Roxsen M42 to Canon EF Lens Adapter Review

[LCARSx32]

Hello everyone. Yesterday, I finally received my M42 to EF adapter and figured I'd share my thoughts for anyone considering something similar.

The Auto Focus (AF) Confirm Chip and EF side of the adapter:

The M42 side of the adapter:

The EF Lens cap that came with it (I wasn't expecting one!):

A Little History:
This adapter allows me to use old M42 screw mount lenses on my Canon DSLR. The reason I wanted this is because M42 lenses are CHEAP and you can get quality glass for great prices. The M42 is a "universal" lens mount, meaning it was used by several camera manufacturers (Pentax, Mamiya-Sekor, Cosina, Olympus, etc.), so there's a good supply available online. However, these are manual lenses. No auto focus, and you have to set the aperture with the ring, not with the camera. So it's not for everyone.

First Impressions:
The adapter seems fairly well made. It's black, so it blends in well with the camera. Everything seems to fit nice and tight. I don't see any problems with light getting past the adapter, which was one of my main concerns.

The ad guarantees that the adapter will allow for infinity focus. That's one of the main problems with cheap adapters. I asked several sellers before deciding on Roxsen and they all said they would not guarantee infinity focus (well, at least the few that responded.) If you can't get infinity focus, you can't take landscape pictures. You're limited to things close to the camera.

Along with infinity focus, they also promised the camera would be able to alert me with the familiar red lights and beep when I was in focus. Since the focus screen on my 300D leaves much to be desired, this was a big selling point for me. It does have an AF Confirm chip glued to the surface of the adapter. I am a little concerned that with many lens changes may result in that chip falling off. Right now, it feels quite secure. It looks like they used epoxy, so my fears may be unfounded.

First Test:
Using the adapter is easy. Screw it onto the lens, then attach the lens to the camera like any other lens. The fit to both the lens and the camera is excellent. I'm very impressed. I was worried because it came from a Hong Kong seller; they aren't known for quality products.

When the lens is attached, the camera reads an aperture of f/1.4 regardless of what the aperture ring on the lens is set to. There were other sellers offering adapters that you could set the f/#, but since this doesn't affect the picture, just the EXIF data, I wasn't that concerned.

Here's a test shot of my niece. The AF confirm seems to work as advertised.

And here's a test of the infinity focus (I know, crappy picture... it's a test shot!):

Final Thoughts
Overall, I'm quite pleased with my purchase. The adapter was $12.99USD with free shipping. It took exactly two weeks to get here from Hong Kong, although the seller says it can take up to 30 business days and some negative feedback had items arriving more than 40 days out. I can't complain about two weeks from the opposite side of the world. The seller (Roxsen) answered all of my question within 24 hours of asking.

I can't wait to get more M42 mount lenses. Time to play!

 

[Overread]

I'm actually very interested to read this review as I do have an old M42screwmount camera body that I keep meaning to get a few lenses for - so I at least will be very interested to hear how your experiences go with this adaptor as you give it more of a field test!

 

[AgentDrex]

Yeah, great timing on this thread, I just ordered my M42 adapter (and also a Nikkor adapter, so I can play with old Nikon lenses) from Amazon and should have them by this coming Friday...

I'll post photos as soon as I get to mount these lenses I have on the 1000D body....

 

[enzodm]

The second and third shot here have been taken with a Zenitar 1.9/50 m42 adapted to a Canon 1000D. I'm slowly collecting lenses... fixed lenses, even if no-brand, have something still useful.

Mine really focuses after infinity, so that you have to stop just before the end (check this on a 100% crop). Fortunately AF confirm helps.

 

[LCARSx32]

Even my regular EF lenses focus a little past infinity. I think that's normal. Some adapters don't let you get to infinity before you run out of focus because the material is too thick. I believe 1.5mm is the proper thickness for M42 to EF mount (it was either 1mm or 1.5mm, but I think 1.5mm.)

I'm also getting a collection of obscure lenses. I've got an Auto Mamiya/Sekor 50mm f/2 and a really beat up Petri 55mm f/1.8. I want to get a 135mm f/2.8 prime in the near future because I hear they're a good portrait lens.

I wish I could mount Pentax K lenses. My sister just bought an old Pentax k1000 and it'd be great to share lenses, but K mount lenses have a lever for the aperture sticking out the back, so it's a no go.

AgentDrex: Let us know how your adapter works out. It would be good to have a comparison amongst different adapters. :thumbup: :thumbup:

 

[Negative ISO]

I am really fascinated by this. Do I understand correctly that a $20 adapter will allow you to use any screw mount M42 lens? Like you said, this seems like a really cool option for people who don't mind manual focus. At a glance it appears you could pick up a 135mm f/2.8 M42 lens for $60 or so. The Canon auto-focus EF equivalent is like $400+. Am I confused here, or did I just drink the kool-aid?

 

[enzodm]

I want to get a 135mm f/2.8 prime in the near future because I hear they're a good portrait lens.

In an outbreak of Compulsive Ebay Shopping Virus I bought three 135... :blushing:

 

[reznap]

I want to get a 135mm f/2.8 prime in the near future because I hear they're a good portrait lens.

I have a Nikkor/Nikon 135mm f/2.8 and it's a superb lens. It's sharp wide open and it renders out of focus areas very smoothly. I'll take a few pics with it in a minute and try and upload them tonight.

The adapters the OP has are really cool though, the fact that you'll get a focus beep is really nice. My adapter is a cheap-o one and just allows me to mount the lens, I get no beeps and have to do my best to get the focus right with what I see in the viewfinder or on the LCD.

I am really fascinated by this. Do I understand correctly that a $20 adapter will allow you to use any screw mount M42 lens?

Not only M42.. there are adapters for lots of mounts to fit Canon EF - let me look for a list.. ok, wiki says "Nikon F mount, Olympus OM, Leica R and universal M42"

 

[LCARSx32]

I want to get a 135mm f/2.8 prime in the near future because I hear they're a good portrait lens.

In an outbreak of Compulsive Ebay Shopping Virus I bought three 135... :blushing:

lol. I know how that goes. I bought a 50mm and 55mm within minutes of each other. One of them looked like it was dug out of a landfill. But it was only $8!!!!

I am really fascinated by this. Do I understand correctly that a $20 adapter will allow you to use any screw mount M42 lens? Like you said, this seems like a really cool option for people who don't mind manual focus. At a glance it appears you could pick up a 135mm f/2.8 M42 lens for $60 or so. The Canon auto-focus EF equivalent is like $400+. Am I confused here, or did I just drink the kool-aid?

No, sorry you got it all wrong. It's not a $20 adapter. It's a $13 adapter. :lmao:

Just kidding. Yep. And here's proof. A 1960's Mamiya/Sekor 50mm f/2 M42 screw mount on my c.2003 Canon 300D. Please excuse the model. Like the lens, he was cheap.

 

[reznap]

Kind of a big picture heavy update..

Made my daughter get in front of the camera for a while (her face has some scrapes cause she fell at her grandma's ) to show what the 135 f/2.8 can do.

Focusing is a pain in the butt... but it can be done with practice. Live view is extremely problematic - guessing it has to do with the lack of information from the lens.

Here's a closeup of the lens taken with my Tamron wide zoom.

Here's an indoor bounced flash shot with the 135mm at f/2.8.

And a 100% crop of the above image.

This was taken at f/2.8

This was taken at f/4

This was taken at f/5.6

Wide open and to show foreground & background blur

Another of the same... might be stopped down a bit though. There is some plant stuff on the left of the frame in the foreground, all blurry.

Here are some flowers.. both at f/4 and with flash if I remember right.

Best part is, got this lens out of my dad's basement. He had an old Nikon film SLR (model FE) and a 50mm f/2, 135mm f/2.8 and 200mm f/4 just sitting in a box. You can still pay $200 for one of these old Nilon 135mm's in good condition, so if you can get your hands on one for free or even cheap - it's a good thing.

Hope I've maybe helped someone want to try some old manual lenses. Thanks for looking at my super long post.

 

[Ron Evers]

If you want a really sweet lens in M42 mount get yourself a Russian Helios 44-2 a 58mm f2 that will focus down to a bit more than a foot. You may pay more for shipping than for the lens it is so cheap.

 

[enzodm]

My Frankenzenit:


Zenitar 1.9/50 di vdm

I also bought some 50 and 55, although this one was from my previous (20 years ago) SLR, a Zenit, together with a Mir 2.8/37.

 

[Derrel]

Here are some URL's to a few larger-sized captures made using the Super-Takumar 135mm f/3.5 lens, mounted on either a Canon 5D, or in the case of the portrait, the 20D. These subjects were chosen to see how the in-focus and out of focus areas are rendered, and how the lens makes the transition form out of focus to in-focus, and then the transition from the focused area to the out of focused area behind the main subject.

I thin k the inexpensive 135/3.5 SUper-Takumar is a pretty good 135mm manual focus lens!

_MG_5372_5D_135Tak at f5.6.jpg photo - Derrel photos at pbase.com

_MG_5367_5D_135Tak at f5.6.jpg photo - Derrel photos at pbase.com

_MG_5312_5D_135Tak at f3.5.jpg photo - Derrel photos at pbase.com

_MG_5368_5D_135 Tak at f5.6jpg.jpg photo - Derrel photos at pbase.com

IMG_3524_Jill_16 pan w mesh_135 Tak_20D_web.jpg photo - Derrel photos at pbase.com

 

[recherche21]

Hello everyone. Yesterday, I finally received my M42 to EF adapter and figured I'd share my thoughts for anyone considering something similar.

The Auto Focus (AF) Confirm Chip and EF side of the adapter:

The M42 side of the adapter:

The EF Lens cap that came with it (I wasn't expecting one!):

A Little History:
This adapter allows me to use old M42 screw mount lenses on my Canon DSLR. The reason I wanted this is because M42 lenses are CHEAP and you can get quality glass for great prices. The M42 is a "universal" lens mount, meaning it was used by several camera manufacturers (Pentax, Mamiya-Sekor, Cosina, Olympus, etc.), so there's a good supply available online. However, these are manual lenses. No auto focus, and you have to set the aperture with the ring, not with the camera. So it's not for everyone.

First Impressions:
The adapter seems fairly well made. It's black, so it blends in well with the camera. Everything seems to fit nice and tight. I don't see any problems with light getting past the adapter, which was one of my main concerns.

The ad guarantees that the adapter will allow for infinity focus. That's one of the main problems with cheap adapters. I asked several sellers before deciding on Roxsen and they all said they would not guarantee infinity focus (well, at least the few that responded.) If you can't get infinity focus, you can't take landscape pictures. You're limited to things close to the camera.

Along with infinity focus, they also promised the camera would be able to alert me with the familiar red lights and beep when I was in focus. Since the focus screen on my 300D leaves much to be desired, this was a big selling point for me. It does have an AF Confirm chip glued to the surface of the adapter. I am a little concerned that with many lens changes may result in that chip falling off. Right now, it feels quite secure. It looks like they used epoxy, so my fears may be unfounded.

First Test:
Using the adapter is easy. Screw it onto the lens, then attach the lens to the camera like any other lens. The fit to both the lens and the camera is excellent. I'm very impressed. I was worried because it came from a Hong Kong seller; they aren't known for quality products.

When the lens is attached, the camera reads an aperture of f/1.4 regardless of what the aperture ring on the lens is set to. There were other sellers offering adapters that you could set the f/#, but since this doesn't affect the picture, just the EXIF data, I wasn't that concerned.

Here's a test shot of my niece. The AF confirm seems to work as advertised.

And here's a test of the infinity focus (I know, crappy picture... it's a test shot!):

Final Thoughts
Overall, I'm quite pleased with my purchase. The adapter was $12.99USD with free shipping. It took exactly two weeks to get here from Hong Kong, although the seller says it can take up to 30 business days and some negative feedback had items arriving more than 40 days out. I can't complain about two weeks from the opposite side of the world. The seller (Roxsen) answered all of my question within 24 hours of asking.

I can't wait to get more M42 mount lenses. Time to play!

Hi LCARSx32,
I saw your review and feel its quite helpful comparing other reviews that i found about on the net.
I am considering getting myself M42 to Canon EOS adapter.
Pentax Asahi Takumar 135 mm and Canon Rebel T2i

fotodiox and roxsen only options since i dont want to buy some $200 adapter.
Fotodiox - I m seeing mixed reviews.. But i liked your review since the photographs and text imparted credibility to your post.
I have contacted Roxsen, they replied within 30 mins!!

Could you provide me with exact link of the adapter you bought? Will it work with T2i as per your knowlesge
Or if after writing this post, you may have come across some other good adapter...?

Wat about :Fotodiox
Read reviews on Amazon...confused me even more...
should i be buying with chip or without chip?

 

[enzodm]

Wat about :Fotodiox
Read reviews on Amazon...confused me even more...
should i be buying with chip or without chip?

for Canon there aren't great problems, so more or less all are good. Mine comes from dslrbaby on Ebay, but I'm also waiting one from Big_Is, appreciated on the manual focus lenses forum.
Buy with chip. If you want to spend time in setting up, buy with EMF chip (you can set lens data for EXIF).