Does this lens, with the adapter shown, count as one of those nasty "pre-AI" lenses that damage some Nikon bodies, or is it safe?

-- David Flater (dave@flaterco.com), June 27, 2000

Answers

I can't tell with 100% certainty from the photo, but if it is a variation of a T-mount as I think, than it will be fine. Why don't you e-mail the seller and ask what camera he used it on. I think that lens has a manually operated aperture, so it is highly unlikely that anything on the mount is going to project out and damage the coupling on a modern camera.

-- Andrew Schank (aschank@flash.net), June 28, 2000.

I think the Peleng uses the Pentax Universal (M42) mount. Like the T-mount, there are adapters for most every common 35mm system. If you hunt around on the net, there are a few dealers who specialize in Russian/Ukrainian/Belarussian imports and have fuller specs on these items (one, I think, is www.kievcamera.com).

-- David Goldfarb (dgoldfarb@barnard.edu), June 28, 2000.

> Why don't you e-mail the seller and ask what camera he used it on.

I did, but wanted a second opinion. Most of his cameras were of the type compatible with pre-AI lenses, yet he still said some scary things about the filters "interfering with the shutter." (The _shutter_?)

Thanks, DWF

-- David Flater (dave@flaterco.com), June 28, 2000.

"filters "interfering with the shutter." (The _shutter_?)"

That would be an issue with some early (and optically superior, I might add) extreme wide angle and fisheye lenses. Those lenses have rear elements that protrude well beyond the lens mount. They requires the mirror to be locked up and a special viewfinder, attached to the flash shoe, to be used instead of the camera's own reflex finder. If the adaptor doesn't have proper spacing, or if a rear mounted filter is too thick, then rear of these lenses could well touch the shutter. But the picture on ebay doesn't seem to show a mirror-up lens.

-- Chuck (chaohui@msn.com), June 28, 2000.

Hi David, I had a look into the old Nikon table and found that: Early 8mm Nikkor can only be used with cameras which has a lockup mirror! The Nikkor 8mm f2,8 is OK with any body. The lens on the pic seems to sit on its mounting (bajonett or adaptor ring) ring. So the rear element can not be longer as the bajonett ring, it may be OK. Just tell the seller to mount it with a Nikon body. Regards, Ralf.

-- Ralf Grambrock (101.51955@germanynet.de), July 06, 2000.