• Members 16 posts
    April 17, 2023, 6:35 p.m.

    I have a few M42 thread mount lenses, I'm probably going to order an adapter to use them on my Z bodies ( FX and DX )
    Amazon has them from about $12.00 up to almost $70.00. Since this is really just for fun, is there any reason to not get the least expensive ? Reviews are still decent on the cheap one.

  • Members 5 posts
    April 18, 2023, 1:38 a.m.

    I bought this adapter on Aliexpress. It was pretty cheap, but I don't remember the price. It works well.

  • Members 9 posts
    April 18, 2023, 6:21 a.m.

    I have different cheap adapters (M42,LTM,PK,FD,OM) from ebay for my Z and all work good (enough) for me.

    I think the main difference is that the high priced adapters are made with greater precision, but that would only make a difference if used with a high-precision lens.

    The most important difference between various M42-adapters is: with or without flange to push the auto-aperture pin. Some lenses without A/M-switch need it, but other lenses can not used with the flange because the protruding back-side collide with it.

  • Members 6 posts
    April 18, 2023, 1:57 p.m.

    I have Beschoi M42-to-Z and Leica M-to-Z adapters that I purchased from Amazon. These are cheap and work very well, so I purchased additional ones to be able to permanently leave one on each of my vintage lenses. Really fun to shoot vintage glass on my Z bodies!

  • Members 6 posts
    April 19, 2023, 8:53 p.m.

    I've only had one bad experience with a cheap adapter. It was a Fotasy Canon FD adapter where the screws holding the front mount came off. That made me tighten all the screws on my other adapters (didn't find another loose one).

    Regarding M42, I've read that the aperture pins on some lenses may not fully depress, and some lenses have tabs that can get stuck. I currently only have one M42 lens (a Zeiss 58mm Ultron) and a Fotasy adapter that work together pretty well.

  • Members 16 posts
    April 19, 2023, 11:53 p.m.

    The Fotosay is what I'm looking at
    I have 2 M42 lenses Chinon 55mm f/1.7 and Vivitar 135mm f/2.8

  • Members 52 posts
    April 20, 2023, 12:13 a.m.

    I have Fotasy adapters for M42, Exakta and Canon FD and I can’t see how they could be made much better really. The only complaint I have with the M42 one is that it’s so thick and heavy. I guess the aluminum is worth less than the time and tool wear that would be required to make them thinner. Fit and finish is fine and I wouldn’t bother spending more.