Hexar lenses

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Hexar lenses were made Konica and its predecessors from 1931. This page is on the Hexar lenses made until 1959, based on the original four-element design, and on the Tele-Hexar made during the same period.

At a later time, the company used the name Hexar instead of Hexanon for some markets, for example on rebadged Konica cameras distributed by Montgomery Ward. It would use the name again on three Hexar AR lenses for SLR cameras, and on the Hexar 35mm f/2.0 lens of the autofocus Hexar camera. All these have a very different optical design, and should be treated in separate pages.

Name and origin

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Hexar f/4.5. (Image rights)

The name Hexar is derived from the Greek radical "hexa" meaning "six". It was adopted after the character roku (六), which means "six" and is the first character of the name of Sugiura Rokuemon VI (6代杉浦六衞門).

The first Hexar lens, released in 1931, was designed by Mōri Hirō (毛利広雄), with the help of Yamada Kōgorō (山田幸五郎).[1] It was first mounted on the Tropical Lily hand camera. The design was a copy of the Tessar formula, with four elements in three groups.

The 1931 Hexar is usually described as the first Japanese camera lens commercially available. A few other Japanese lenses were actually sold before that date, such as the Cadenza soft-focus lens distributed by Asao Tenchidō from 1924. However the Hexar was indeed the first Japanese camera lens made in some quantities, and certainly the first Japanese four-element lens sold to the public.

Hexar lenses in leaf shutters

For 6.5×9cm and 8×10.5cm hand cameras

The Hexar was first made in 11.5cm and 13.5cm focal length for daimeishi (6.5×9cm) and tefuda (8×10.5cm) Lily cameras. It seems that the 11.5cm f/4.5 was quickly replaced by the 10.5cm f/4.5, a focal length which was certainly considered more usual on 6.5×9cm cameras (see Tropical Lily). The lens numbers perhaps started at 10001: one surviving example of the Hexar Ser.1 13.5cm f/4.5 has no.10039 and is considered to be one of the first produced.[2]

List of lenses:

The 10.5cm or 11.5cm lens was certainly also mounted on the regular Lily, but no surviving example has yet been found to confirm this.

For 6×9cm rollfilm cameras

3184760191_e8a2236450_m_d.jpg
Hexar Ser.1 10.5cm f/4.5 no.3149, on a Pearl. (Image rights)

The Hexar Ser.1 was offered on the Pearl 6×9cm rollfilm folder from 1936 onwards, in 10.5cm, 11.5cm and 12cm focal lengths, all f/4.5. (It seems that the 11.5cm came first, followed by the other two.)

List of lenses:

For 6×6cm TLR cameras

The Sakura-flex TLR prototypes have Hexar Ser.II 7.5cm f/3.5 taking and viewing lenses.

The Koniflex has a View Hexar 85mm f/3.0 viewing lens, and its tele attachment set has a View Tele-Hexar 135/4.

For 4.5×6cm rollfilm cameras

3176804783_69bb4e48f0_m_d.jpg 3174437822_11326744f7_m_d.jpg
Hexar 7.5cm f/4.5 lens no.38527, Durax shutter, on a Semi Pearl. Picture courtesy of Geoff Cliffe, Melbourne. (Image rights) Hexar Ser.II 7.5cm f/3.8 lens no.4154, Compur-Rapid shutter, on a Semi Pearl. Picture courtesy of R. Hunter. (Image rights)

The Hexar Ser.1 7.5cm f/4.5 was mounted on the Semi Pearl from the start of its production, at the beginning of 1938. The early examples have a chrome bezel, which was replaced by a black bezel after some time. The production started again after 1945, with Konishiroku instead of Rokuoh-sha markings.

Isolated examples of the Hexar Ser.II 7.5cm f/3.8 were mounted on Semi Pearl cameras after 1945. These were perhaps originally intended for use in a military camera with a Compur-Rapid shutter. The adaptation on Semi Pearl bodies, either with the Compur-Rapid or with the camera's regular Durax shutter, perhaps took place at the Konishiroku factory, but this was not an official version (see Semi Pearl).

From 1952, the Hexar f/4.5 lens was gradually replaced by a 75mm f/3.5 lens, which was used until 1959 on the Pearl series.

4222678292_004ce8e57a_t_d.jpg
Hexar 75mm f/3.5 scheme. (Image rights)

List of lenses:

For 4×6.5cm rollfilm cameras

The Hexar Ser.II was briefly mounted in 1932 on some Pearlette cameras, in f/6.3 maximal aperture, with a Pegasus shutter and fixed focusing. The focal length is presumably 7.5cm, but it is not engraved on the lens itself.[3]

The Hexar Ser.1 was mounted on the Luxury Pearlette released in late 1937, in f/4.5 maximum aperture, with an Apus shutter and a front-cell focusing mount.

For 3×4cm rollfilm cameras

The Hexar was made in 50mm focal length for the Baby Pearl 3×4cm folding camera. The Hexar Ser.1 50mm f/3.5 was offered from 1934 to the war, and its production was resumed after 1945. Very few examples were equipped from 1937 with f/3.8 lenses.

List of lenses (all on the Baby Pearl with Rox shutter):

  • Hexar Ser.1 50mm f/4.5
  • Hexar Ser.1 50mm f/3.8
  • Hexar Ser.II 50mm f/3.8

For 24×36mm cameras

To be continued

For military cameras

One example of the Hexar Ser.II 75mm f/3.5 is pictured in this page of the R. Konishi website on a KOO-Tiyoko shutter giving only 1/100, 1/200 and 1/400 speeds (surely made by Chiyoda Kōgaku Seikō). It was certainly mounted on some military camera, presumably for aerial use.

The Hexar Ser.II 7.5cm f/3.8 pictured in this page in a Compur-Rapid shutter was perhaps made for an aerial camera too, before it was adapted on the body of a Semi Pearl.

To be continued.

Tele-Hexar lenses in leaf shutters, for hand cameras

2218422285_eebbcf719e_m_d.jpg 2218422289_e65bcc803a_m_d.jpg
2218422293_fc29e55f54_t_d.jpg 2218422297_4593a32cb0_t_d.jpg 2218422299_d14ca6a565_t_d.jpg 2218422305_b3b91d3edc_t_d.jpg
Tele-Hexar 30cm f/6.3 no.3301 in KTI-Tiyoko shutter, with bayonet mount.
Pictures courtesy of Wenbiao Liang. (Image rights)

Tele-Hexar lenses certainly has a different formula, probably inspired by the Tele-Tessar. The Tele-Hexar 30cm f/6.3 is found in leaf shutters, certainly for use on hand cameras. Two examples have been observed in a Compur shutter, of which at least one fits the Interchangeable Lily.[4] A third example is known in a KTI-Tiyoko shutter made by Chiyoda Kōgaku Seikō (predecessor of Minolta), the same as on the Military Lily, with a bayonet mount on the rear, perhaps for the Interchangeable Lily again.[5] These lenses were perhaps made for military use only.

Hexar interchangeable lenses, for rangefinder cameras

Konishiroku made a version of the Hexar 50mm f/3.5 lens in Leica screw mount. Before that, Hexar 50mm f/3.5 enlarging lenses were modified by the Reise company for use on the viewfinder-only Chiyoca. Isolated Hexar lenses are also known in presumed Leica screw mount, such as an Hexar Ser.1 15cm f/4.5 or a Tele-Hexar 40cm f/5.6.

For a detailed description of all these, see Konishiroku lenses in Leica screw mount.

Hexar lenses in focusing mount, for strut-folding cameras

The Hexar was supplied on the Idea Spring strut-folder and its military version the Handheld Land Camera. These lenses are attached on a focusing mount, which also contains the diaphragm and has the focal length inscribed on the fixed and moving parts.

List of lenses:

Hexar barrel lenses

Early barrel lenses, for enlargers, view cameras or SLR cameras

The Hexar were also offered as barrel lenses. At an unknown date, an advertisement was offering the Hexar f/4.5 lenses in four focal lengths: 5cm (¥35), 7.5cm (¥40), 10.5cm (¥53) and 13.5cm (¥80).[6] The 10.5cm and 13.5cm were presented as suitable for general photography and for enlarging purpose, and the 5cm and 7.5cm were presented as enlarging lenses for smaller format negatives.

At least one example of the barrel Hexar Ser.1 13.5cm f/4.5 (no.12849) is known complete with its original box, inscribed Hexar 1:4.5 f=13.5cm Rokuoh-sha Tokyo MADE IN JAPAN inside the lid.[7]

Other focal lengths are reported, for use on view cameras or large format SLR cameras: 15cm, 18cm, 21cm, 25cm, 30cm and 36cm.[8] Actual examples of the Hexar Ser.1 21cm f/4.5 and Hexar Ser.1 25cm f/4.5 are confirmed to exist.[9]

It is not known if these all-purpose barrel lenses were still offered after World War II, but it is certain that the production of enlarging lenses did continue (see below).

Barrel lenses for military use

Some barrel lenses have non standard markings, presumably because they were made for military instead of commercial use. For example the terse engraving Hexar.1 4.5 25 is found on a 25cm f/4.5 lens, together with Konishiroku's cherry blossom logo and a serial number with no prefix.[10]

The Hexar Ser.1 7.5cm f/4.5 is sometimes found with no shutter and no focusing helix, in a small mount reported as 18mm diameter (probably a screw mount).[11] These were perhaps mounted on the Type 89 Machine-gun Camera made by Rokuoh-sha, which was equipped with Hexar Ser.1 7.5cm f/4.5 and 4cm f/4.5 lenses.[12] It is said that Hexar 45/2 lenses were mounted on fixed gun cameras too (see Japanese aerial cameras).

Finally, the Hexar Ser.II 75mm f/3.5 also exists in barrel mount, perhaps for military use too.[13]

Later enlarging lenses

Hexar enlarging lenses continued to be made after 1945, notably in 50mm f/3.5 and 75mm f/3.5, in various barrels.[14] As said above, some of the 50mm f/3.5 were modified by Reise for the viewfinder-only Chiyoca 35.

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ Yazawa, p.13 of Camera Collectors' News no.56. See also this page of the R. Konishi website.
  2. ↑ Example pictured in Tanaka, p.89 of Kurashikku Kamera Senka no.10.
  3. ↑ Example pictured in this page at R.Konishi Rokuoh-sha.
  4. ↑ Lens pictured in Baird, p.82, together with an Interchangeable Lily, and lens observed in an online auction.
  5. ↑ Lens pictured in this page.
  6. ↑ Advertisement reproduced in Inoue, p.128 of Kurashikku Kamera Senka no.14, and in an incomplete form in Tanaka, p.88 of Kurashikku Kamera Senka no.10.
  7. ↑ Example pictured in this page at R.Konishi Rokuoh-sha.
  8. ↑ See this page at R. Konishi Rokuoh-sha.
  9. ↑ Hexar Ser.1 21cm f/4.5 no.34701 pictured here at ksmt.com; Hexar Ser.1 25cm f/4.5 no.5259 pictured in Yazawa, p.15 of Camera Collectors' News no.56.
  10. ↑ Lens pictured in this page at R.Konishi Rokuoh-sha.
  11. ↑ Lens pictured in this page at Aho Ressha Pictorial, which reports 18mm diameter.
  12. ↑ Specifications in this page at R.Konishi Rokuoh-sha, and in Sugiyama, item 6015.
  13. ↑ Lens pictured in this page at R.Konishi Rokuoh-sha.
  14. ↑ An enlarging 50mm f/3.5 is pictured in this page at Red Book Nikkor. Enlarging 50mm f/3.5 and 75mm f/4.5 have been observed in online auctions.

Bibliography

Links

In Japanese:

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