Radioactive Lenses

[Mike_in_Germany]

I do enjoy adding old lenses to my collection. I have about 35 old lenses, mostly of the M42 type from the 80's and 90's. I was reading through the MFLenses.com forum and came across entry's about radioactive materials used in camera lenses. Does anybody have any information on Olympus and Zuiko lenses in this respect? After seeing the video on Youpipe I was a little unsure.

Mike

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gkh0bEdjiFY

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gkh0bEdjiFY

[Alan Clogwyn]

coooool, I think it's the coating on the front element that's responsible.

[crimbo]

I have a Zuiko 55mm f1.2 that has that yellow look, but not strongly but no way of checking it

[shenstone]

I wish I had seen this when I still had my old Zenit kit and worked in a nuclear facility

sadly on neither count am I able to check this any more

Regards
Andy

[Homer Simpson]

Same/similar effect is seen in a lump of granite for example, or the clay from around Bedford.

Shenstone where did you work?
Was it in Cardiff? I helped demolish that place

[bowtie57]

have no idea if the dose is harmful but after all this time of use you would think not. there are several lenses out there with radioactive elements. as i remember most are
large aperture. i think two in the pentax m42 mount at least one in the canon fd or
minolta mc/md and at least one in the old zenit ld(?) and the konica 57mm f1.2. the yellowing is somehow related to lack of exposure to the sun and can be cleared up on
most lenses by direct through exposure of the sun. like sitting in a window. and by most of my reading the radioactive properties are from the rare earth elements in the lens, used for low dispersion on the large aperture, and not the coatings.

just some things i have read.

larry

[shenstone]

Originally Posted by Homer Simpson

Same/similar effect is seen in a lump of granite for example, or the clay from around Bedford.

Shenstone where did you work?
Was it in Cardiff? I helped demolish that place

In fact just about everything is radioactive .. including us

It was in cardiff, but not in the old Bomb factory if that's where you're thinking of. I worked at a place that used short life isotopes in medical products and the building is still there (although decomissioned in a nuclear sense)

Regards
Andy