"An eagerly awaited review of a new lens that's been generating a lot of buzz. We take an in-depth look at one of only six in the world currently. Long and short of it is - it's GOOD. For half the cost of the Noctilux, how does it compare? We'll answer that question and more."
FlyPenFly wrote:
The branding kinda seems odd to me. SLR Magic sounds like Lensbaby or something, not a premium product.
The name does seem to fly in the face of their products offered. Here's why. SLR Magic bought Noktor - which got sued over that name by another company. As for "SLR Magic" I'm not totally sure what they were thinking there, as their products are all for "anti-SLRs." I might agree that it doesn't quite inspire a luxury feel either... But if their products are all built like this lens - it will come.
Wow, it's surprising to read certain parts are held together with Loctite. Even if they're able to pack the lens better to retain RF calibration during shipping, it implies to me the lens will be fairly sensitive to calibration loss through extended real-world use. Better hope for LV in the M10 as an option.
In all fairness, the quality of the materials (barrel, optics) and performance are all very good. They do need to resolve these issues though. I know they're busy, and testing packaging. So time will tell. If this is all resolved, there's no reason this can't be a great lens.
rscheffler wrote:
Wow, it's surprising to read certain parts are held together with Loctite.
Loctite is a company, not a ”thread-locking compound” as the update states. They do make thread-locking compounds, as well as very tough glues of all sorts that is nearly impossible to disassemble. To get it right, you have to choose the right compound for the material and tolerances, which is easy to f*ck up.
I'm sure you can assemble a lens with Loctite 638 for example, and it will never, ever come apart again. I work with this stuff every day, so I know.
True, but that's being a bit pedantic, no? I'll update the update.
Anyway... They use the red stuff, not blue. So it shouldn't be coming apart short of a torch. Probably because it doesn't get a grip on the anodized aluminum.
DoubleNegative wrote:
True, but that's being a bit pedantic, no? I'll update the update.
Anyway... They use the red stuff, not blue. So it shouldn't be coming apart short of a torch. Probably because it doesn't get a grip on the anodized aluminum.
Yeah, if they used something intended for thread locking, it shouldn't stick to non-metallic surfaces. Even with the dedicated metal glues, you'll need an activator for aluminum and it migh't not work at all on an anodized surface.
Whatever. I just mean that it still can be a good design, once they find the right glue, which they obviously haven't. Yet.
Indeed... While I'd like to see screws, there's no reason the proper glue won't be just as effective. So long as it doesn't come apart on ME (service is another issue).
Interesting, thanks for the update. I think I mentioned this in the Leica thread a few months back, putting a few $k down on a lens from some relatively unknown manufacturer out of China could be risky but almost everyone else was so excited and wanted this lens ... I hope SLR Magic learns from this episode and I am sure they will improve on the construction of the next batch.
Well yes. There is a certain amount of risk involved with a new start-up, especially one that's far away for many of us. At least with Zeiss and Voigtländer as well as Leica - there's a substantial company behind the products. That's something everyone's going to have to decide for themselves.
I might point out though, that doesn't make them immune to problems. Zeiss hasn't made me particularly happy - two of my ZMs have developed "the wobble" and are way too expensive to have fixed out of warranty (by Zeiss anyway). Granted, optically - they're incredible and I have no complaints. But this shouldn't have happened in the first place.
We've carried their 50 0.95 in m4/3 and NEX mount, and several of their other lenses. They tend to be a lot like Voigtlanders in that they're simple design in heavy metal mounts, with good image quality (although the first few SLR Magic lenses tended to be more like Lensbabies, not serious lenses. The newer ones are much different.
And they a lot like Voigts in that there is not any US service to speak of. If they do break it's a really long trip and a lot of difficult communication to get a repair.
