2x anamorphot "B&H Kowa"

[jpolzfuss]

Hi,

I've got a 2x anamorphot from B&H that has been made Kowa. The values seem to fit the Kowa 16-F, 16-H or 8-Z:

serial number: 0678141

range: 5feet to infinity (no scale in meters)

front lens: "filter size": 68mm (no filter thread)

rear lens: filter: 52mm, visible glas: 43mm

lens' length at 5ft: 85mm

lens' length at infinity: 92mm

(all mm-values: plus/minus 2mm!)

===

According to the internet some Kowa lenses that have been sold under other names (B&H, Elmo, Singer, ...) simply have been re-labeled while others have been modified a little bit (mainly to fit certain projectors):

http://www.efilmforum.com/archive/index.php/t-4625.html says:
There are three different Bell & Howell lenses that I know of, the original Filmorama (sold for over $500 when introduced), A Kowa made 16H with a special rear barrel to match the Bell & Howell large barrel lens and the 921 which I think was first used on the JANs for the military and later for commercial use. The consumer version have a silver ring which is threaded for the B&H large barrel lens.

http://web.archive.org/web/200212051142 ... senal.html says:
So with all that into consideration, plus the fact that most widescreen Super 8mm films are printed with the aspect ratio of 2.66:1, we're going to deal with the x2 anamorphic lens. You can get this lens easily for around $100. The most familiar one is the Kowa 8Z, also known as the 16H. Now this lens was also marketed under other names, mainly to be sold with a specific projector. I see x2 anamorphic lenses that are from Bell & Howell all the time on Ebay.

In other words: I haven't got any clue whether my lens is a re-labeled one or whether it has been modified to fit a certain B&H-projector.
Any ideas/hints/info?

Jörg

[tim]

I have one of these that is used for filming: a superb lens. It is essentially the 8Z, but with a rear thread designed to fit in the B&H projection lens.

[David M. Leugers]

Yeah, this lens will simply screw on to any of the many projectors using the 52mm lens. B+H from the 500 to the 2500 series, the JAN, Kalart-Victor 90 series etc.


David M. Leugers

[ultramarine]

Yeah, this lens will simply screw on to any of the many projectors using the 52mm lens. B+H from the 500 to the 2500 series, the JAN, Kalart-Victor 90 series etc.

Can you please be more specific? I'm interested in buying one but I'm not sure if it fits to any of my projectors. Do you know for sure other projectors/lenses that are suitable for this lens?

[jpolzfuss]

I have one of these that is used for filming: a superb lens. It is essentially the 8Z, but with a rear thread designed to fit in the B&H projection lens.

Thanks. But how does the rear thread differ from the "normal 8Z"? In orther words: Can I still use a normal step-up/step-down-ring to connect it to any of my cameras? Or would I have to use a special ring for a special threading?

Jörg

[tim]

The Kowa/BH has a larger diameter thread than the straight 8Z. It is a standard 52 mm x 0.7 filter thread.