A while back I acquired a new (never mounted or displayed) Planar 1.4/85 MMJ. Unfortunately, I'm having to sell it to cover some costs, and am curious roughly what would be a good asking price for it. I have not seen one sell on eBay or in Japan for a good while.

One thing I'll note about it is that it's probably the earliest MMJ batch made, in ~1986. The box even says "Carl Zeiss West Germany", though the serial number sticker on it has a "J" appended on the end, and the lens says "Made in Japan". I'm not sure if that's A Good Thing(tm) or not, but it was amusing.

Thoughts, anyone?

KEH had a LN- a few weeks back for $565. If you've ever bought from KEH, then you know LN- is Like New with maybe some very (almost imperceptible) handling marks. That didn't come with a box, but most buyers who are concerned about a box are the collectors, and they want the Made In Germany lenses.

Prices have dropped on the lens quite a bit in the last few months.KEH had a half dozen of them recently, but now they are down to one EX German model for $484. They always list the AEG for more than the MMJ's. Not sure exactly why.

Your lens was probably made in Japan from parts sent from Germany. Many people prefer the AE versions (and hence the higher price at KEH), as they say "Made in Germany". For most Contax Zeiss lenses, there is no significant difference between the AE and MM versions; however, the 85/1.4 from Japan is supposed to be sligthly better optically than its original counterpart. I can't remember where I read this, but it was one of the reasons that I went for the MM version for myself.

The 85/1.4 still sells frequently on eBay, but the prices have quite a spread. I don't keep separate figures for MM vs AE in the Lens price database, Lens$db, but the most recent seven sales for [M-] to [LN] condition Contax Carl Zeiss Planar T* 85mm f/1.4 are: 490,739,650,521,766,549,550 ($US), all sales were in the past 5 months.

jcolwell wrote:

The 85/1.4 still sells frequently on eBay, but the prices have quite a spread. I don't keep separate figures for MM vs AE in the Lens price database, Lens$db, but the most recent seven sales for [M-] to [LN] condition Contax Carl Zeiss Planar T* 85mm f/1.4 are: 490,739,650,521,766,549,550 ($US), all sales were in the past 5 months.

I've seen that too. Seems many Ebayer's aren't aware of KEH prices. MUch more reliable to deal with too (than Ebay).

Also something to always be aware of when looking at ebay sale prices from a database is exactly what sold WITH the lens. Sometimes the lens will include the expensive Contax adapters and hoods and sometimes even filters.Those won't show in a price database listing.

The Lens price database, Lens$db, generally doesn't include items with significant accessories that add more than about 10% to the value.

pdmphoto wrote:
Also something to always be aware of when looking at ebay sale prices from a database is exactly what sold WITH the lens. Sometimes the lens will include the expensive Contax adapters and hoods and sometimes even filters.Those won't show in a price database listing.

Ahh, good point. In this case there's also a 67/86 Step-up Ring, Metal Hood 4, and Metal Cap K-84, all NIB.

At this point, all I can suggest is "try it, at least". The fact that it is NIB *but* MMJ and NIB buyers (except for you) are collectors looking for "G" lenses, the chances are you won't be taking too much of a hit by confessing to the potential buyer that you mounted it twice (or so). I know you have not mounted it yet, but I have no idea *how* you have not mounted it yet. What can you lose? A couple hundred? Shit, I've blown 10 times that in one stupid night. Live a little, buddy. In the end, even if you decide to let it go anyway, you'll know you tried it, at least. Only *your* images will tell you if you like it.

That's a good point.

I think I'll probably end up mounting it, and testing the lens, on a FF body.

What worries me is that I'll end up liking the lens enough to keep it. ;)

i haven't been able to load the KEH page in a week : (

it kinda works through a proxy though.

loudtiger wrote:
i haven't been able to load the KEH page in a week : (

it kinda works through a proxy though.

Your wife must have blocked it on your firewall

no wife : )