At 07:17 8/13/99 , Steve Worner wrote:
>Thanks for the clarification, John, and the short history - I was using
>'Zeiss' in its most generic form as I, like many I expect, assumed there was
>only ever one Zeiss factory.
I knew about the East and West Carl Zeiss but not any details until I
bought a post-war Zeiss Ikon a while back (which, BTW was an independent
company from Carl Zeiss as is Schott Glass, but within the CZ Foundation).
This is not to say the lens(es) sold by CZJ for the OM are poor build
quality or design. They may be very good. CZJ suffered from being
encapsulated in Warsaw Pact nations and under the economic thumb of the
Soviet Union. They did produce some very good optics, but its reputation
has more holes and its record is more spotted than Carl Zeiss' in the West.
On the used market (this is a broad generality) CZJ optics do not have the
demand or command the price because collectors do not chase after them.
There are a few exceptions.
I am *still* curious as to whether they were ever marketed in the U.S. (if
so what trademark was used for them here; there are several possibilities)
or only in Europe (Canada too?). It would be interesting to see what the
design and build quality of them was. I will pose these questions to the
Zeiss Ikon list and see what turns up. This could be a better kept secret
within the better kept secret of the OM system itself.
-- John
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