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MATE thoughts....

Hey Everyone...

Stumbled upon a MATE. It has a big front rectangular hood, uncoded, and I'm not sure what version it is.

The glass looks fantastic and the lens has always intrigued me.

I know it's kinda a rare bird, but what are the pro's thoughts on this?

If it matters, I have an M8 now, but will be getting an M9 or M this spring after I get paid for some commercial work (damn slow payers... but that's for another thread :argue:).

Thanks!
 

GrahamWelland

Subscriber & Workshop Member
Easy to identify whether you have version 1 vs version 2 - how big is the filter/cap? If has a 55mm cap then it's version 1. There are some other differences too but this is the simplest way to check.
 

algrove

Well-known member
I own a 2002 model, one of the last from what I can tell. The main obstacle to this lens is F4.0. If you can live with that, go for it, but you must have a VF too, IMHO.

If you make your living with Leicas, perhaps primes would better suit your needs. Having said that probably current xx lenses are probably not up to this quality, but AF is nice to have.

I have a black M9P up for sale at $5795, 2165 actuations. I do not need 2 at this time.
 

vickko

New member
It is a nice travel lens. Performance is quite good. Yes, you have to deal with max f4, but, with good weather, it is fine.

And yes, two versions. Easiest way to tell were the filter size (E55 vs E49) and depth of field markers (no DOF for the E55 older version, three sets of DOF for the E49 newer version).

I understand there were mechanical improvements in the E49 later version.
 

wosim

New member

Double Negative

Not Available
It's a nice lens, especially for travel and when paired up with a single fast prime for low light shooting. Just don't drop it...
 

Paratom

Well-known member
I have one and used it a bit on the M8.
Optical quality allways seemed totally fine to me.
But in the end I use primes more often.
f4.0 is not slow but also not fast. And in the M system weight is not an argument to carry a zoom/tri-elmar over primes.
So it comes down to convenience to not change lenses.

Also keep in mind the 50mm of the try-elmar is a little less focal length than the 50mm primes.
 

topoxforddoc

New member
I had a V2 E49 MATE (or 3E as it was then). I bought it new and had it for about 7-8 years before I sold it. It was very nice lens. At 50 and 35, it was pretty much indistinguishable from a 50 or 35 cron. There was a tiny bit of barrel distortion at the 28 setting. Eventually I sold it as it was too slow for me. I shoot a lot in low light, so I used a 35 lux or 50 cron. If you can live with the F4 aperture then it’s great as an all round lens.

Charlie
Charlie Chan
 

wattsy

Well-known member
I had one around ten years ago. Optically, I found it very good but I was shooting slide film pretty much exclusively in those days and quickly found the f4 a limiting factor. I was also not keen on the 1m minimum focus distance which always surprises me how limiting it can feel.
 
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