Where to buy lens for old Minolta 35mm?

[F1addict]

I'd like to buy a newer zoom lens for my old Minolta X-370 35mm camera. I have a nice 50mm that I believe is the lens the camera came with, and an 80-200mm zoom/macro lens which is what I want to replace.
my current one just isn't that good. It takes decent pictures but it isn't good at all with low light, and I mean it pretty much has to be middle of the day barely a cloud in the sky sunny to get a real good picture, and the image quality isn't as good as it is with the 50mm.

But I don't know where else to go besides ebay, which I don't really trust that much. I've checked B&H and Adorama but they don't really have anything.
Its a Minolta MD mount. and I'd like something in the 50-200mm range. or even something like 18-100mm would be good because I mostly use this camera for landscape and macro pictures anyways and I use my digital for anything that needs a lot of zoom.

thanks for any help.

 

[frXnz kafka]

www.keh.com

Good selection, and great service. Their ratings tend to be on the conservative side, so even things labeled as 'BGN' are in pretty decent condition.

 

[bhop]

I agree, I just got a battery grip from them. It was listed as 'bargain'(bgn) and has a few scratches on it, but other than that, it's clean, fits tight on the camera, and works perfectly.

 

[pete_6109]

You probably will have to look at aftermarket brands like Sigma if you want a fast wide to telephoto zoom. I'm not sure that Minolta ever made any "MD" zooms that go from 50-200mm or 18-100mm. If they did they certainly were not very fast lenses and probably were those annoying one touch push/pull to zoom type lens.

 

[F1addict]

Thank you very much for that.
Unfortunatelythere wasn't too much on there that was within my price range. There actually weren't many zooms on there at all. Were zooms not very popular or good ~20 years ago? Seems like most of the lenses were fixed focal lengths. And I was a little surprised to see old manual focus lens' on there for over $200. I was expecting most everything except maybe really long focal lengths to be under $200 or at least under $250.

I did find a decent 28-70 F3.5-4.8 macro/zoom on there for only $69 in excellent condition. I may have to get that. Not sure if I want to spend the money now(planning on spending close to $1000 between now and February on parts for my computer and a Sony A300+extra zoom lens) but that could be something I'll have to pick up in the near future. Could be nice for what I like to shot with this camera. Especially for some nice wide angle shots if I do any more hiking next summer like I did last summer.

any other good places you guys know of? There aren't really any camera stores in my area unfortunately. thankfully there is at least a guy right around the corner from me who repairs old film cameras or I wouldn't even be using this camera

 

[compur]

A zoom will likely never be as sharp or as fast (bright) as your 50mm lens but ...

I would suggest either a Minolta-made zoom or a "Vivitar Series 1" zoom with
your choice of focal length & aperture.

For example, there is a Vivitar Series 1 70-210mm f/2.8-3.5 that is optically
excellent and often sells for very little on eBay.

And, Tokina "ATX" zooms are also excellent and very good bargains. "ATX"
was Tokina's top of the line optics.

eBay is a good source for equipment -- you just need to stick with sellers
who specialize in photo equipment and have excellent feedback and offer
a fair return policy.

 

[Early]

Minolta did make a 70-210 f4, which is the same optics as the famous beer can lens that is for their AF cameras. I see one pop up on Ebay once in awhile for a lot less than the AF version, too.

 

[F1addict]

A zoom will likely never be as sharp or as fast (bright) as your 50mm lens but ...

I would suggest either a Minolta-made zoom or a "Vivitar Series 1" zoom with
your choice of focal length & aperture.

For example, there is a Vivitar Series 1 70-210mm f/2.8-3.5 that is optically
excellent and often sells for very little on eBay.

And, Tokina "ATX" zooms are also excellent and very good bargains. "ATX"
was Tokina's top of the line optics.

eBay is a good source for equipment -- you just need to stick with sellers
who specialize in photo equipment and have excellent feedback and offer
a fair return policy.

I know I wont get something as fast as my 50mm but I just wanted something better then my 80-200mm F4 which isn't very good.

I did find a few of those Vivitar's on ebay, only in F3.5 for my Minolta though Which is still good. And at good prices.
I also found one Tokina ATX that would fit my camera but I don't want to pay $250+. I feel thats alittle much for an old used manual focus lens. Altough if I get an adapter I could use it on a new Sony DSLR when I get one. But a new autofocus from Sigma or Tamron is just $50 more.

 

[compur]

^ Yes, you're certainly right not to pay $250 for a manual focus Tokina zoom.
I've sold some myself on eBay and they rarely go for more than about
$25-$40 or so in excellent condition.

Anyway, things are constantly changing on eBay and the bargains are there
if you take some time to hunt for them.

 

[F1addict]

^ Yes, you're certainly right not to pay $250 for a manual focus Tokina zoom.
I've sold some myself on eBay and they rarely go for more than about
$25-$40 or so in excellent condition.

Anyway, things are constantly changing on eBay and the bargains are there
if you take some time to hunt for them.

yeah I will take time.
I may buy the 28-70mm I found on KEH because I want a wide angle.
and I may ask for either a Vivitar or a Tokina for Christmas if a really good deal on a nice one can be found between now and then
thanks for the suggestions

 

[Frequent Traveler]

The Minolta Rokkor 24-50mm is about as good a wide zoom as you can get. On the tele side of things, the 70-210mm CONSTANT f4 is also about the best you will get in that range...

 

[Rem]

A zoom will likely never be as sharp or as fast (bright) as your 50mm lens but ...

I would suggest either a Minolta-made zoom or a "Vivitar Series 1" zoom with
your choice of focal length & aperture.

For example, there is a Vivitar Series 1 70-210mm f/2.8-3.5 that is optically
excellent and often sells for very little on eBay.

And, Tokina "ATX" zooms are also excellent and very good bargains. "ATX"
was Tokina's top of the line optics.

eBay is a good source for equipment -- you just need to stick with sellers
who specialize in photo equipment and have excellent feedback and offer
a fair return policy.

All quite correct. I have bought X 370's, Series One Viv's, Tamron zooms off ebay and RARELY ever got a "bummer". I tend to like Tamron SP a bit more than ther Series One's. The Series One Vivatars by Komine-the 2.8/3.5 are swell, but not seen much. the original, the Kino/Kiron (serial# starts with 22) are not quite as sharp or fast but do a closer macro. Those can be found at $20-40 + shipping. The Tamron 80-210 is a very nice lens that goes way cheap..find one with the Minolta adaptall mount included
A lens that REMARKABLE it Tamron SP 35-80 2.8 rather fast but the deal is it is just about as good as it gets for a macro zoom. The SP 28-80 is not quite as fast but is almost as good for macro and a bit wider.

ANY lens wider than 28 mm,on ebay, is usually pretty pricey unless it's got issues.

Usually if you do get a DOA photo item on ebay....about 10% or less if not an "as-is" listing, the seller at least will refund bid price. You MAY be paying round trip shipping. I HAVE had a seller refumd ALL shipping. I also had a seller refund bid without wanting the item back. The odds...ain't bad, better than I'd expected.

The other reply is right. Zooms are never as sharp or fast as snle length "prime" lenses...unless you pay BIG $. A zoom with a super wide range-like 28-200 won't be as sharp as a 60-200 or a 28-80. It's mopre convenient-also more $

This is worth note as you may find a 35 mm wide angle Minolta rather cheap...and that's a great landscape/seascape lens. A 135 tele can be had cheap. The popular 70-200 or 80-210 zooms can be had cheap

 

[Rem]

A note on speed...

30 years ago, for my screw mount Mamiya, I got a pair of Sigma telephotos (not zoom) a 135mm f 1.8 and a 300 f 4.0..

You just can't get that sort of speed in a zoom. That 135 uses a 77 mm filter...is almost as fat as it is long. The 300 also uses a 77 mm filter and is as heavy as a brick. Want to shoot a blues singer in a not too well lit club? That 135 does the job. The old Mamiya had spot meter and with those lenses..I got shots folks with newer, big $ cameras and high $ zooms could not get.

Now.....I have a dozen camera's and 2 dozen lenses and that same combo is STILL the choice for low light.

 

[christopher walrath]

pick up a 28-200 MD mount zoom on ebay for under $100.00 USD.

 

[Rem]

A note on ebay....there are sellers that sell a LOT of gear and have good feedback, often they pretty much guarantee ther item is as described. dealers who know little about gear won't even know the basics, may have inherited dads gear, might have bought a bunch of things at an estate sale.
If you are wary, stick with a major seller like "shutterbug".
Their feedback is quite important to them and they expect to be publically graded for an accurate description and good shopping.

Lenses I favor are a good Minolta Rokkor 35 mm, for landscape, a 50 1.4 for lowlight. The aforementioned Tamron 35-80 for a "walkaround" but also as good for macro + portrait. Tamron's SP 70-210 3,5 is as good as any 3rd party zoom..and matches many OEM's but it's not easy to get. the 70-210 2.8 is pricey. I like the SP 60-300 which isn't as fast but has that extra reach.

If you can get the SP 90 mm macro Tamron..its classic, but they sell at $80+...about what they cost new.