Reuse of old lenses
Were you previously a photgrapher and do still have attic old lenses. Now it is time to use them again! On this page you can read how to use your old lenses on your new camera.
If you have lenses with M42 or p-thread (Pentax) you can use those on your newer camera. M42 connectors/ thread was formerly one of the most usual fittings (which was designed by the German company Pentax). The fitting was designed for the mounting of different lenses. Due the WW II the company lost respect by the customers, and since then the development decreased. So if you have a camera-oldie there might be a chance that it has a M42 fitting.
De M42 connector is also known as the M42 x 1mm connector. Which means that it has a threat of 42 mm and a 1 mm pitch.
The M42 got his name in Japan by a company called Praktica. Because the M42 don’t have any special elements, it was very easy to adopt the product for many manufactures. By that, it got several names like Universal thread mount or Universal screw mount.
What lenses have an M42 mount?
There are many different manufacturers who had been working with the M42. Here are just a few:
- Zenit
- Praktica
- Pentax
- Zeiss
So how to reuse the lense?
First we need to make sure that we have:
A digital SLR
Lenses with a M42 fitting
A M42 Adapter
A M42 Adapter is available on the internet. Take a look at sites as Ebay or Amazon. If you can’t find any, just take a walk to your nearest photo-shop.
The adapter should look something like this:
The installation:
Put the red marks of the adapter and the fitting together and twist to your right until you hear a click. Now you can screw the M42 lense on the camera.
To get it off, just push the detachment button and turn the adapter anticlockwise.
Good luck! It really is not that hard. 