ADJUSTING THE ADAPTER FOR BEST FIT

To ensure the best performance, adapters need to be snug against the lens. The picture to the left shows a slot than can be expanded to hold the lens tightly against the adapter (adapters usually have three such slots). Insert a small jewelers screwdriver into the slot, twist the screw driver slightly to expand the slot. Expand each slot an equal amount. The goal is even pressure at all points between the lens and the adapter. If the slots continually collapse over time, try placing a small small piece of aluminum foil into the slot. The piece of foil should be repeatedly folder until it is .25 to .50mm thick. Over expand the slot slightly, insert the foil and then close the slot so the foil is held in place. With the tabs properly expanded, the adapter and lens should be snug with no fore or aft play or wiggle.

The picture to right shows the adapter’s locking tab resting in the notch on the lens mount. The spring tabs superseded the set screw design. This notch / tab design is not perfect and sometimes there is some degree of rotational play. The start and stop of the rotational slippage is determined by the notch size. Sometimes if there is not enough spring in the tab, the tab will not sit squarely in the notch - thus allowing slippage. To ensure a good crisp fit, bend the angled tab to ~45 degrees.  This forces the tab deep into the notch. I also like to bend the spring part to add some extra tension. The picture shows the clip squarely seated in the notch.

These adjustments will not change the adapter’s performance, but it does keep the lens from spinning slightly which can be annoying. If the adapter completely works itself out of the notch, then the lens could come off of the adapter while the adapter remains attached to the body. I have experienced this before, and this is one of the big reasons why I now use Leitax adapters (the re-use the original screw holes and actually screw onto the back of the lens - very secure!

Lastly, there are two causes of the rotational play - the adapter slipping against the lens, and the adapter slipping against the camera body (mount). Resolving the lens / adapter rotational play is usually just a matter of playing with the locking tab. This rotational play (so slippage) can be resolved and eliminated. The adapter / camera mount rotational slippage is not easily fixed.

WHAT HAS (OR HAS NOT!) WORKED FOR ME

I have tried many different adapters over the years on the original Canon 1Ds, Canon 1Ds Mark II and Canon 1Ds Mark III. Here are some of my experiences: 

1. •Cameraquest - I have tried both Cameraquest and Kindai adapters - which look identical. The Cameraquest costs about the same as buying Kindai from Japan, so no financial advantage one way or the other. The adapters are nicely made and in 2005 they were the for reaching infinity focus. Starting in 2006 Ebay was flooded with low cost adapters.
   

2. •HappyPageHK - sells on Ebay at ~$85 per adapter. The quality has been good with excellent customer service. Adapter thickness has varied +/- ~.007 from batch to batch. In 2009 I tried a HappyPageHK “Pro” adapters with the Contax 100mm F2 Planar on the Canon 1Ds Mark III - review here. The Optix v5 chip can be reprogrammed by the end user.
   

3. •Fotodiox - I did not have good results with Fotodiox adapters in 2005-2006. Fotodiox now offers a “Pro” version which guarantees infinity focus. The catch-22 being - the Fotodiox Pro adapters are ~1.49mm thick which is well beyond the 1.425mm required thickness.
   

4. •Hoada - I received one of their focus confirmation type adapters with a lens purchase. The adapter itself was on par with the HappyPageHK and was  ~1.42mm thick (a tad thin, but good). The focus confirmation chip worked well too, but was not the reprogrammable.
   

5. •DSLR Exchange - There were significant design and quality controls issues, but the adapters were CnC’d from aluminum and nicely made with a choice of color anodized finishes. If you got the right thickness, they were nice adapters except for the set-screw. Production stopped around 2007.
   

Today I do not bother with these adapters because of quality issues, and relying solely on a spring loaded locking tab is very insecure. Today I use Leitax adapters which actually screw on to the lens by simply re-using the original screw holes. They are as secure as the original mount, very well made (the best I have seen) and can have a focus confirmation chip added. I use Leitax adapters with Leica lenses (the last 4 pictures on this page), Contax lenses and the Minolta Rokkor 58mm F1.2. The end-result is an adapter that mounts as smoothly as a Canon lens and an adapter that addresses all the issues listed in the past 3 pages. For more, see my Leitax review.