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Fungus on inner lenses

T

tiba

New Member
Hi all,

lately I bought a 500c/m kit via eBay. The Package came with the C 2,8/80 T* lens promised to be "without scratches and clear".

It is not clear but has fungus.

After some discussion the seller agreed it had fungus (shipped the lens back asked Hasselblad) and he offers me a price cut-off of 100 EUR (about 100 US$ I would say).

Now my question: How probable is it that the fungus gets even worse and makes the lens unusable (in the near future)? At the moment the effect should be so little that nobody would recognize it on photos taken with this lens, I guess. But when it gets worse I would be very.... angry....

Thanks for any advice!
And sorry for my bad English.

bye,
till
 
I believe fungus will continue to get worse unless stopped. I would suggest you get an estimate from someone like Jon Van Stelten (I don't have his email/URL off the top of my head). It'll probably be a few hundred dollars at least...so if I were you, I wouldn't settle for $100 if the actual cost is more, and if you can get a lense with no fungus for the same price. There should be no need to settle for less than you expected, IMO.

Regards,

Austin
 
@Tiba

Best case cleaning will stop the fungus, but normally lenses are at least "attacked". Stay away from these lenses ! My recommendation: Return the lens, you'll find hundereds of better C-Type lenses for a hundful of dollars.
 
Tiba:
as far as I know, fungus not only spreads, but can "infect" other equipment. If you also bought the 500 c/m body, I would have it thoroughly (sorgfaeltig) inspected.
Peter
 
>Fungus can often be killed by placing the lens out in full sunlight for >most of the day ( or even a couple). A short wavelength UV l& ( type >used for sterilizations) can also kill it as well. Very minor damage might >be buffed out by repair folk, but it quickly becomes permanent. The fungus >attacks the silica in the silica glass by producing hydrofluoric acid. >Keeping the lenses in a container ( say a air-tight Pelican case) with >silica gel (to drop the humidity and discourage the fungal growth) when >the lenses are not being used can assist in the long term as well.
 
Reply to: Posted by Till Baumgaertel (Tiba) on Tuesday, July 29, 2003 - 1:28 > pm:

> Now my question: How probable is it that the fungus gets even worse > and makes the lens unusable (in the near future)? At the moment the > effect should be so little that nobody would recognize it on photos > taken with this lens, I guess. But when it gets worse I would be > very.... angry....

Till, How fast fungus "grows" depends on several factors, including light, humidity, etc. It seems unclear as to whether it can be cleaned and restored completely. Some have had success, and others have found the coating damaged. Probably getting a local repairman to look at it will get you a better opinion. Best wishes, Tom C
 
Till,

contact this address and ask the Zeiss people what they think about it:

Carl Zeiss
Carl Zeiss Str. 4-54
73447 Oberkochen
Germany

From 7.30 am - 5pm German Time (-6 hours to New York time)

Helmut Bajerke
Telefon: 07364/20-3954

Thomas Caillet
Telefon: 07364/20-2529

Marion Geck
Telefon: 07364/20-4313

Service mobil: 0171/30 25 969 (expensive for intl. calls)

E-Mail: photoservice@zeiss.de

This is the photo-service department. The can help you in all questions about Zeiss lenses.

Refer to this forum and give them as much detail as possible about the condition of the lens and the camera in the e-mail.

I personally do not think that there is a way to get the fungus away, but maybe Zeiss has a special technique for it. If yes, it will be not cheap.

Fungus spreads over any other equipment which was used with it or layed in the same bag. So I would really think about giving ALL back to thge seller.

I do not think that fungus goes away with putting the lens in the sun. You maybe do not see it that much, but as the bacterias are there as soon as humidity comes back in winter, the fungus will grow again.

Dirk
 
Servus Till!

I am not very familiar with fungus, but I got another information: the old "C"-lenses cannot be repaired any longer, because Zeiss stopped production of repair parts. So if Your lens is an old C, try to return it. Only the new C Planar which was offered together with the 501c (same lens as the CF but w/o F-function) can be repaired.

Regards
Wolfgang
 
hi,the C lenses will be repairable for many years to come even as parts are no longer made.I know repair People with lots of parts in stock for the next 50 years,aside from that theRollei TLR Cameras have same 1210 Shutter parts inside. Juergen
 
>Till

Fungus can be a problem, as it apparently can leave a mark if left too long or is too bad. However, it is easily cleaned by a technician. I have had problems with fungus, perhaps from living in a hotter and wetter climate in the subtropics but have never actually had a lens permanently damaged. Very fine fungus is probably alright, but needs cleaning.

I think your seller is responsible, as he/she did claim the lens to be clear.
 
Dirk, did say everything, I can only double, what has been said: fungus will INFECT other equipment! You can isolate this lens in SILICA GEL (and stop fungus growth). It's much more cost effective to throw the lens away than to try to cure it. Rainer
 
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