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Not as Described


mercer
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So, I was perusing eBay last weekend and found a copy of my favorite lens of all time... the Minolta MC 35mm 1.8 that was converted to EF mount. I was floored. I had sold that lens a while back because I didn't have a camera to use it on, but I really missed my Minolta lenses... especially that one. So I bid on the lens and won the auction. The seller has a very good rating and his communication was excellent but when the lens arrived this morning, it was not as described. The body was clean and the glass looked good but the aperture didn't work at all... which I was surprised by but okay with since I would rarely shoot this lens closed down... this is why you shoot with these old Minolta lenses. But then I quickly realized, that although smooth, the lens ring didn't turn to infinity and I was only able to get 4-5 feet out of her...

Ugh...

To make a long story short, I was horribly disappointed but the seller was great and we came to a mutual agreement and I kept the lens for a partial refund. I did have a couple minutes to go outside and take some shots. I did a quick Rec709 conversion and a couple exposure adjustments...

Minolta Raw.jpg

Minolta Raw Two.jpg

So, my question is... does anyone know a good Minolta lens technician? And does anybody have any eBay war stories?

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Yeah, I had one Beck 135mm f/2.8 I believe with a stuck aperture and one time a Tokina with fungal flakes. But they didn't want it back either, so got financially compensated for the biggest part. Oh well.

Well, if you're up for it, go play Victor Frankenstein and have a go at it. What it does, it doesn't seem to do half bad. Looks noice. Good luck. :grimace:

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Thanks, it’s an amazing lens, that’s why I’m so bummed by its issues.

I was half tempted to open it up before I contacted the guy but I didn’t want another Mitchell Lens B4 war story... so I waited until I spoke to the seller.

Now I’ll probably give it a go before I send it to someone else.

The focus ring hard stops at it’s nearest point... like it should, but then at about 4’ or so it has a friction stop.... so I’m hoping it wasn’t aligned properly or there is something it’s getting caught on.

The aperture I’m not too concerned about. If I can get it to work great, but what’s strange is it clicks into every stop, but no blades appear... I assume the spring wasn’t replaced or it popped off. But the good news is the glass is clean... So yeah, we’ll see.

I was always curious about that Beck lens... is it supposed to be a good performer?

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7 hours ago, tigerbengal said:

Mercer can you put a picture of the lens? A friend of mine is selling me one but I don't know if it  the same you are talking about, I have seen two types mc 35 f1.8, the old one build like a tank, and the more recent one, which one is the good one for you?

The two MC versions are optically the same lens... one would have a rubber grip (that’s the one I have) and one would have a metal, scalloped grip.

I think there’s also an MD W which may be the same optically as the MCs and then the newest, smallest version which is the plain MD version. That lens is said to be different optically but they are still supposed to be pretty similar.

29 minutes ago, Nrubloc said:

@mercer

For Minolta lens repairs you can contact the person below for an estimate. He is based in Georgia, USA and has expert experience. It has been a while, but I think he also may have been the one I had ordered parts from for a couple of rangefinder film cameras as well.

http://www.markhamaltd.com

Thank you, I’m in the US, so this is perfect. The seller told me Buchanan did the conversion, but I have a feeling he may have messed with it himself.

Either way, the lens is in good condition otherwise and well worth putting some money into it to get repaired... if the problem isn’t too obvious to me when I open it up. 

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