Another joyless jaunt: Nikkor 135mm f/2.8 AI-S Service/Repair

The 135mm f/2.8 AI-S debutted in 1981, replacing the AI version, with a lengthy production run that last into the new millenium and continued to be the high consumer end medium telephoto. It lived in the shadow of the more famous peers - the 105mm f/2.5 AI-S, 180mm f/2.8 AI-S and various fast 85mms - and probably suffered reputational confusion like the 85mm f/2 AI-S.

This 135mm f/2.8 AI-S is a direct upgrade to the AI version with no change in optical formula and outwardly looks very similar to its older sibling. The AI version was painful to service but how does the AI-S compare?

Short Tele, Alternative Legacy: The 85mm f/2 AI-S

When discussing short Nikkor telephotos or classic portrait lenses, a number of lenses come to mind: the 105mm f/2.5 AI-S and the 85mm f/1.4 AI-S. However there was another: the 85mm f/2 AI-S.


^{85mm f/2 AI-S sitting between a 105mm f/2.5 AI-S and 50mm f/1.8 AI-S pancake}

An economical wide alternative: 28mm f/3.5 AI

The 28mm f/3.5 has a long history reaching back to 1960, with the Auto-H, and cumulating in the Nikkor 28mm f/3.5 AI/AIS of the late 70s/early 80s. All variations had a 6/6 design although the Auto-H and the AI/AI-S having different optical formula. By the time the AI/AI-S was released in 1977/1981, it was already seen as the economical 28mm with its slower f/3.5 max aperture with the f/2 K and f/2.8 K/AI making its debuts in 1975 and 1974 respectively.

The f/3.5 AI-S was sunset in 1983 by which time the very well regarded 28mm f/2.8 AI-S had been released. Over time, the 28mm f/2.8 AI-S reputation (and its long production run) keeps it in conversations but if you were to consider a manual 28mm, is the slower f/3.5 worth considering?

A joyless jaunt: 135mm f/2.8 AI Repair/Service

The 135mm f/2.8 AI was produced from the 1977 - 1981 and lived in the shadow of its faster f/2 sibling and also had competition from the 105mm variants. Its a compact rugged lens but its not a lens I'd seek out myself except to rip it apart for curiousity

Widely Regarded: Nikkor 20mm f/4 AI

The Nikkor 20mm f/4 AI (and its near identical predecessor, the K) was the optical successor to the very well regarded Nikkor-UD 20mm f/3.5 Auto. The K was produced from 1974 to 1977 and the AI released for a short period after til the start of 1978, at which point the Nikkor 20mm f/3.5 AI had been released. Both the f/4 AI and f/3.5 AI lenses had good reputations - with the f/4 AI lens' reputation enhanced by well respected nature photographer Galen Rowell's recommenation - but how good are they really?


^{Nikkor 20mm f/4 K with factory AI conversion aperture ring}

The Designated (JIS) Driver

The general guidance for vintage Japanese lens repair is to use JIS drivers to avoid stripping the screw heads so what and how many do we need?

Serv(ic)ing A Micro legacy: Micro Nikkor-P Auto 55mm f/3.5

The Micro Nikkor 55mm f/3.5 series of lens has had a long history with the first iteration arriving in 1961 and lasted nearly 20 years with the same optical formula, cumulating in the Micro Nikkor 55mm f/3.5 AI. Of course, the 55mms prior to the AI version were all pre-AI although Nikon provided factory AI aperture ring conversions and its reasonable rare for still find a pre-AI factory converted 55mm. I found a late edition (1969-73) factory converted P-Auto and give it a service and here's what I found.


^{Micro-Nikkor P Auto 55mm f/3.5, with factory AI conversion and non original rubber grip}

Nikkor 20mm f/3.5 AI repair / service

I've loved this lens for a while now for its a ability to resist flare like no other vintage Nikkor I've used, but I've put off servicing this lens since theres been NO online repair resources/service manuals available, not even from the usual places that may have alerted us to identified gotchas. In the end, I decide to attempt the service regardless given recent successes in servicing other Nikkor AI/AI-S lenses.

Commodity old school 35mms

The 35mm focal length was a classic "candid" lens, for street photography/photojournalism etc but for me it was always a compromise: neither wide enough or long enough, preferring either a 28mm or a 50mm/85mm/105mm. These 35mm still command a decent price on the used market and I was able to obtain a 5/5 element/group 35mm f/2.8 AI-S and a 8/6 35mm f/2 AI for a short evaluation.

Cleaning, Repairing and Servicing a 50mm f/1.4 AI

The 50mm f/1.4 AI and its optical formula was inheritted by its successor and beyond which meant it was in production from the late 70s to 2025 so this lens as an option comes with a well known optical performance and can be found a slightly lower cost than its succesor. The f/1.4 AI ran from 1977-1981 so servicing is a must, with my copy having sticky and unusable focus as well as being very dirty.

Just One More: 50mm f/2 AI

Having serviced and owned a number of Nikkor 50mm I asked myself how many 50mm do we actually need? It turns out that just one more in the shape of a 50mm f/2 AI.

Helicoid Grease options: Japan Hobby Tool #10 and NPC FC-4 / BC-13A

Helicoid grease is a specialist item that is difficult to source and suitable options are limited. Even with options, the lens manufacturers do not disclose their greases and there are a very limited number of trusted resources that have reviewed various the greases. Two greases that are under consideration are Japan Hobby Tool #10 and NPC FC-4 (reportedly the grease used in some Nikkor lenses)

Regreasing an overly dampened Nikkor 50mm f/1.4 AI-S

My Nikkor 50mm f/1.4 AI-S was a favourite for many years and was one of my first manual focus lenses and the dampened, but not stiff, focus ring was a nice change from my plastic AF-S lenses. The major benifit at the time with the level of dampening was it helped with precise/limited movement for focusing at wide open apertures.



However with regreasing a number of other Nikkors I've started to prefer a softer focus feel - these are my notes for how to regrease/lubricate a Nikkor 50mm f/1.4 AI-S.

An old zoomer today: Nikkor 80-200mm f/4.5 AI

The Nikkor 80-200mm f/4.5 AI was a compact professional grade zoom produced from ~1977-1981 - it was regarded highly at the time with some preferring this iteration over the latter f/4 AI-S. This lens is fairly ubiquitous on the second hand market and its price is relatively low so it may seem to be a safe bet when picking up something used in this range. But how safe is this bet?

Another closer look: Micro-Nikkor 105mm f/4 AI

The Micro-Nikkor 105mm f/4 AI was released along side the Micro-Nikkor 55mm f/3.5 AI in 1977 and offered a more comfortable working distance and narrower field of focus over the 55mm - the longer lens is double the weight heavier (500g) compared to 245g of the 55mm.

Servicing and Regreasing a Dry Micro Nikkor 55m f/3.5 AI Helicoids

The Micro Nikkor 55mm f/3.5 AI is an ~40 year old lens and my copy has various "dry or uneven" areas over its focus range after a few years of sitting idle. Lets see what it takes to fix that.

Hel(icoids) and back: regreasing a Nikkor 28mm f/2.8 AI-S

Maintaining older Nikkor lenses has become easier with resources such as Richard Haw's website and also Kenneth Olsen's YouTube channel. However servicing details for my Nikkor 28mm f/2.8 AI-S at this point are still not as widespread as some other lenses and with a lens thats approaching 40 years old, its in need of helicoid servicing as observed by a dry and gritty focus tactile feedback.

Unfortunately, even with the previously mentioend resources above (I don't believe there exists a specific YouTube tutorial), there were some admenents that would help those new to the 28mm. Here's my notes for seperating the helicoids of my Nikkor 28mm f/2.8 AI-S in order to regrease.

The final pancake - the plastic 50mm f/1.8 AI-S pancake

The final 50mm f/1.8 AI-S manual focus lens, with its 0.6m minimum focus distance and missing rabbit ear/coupling prong, was a lens that was following the times and a shift away from previous Nikkors and their mostly metal construction. Whilst there was an earlier 50mm f/1.8 AI-S pancake which could focus down to 0.45m like the long nose version, that version was only available in Japan and short lived whereas this 50mm pancake superceded both the Japanese pancake and the long nose. Identifying the latter pancake can be done via the serial numbers (starting 4xxxxxxx) and the distinct shiney plastic-ness, particularly of the aperture ring and the additional bump on chrome index/grab ring - this bump was supposedly to help users to quickly orientate the lens, given the missing rabbit ears of earlier AI/AI-S lenses.



So what's this pancake like?

Another Legacy Legend: Nikkor 180mm f/2.8 ED AI-S

The Nikkor 180mm f/2.8 ED AI-S released in 1981 seems to have acquired lengendary status over years but this lens but this prime focal length has perhaps fallen out of mainstream use over the last couple of decades due to the various overlapping zooms but how does it handle and perform today

Nikkor 24mm f/2.8 AI-S Disassembly

The Nikkor 24mm f/2.8 AI-S is a lens from the late 70s but shares its optical formula with its predecesors (pre-AI and AI) and successor (AF-D). The AI-S is also quite common and as such appears on ebay frequently in various conditions.



The 24mm f/2.8 AI-S lens is reasonably simple to disassemble and teardown with the only complication being the CRC unit at the rear.