind of lens for a 4 x 5 camera - it could be used as a wide-angle on a larger format - and that the large image circle was causing the flare. Certainly compared to an f8 121mm Super Angulon, there was a vast difference in the sharpness on the GG.

I was expecting to have the lens and shutter serviced, the front element dismantled, polished and re-coated, but I came away with the lens (and without a large bill!) having some doubts about the lens. Should I be looking for another 150 or 180mm lens that is more suited to 4 x 5 work?

I have the following lenses - 90mm Super Angulon, 121mm Super Angulon, 150mm Fujinon W f5.6, Fujinon 250mm f6.3, and a 300mm F9 Rodenstock Rodagon.

Thanks

Nick

gari
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Re: Fujnon W 150mm f5.6

Post by gari » Thu Nov 24, 2011 4:18 pm Etc/GMT-1+01:00

Hi Nick, I just had a quick look ath the specs for the lens and the image circle is said to be 245mm for the single coated version, 224mm for the MC, not particularly large for a 4x5 lens. Fujinon list it as a 5x4/5x7 lens. Even if the IC is 245mm(no mention of what aperture that would be at) it wouldn't really cover anything larger than 5x7 I would say.

I would check to see that the cells are spaced correctly myself. sometimes a lens will come with a small spacer/washer one one or both celss in order to maintain the correct distance for the cells, dependant on the shutter they are fitted too, I have a 65mm Nikkor that has these. The slightest difference/discrepancy can make focussing impossible pretty much, as you say that when you stop down to f8 that helps, that may indicate the cells are out of sync as it were, stopping down just making it appear sharper. Not sure about the flare thing I am afraid.

Find a good flat surface such as a brick wall, with lots of texture, with lots of light, and focus it wide open. If you can't get a good focus point in these conditions there is something wrong with the lens I would say. Flat/overcast would help with the flare thing if that is an issue.
A check that it is in the correct shutter may help too, is it in a copal or compur 0?

So, original shutter? and single or multi coated as a start.
There are lots of guys here that have more knowledge than I, I am just a user I am afraid, rather than collector etc.

If it does have a larger IC than 245 let me know, I am after a WA for a 4x10 I am building.
Gari
you don't need eyes to see, you need vision!

Trevor Crone
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Re: Fujnon W 150mm f5.6

Post by Trevor Crone » Thu Nov 24, 2011 4:50 pm Etc/GMT-1+01:00

Hi Nick, I would think that etched finger print on the front element is causing issues with focusing. I have a Fujinon 135-W single coated and although prone to flare is easy to focus and tack sharp wide open.

This link may be of interest; http://www.subclub.org/fujinon/byfl.htm

Collas
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Re: Fujnon W 150mm f5.6

Post by Collas » Fri Nov 25, 2011 6:13 pm Etc/GMT-1+01:00

It looks as though it is multi-coated for the front elements, single-coated for the rears. There's no discernible serial number to be found. The outside of the front element is marked "Fujinon-W 1:56/150" and "Fuji Photo Optical Co". It comes in a Copal 0 shutter with a silver knurled shutter speed ring marked T, B and 1 to 1/500th of a second. The aperture range is from f5.6 to f64. The front element will take a 52mm filter.

So I'm rather confused about what I actually have as it doesn't seem to fit in with the information from Subclub (thanks for the link Trevor). I can focus the lens wide open, but it's not as easy as it should be with a relatively fast lens, as everything is very soft and edges are difficult to differentiate - things like branches on trees. The images I took wide-open weren't that sharp and the detail is unimpressive.

Have I bought a mongrel lens, made up of bits from two original lenses?

Nick

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Re: Fujnon W 150mm f5.6

Post by Trevor Crone » Fri Nov 25, 2011 6:28 pm Etc/GMT-1+01:00

Nick, the only 150mm lens with a 52mm front filter thread is the 150mm NW; http://www.subclub.org/fujinon/150nw56.jpg It will only have W marked on the lens, not the N.

How bad is that finger mark etched into the front element?

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Re: Fujnon W 150mm f5.6

Post by jennym » Fri Nov 25, 2011 6:33 pm Etc/GMT-1+01:00

I've used a number of different Fuji lenses and they have all been very sharp. I don't know what it might be, but it sounds to me as though you have a problem somewhere..... What was the description of the lens when you bought it? Can you get back to the person you bought it off?
All the best,

Jenny

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Re: Fujnon W 150mm f5.6

Post by gari » Fri Nov 25, 2011 6:36 pm Etc/GMT-1+01:00

Hi Nick, could be. the lens will be single OR multi- coated not AND. A picture would certainly help. The shutter sounds like an old rim set, not a problem but MC lenses usually come in a more modern shutter in my experience, making the mongrel thing more of a possibility.
Is the front cell coating a reddish colour? is the rear cell the same?
As I say, a picture speaks a thousand words.

Gari
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Collas
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Re: Fujnon W 150mm f5.6

Post by Collas » Fri Nov 25, 2011 6:47 pm Etc/GMT-1+01:00

Not excessively bad; I have to get the lens in the right position and in the right light to see it. It's certainly not as visible as the light scratches I have on a Zeiss 18mm lens for the Contax SLRs. And those haven't affected the image quality of the images taken with my AX to any noticeable degree.

Nick

Collas
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Re: Fujnon W 150mm f5.6

Post by Collas » Fri Nov 25, 2011 6:52 pm Etc/GMT-1+01:00

It's rather difficult to take a picture as the only digital camera I have is an Epson R-D1 rangefinder. I do have a good range of lenses for the Contax, including a 60mm Makro Planar, but it would take a while for me to get around to processing the images, as I need to save up the Velvia until I have sufficient film to warrant cracking open a new Tetenal E-6 kit.

I'm not being that helpful, am I? ;-)

Nick

Collas
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Re: Fujnon W 150mm f5.6

Post by Collas » Tue Nov 29, 2011 1:57 pm Etc/GMT-1+01:00

It seems as though what I have is a Fujinon NW 150mm f5.6 front cell in a Copal 0 shutter (multicoated lenses), with a single-coated rear cell, presumably from an older Fujinon 150mm lens. The give-away is the fact that there is no serial number engraved on the rim of the rear cell. This is according to some people on the LargeFormatPhotography Forum.

So, does anyone have a suitable rear cell for a Fujinon NW 150mm f5.6 lens? I'm based on the Cambridgeshire/Northamptonshire/Lincolnshire/Leicestershire/Rutland borders, so would prefer to deal with someone in the EU, as that would avoid extra costs for long distance shipping, customs charges, handling charges, etc.

Nick

Collas
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Re: Fujnon W 150mm f5.6

Post by Collas » Thu Dec 01, 2011 8:05 pm Etc/GMT-1+01:00

I've gone for another lens, this time the Fujinon-W 180mm f5.6, as that was what I wanted in the first place. Physically a bigger lens, I should get it from Germany soon.

I'm still on the hunt for a rear cell for the 150, though, as it's such a compact lens compared to the others in my set-up.

Nick

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