Compatibility issue

Peeb · Mar 10, 2020

My vintage nikon 105 f/2.5 mounts great on my FTZ adapter with my Z6, but it won't mount on my Nikon FE film camera. What gives?

Here is the lens:

Derrel · Mar 10, 2020

On the Nikon FE you need to press that little tiny chrome button and flip up the AI coupling tab. Your lens is a "pre AI" and the aperture ring is "fat"... what many people call a "fat barrel lens". Lenses of this type are not supposed to be mounted on Ai- type cameras,unless they have the AI flip up tab such as on the F3 and the FE.

If you really want to use this lens much, you might wish to have it Ai- modified.

cgw · Mar 10, 2020

Yup. You're good to go. Eons ago Nikon offered "Ai kits" that swapped out the fat solid aperture rings for notched ones that cleared and communicated set aperture thru the Ai tab. Lots of "Ai" solutions out there ranging from rare pricey original kits to services that Dremel-out notches(ugly IMHO) to similar DIY home remedies. Nice lens.

Derrel · Mar 10, 2020

I did two Ai conversions back in the 1980's, using a file....talk about ugly...

Robert White was the guy who used to do a lot of AI conversions. I have not kept up on this and in the past 15 years he might have gone out of business.

Derrel · Mar 10, 2020

You probably already know this but your 105 millimeter lens is a Nikkor-P, which uses five elements in three groups, and is the Sonar design. The later versions are the so-called Gauss design, which also used five elements, but they were arranged into four groups.

Peeb · Mar 11, 2020

Derrel- you are an internet TREASURE! With your sage advice, the issue is SOLVED. Here the the tab, for folks who might need to know in the future:

Derrel · Mar 11, 2020

I used to have an FE back in 1986, and I still own an FM and an F3HP...all three models have the flip up tab, which allows you to meter with the lens stopped down. The FM-2 and FE-2 do not have this feature.

wfooshee · Mar 18, 2020

My F4 has the lift-up tab for non-AI lenses as well. I've got one lens that I'm thinking about converting, as it's too much trouble to use as is, and I'd like it to go onto my DSLR as well, which has the AI tab but it doesn't lift out of the way. I've actually used an external light meter rather than stopped-down metering with good results, and it's easier!