A Thousand and One Nights with HELIOS-44

There are such a large number and variety of HELIOS-44 lenses that sometimes you can get lost among them and never be found again. This article shows the main versions and modifications of such lenses.

A Thousand and One Nights with HELIOS-44

A Thousand and One Nights with HELIOS-44

Helios-44 lenses were produced at several factories:

  • KMZ - Кrasnogorsk Мmechanical Зavod
  • MMP - Мincan Мmechanical ЗAvod named after S. I. Vavilov, which since 1971 became BelOMO (Бelorussian ОbirdМmechanical Оunification)
  • Optical and Mechanical Plant 'Jupiter‘, Valdai.
  • Plant 'Zenith', Vileika

The manufacturer of the lens is very easy to identify by the logo:

Logos under which lenses of the HELIOS-44 brand were produced

Logos under which lenses of the HELIOS-44 brand were produced

The genealogical tree of the HELIOS-44 lenses was carried out by the manufacturers. Basically, different HELIOS-44 lenses differ in such things:

  • manufacturer
  • mounting thread or bayonet
  • case rim
  • the presence of a diaphragm repeater
  • presence of aperture preset ring
  • the presence of multi-coating (marking 'MS')
  • names written in Latin or Cyrillic
  • a bunch of other little things :)

In this article, the names and designations of the lenses are indicated as close as possible to the mark on the body frame. Therefore '58 mm 1: 2 'and' 2/58 'are considered different versions here. Please note that to make it easier to identify lenses, add new versions, as well as to accurately and quickly understand what modification is in question, I have introduced my additional lens numbering, starting with the letter 'h' (h1xx - KMZ, h2xx - MMZ, h3xx - Jupiter).

KMZ

BTK 1: 2 F = 5,8cm P h101 - BTK stands for BioTar Krasnogorskiy, the very first version of the lens, is a copy of Carl Zeiss Jena Biotar 2/58. Most likely made from German glass blanks. Later, lenses under the name HELIOS-44 were produced according to a recalculated optical scheme for a domestic grade of optical glass. Uses a 13-blade diaphragm, M39x1 / 45,2 thread in a white body. It is of great collection value, since BTK 1: 2 F = 5,8 cm P was more experienced than a mass sample.

HELIOS-44 1: 2 F = 5,8cm P h102 - Uses 13-blade diaphragm, M39x1 / 45,2 thread in white body. The letter 'P' is responsible for the 'P' enlightened optics (simple chemical enlightenment), later this letter was not written. It differs from the h105 version in the minimum aperture, which is F / 22.

HELIOS-44 2/58 h103 - lens with bayonet mount for START cameras. 13 aperture blades, white body. Lenses for 'Start' cameras differ from other modifications of Helios-44 by an additional button on the body.

HELIOS-44 2/58 h103-a - lens with bayonet mount for START cameras. It differs from h103 in that the name is written in Latin letters.

HELIOS-44 1: 2 F = 5,8cm P h103-b - lens with bayonet mount for START cameras. It differs from h103 in that the lens parameters are indicated differently.

HELIOS-44 2/58 h104 - lens with bayonet mount for START cameras. 8 aperture blades, white body. Differs from h103 in the number of aperture blades.

No photos.

HELIOS-44 2/58 h105 - Uses 13-blade diaphragm, M39x1 / 45,2 thread in white body. It differs from the h102 version in the minimum aperture, which is F / 16, as well as the body frame. An overview of this modification can be viewed here.

HELIOS-44 2/58 h106 - Uses 13 flap diaphragm, M39x1 / 45,2 thread in white case. It differs from h105 in that the name is written in Latin letters.

HELIOS-44 2/58 h107 - Uses 8-blade diaphragm, M39x1 / 45,2 thread in white body. The body is similar to h105 / 106. An overview of this modification can be viewed here.

HELIOS-44 2/58 h108 - Uses 8 flap diaphragm, M39x1 / 45,2 thread in black housing. From h107 differs only in case color.

No photos. Perhaps there was no option from the KMZ plant with the spelling of the name in Cyrillic.

HELIOS-44 2/58 h108-a - Uses 8 flap diaphragm, M39x1 / 45,2 thread in black housing. From h108 differs only in the spelling of the name.

ГЕЛИОС-44-2 2/58  h109 - Uses 8-blade diaphragm, first modification with M42x1 / 45,5 thread.

No photos. Perhaps there was no option from the KMZ plant with the spelling of the name in Cyrillic.

HELIOS-44-2 2/58  h109-a - Uses an 8-blade diaphragm, M42x1 / 45,5 thread. It differs from h109 only in the spelling of the name.

HELIOS-44M 2/58 h110 - Uses an 8-blade diaphragm, M42x1 / 45,5 thread. The first lens with Blinking Aperture, from which the letter 'M' was added to the name.

No photos. Perhaps there was no option from the KMZ plant with the spelling of the name in Cyrillic.

HELIOS-44M 2/58 h111 - Uses an 8-blade diaphragm, M42x1 / 45,5 thread.

MS HELIOS-44M 2/58 h112 - Uses an 8-blade diaphragm, M42x1 / 45,5 thread. Version h110 / h111 with multi-coated optics

Гелиос-44М-4 2/58 h113 - Uses 6-blade diaphragm, thread M42x1 / 45,5.

HELIOS-44М-4 2/58 h113-a - Uses 6-blade diaphragm, thread M42x1 / 45,5. No repeater / aperture switch. It differs from h115 only in the spelling of the name.

Гелиос-44М-4 2/58 h115 - Uses a 6-blade diaphragm, M42x1 / 45,5 thread. No repeater / aperture switch.

Photo is missing.

MS Helios-44M-4 2/58 h177 - Uses 6-blade diaphragm, thread M42x1 / 45,5. Without diaphragm repeater. Added multi-coating.

No photos. Perhaps there was no option from the KMZ plant with the spelling of the name in Cyrillic.

MC HELIOS 44M-4 2/58 h118 - Uses 6-blade diaphragm, thread M42x1 / 45,5. Without diaphragm repeater. There is no dash between 'Helios' and '44M-4' in the name.

ZENIT Helios-44K-4 58mm 1: 2 h116 - version with Pentax K bayonet. Modern body.

ZENIT MC HELIOS-44K-4 58mm 1: 2 h114 - version with Pentax K bayonet. Modern body. It differs from h116 in multi-coated optics and a different spelling of the name.

 ZENIT-IR 2/58 MOONLIGHT PRODUCTS INC h119 - unknown for me version of the lens, most likely for special devices.

AUTO COSMOGON 1: 2 F = 58mm h120 - an unknown version of the lens for me.

Гелиос-44-1 2/58 h121-a - lens for ZENIT-7 cameras.

 HELIOS 44-1 2/58 h121 - for cameras ZENIT-7. differs from h121-a in the spelling of the name.

 Helios-44-D 2/58 h124 - for Zenit-D cameras with a specific mount.

Гелиос44-7 2/58  h122 - lens for ZENIT-7 cameras, black.

Гелиос44-7 2/58  h123 - lens for cameras ZENIT-7, zebra

MMP

Helios-44 2/58 h201 - 8 petals, white body, thread M39x1 / 45,2.

Helios-44 2/58 h201-a - 8 petals, white body, thread M39x1 / 45,2. It differs from the h201 version only in the spelling of the lens name.

Helios-44 2/58 h202 - 8 petals, zebra, thread M39x1 / 45,2.

No photos. Perhaps there was no option from the MMZ plant with writing the name in Cyrillic.

Helios-44 2/58 h202-a - 8 petals, zebra, thread M39x1 / 45,2. It differs from the h201 version in the case.

Helios-44-2 2/58 h203-a - 8 petals, zebra, early body rim, thread M42x1 / 45,5.

Helios 44-2 2/58 h203 - 8 petals, black, thread M42x1 / 45,5. No dash between 'Helios' and '44 -2 ′

 Гелиос-44-2 2/58 h204 - 8 petals, black, thread M42x1 / 45,5. An overview of this modification can be viewed here.

HELIOS-44-2 2/58 h204-a - 8 petals, black, thread M42x1 / 45,5. It differs from the h204 version only in the spelling of the lens name.

Гелиос-44-2 2/58 h204-b - new case design, similar to h205-a

MS Helios-44-3M 2/58 h205 - black, thread M42x1 / 45,5, multi-coated optics.

MS Helios 44-3 2/58 h205-a - black, thread M42x1 / 45,5, multi-coated optics. There is no dash between 'Helios' and '44 -3' An overview of this modification can be viewed here.

Helios-44M 2/58 h206 - the only version from MMZ with a blinking diaphragm.

Plant 'VALDAI'

At the Valdai factory, lenses were produced immediately and only for M42x1 / 45,5 threads. At this plant, Helios began to produce around 1969.

HELIOS-44-2 2/58 h301 - the first lens 'Helios-44' of the Jupiter plant.

Гелиос-44-2 2/58 h302 - similar to h301, but with a modified body.

No photos.

Гелиос-44-2 2/58 h303 - similar to h301, but with a modified body, easily identified by the red aperture marks

No photos.

Helios-44M 2/58 h301-a - blinking diaphragm. 6 petals

Helios-44M 2/58 h301-b - blinking diaphragm. 8 petals.

Гелиос-44М-4 2/58 h304  - with a blinking diaphragm.

No photos. Perhaps there was no option from the Jupiter plant with the spelling of the name in Cyrillic.

Helios-44М-4 2/58 h305  - with a blinking diaphragm.

ZENIT MC HELIOS-44M-4 58mm 1: 2 h306 - the first multi-coated version of the Valdai plant. You can view the lens view here.

ZENIT MC HELIOS-44M-5 58mm 1: 2 h307 - multi-coated version of the Valdai plant. You can view the lens view here.

ZENIT MC HELIOS-44M-5 58mm 1: 2 h307-a - compared to the h307 has a changed focusing ring.

ZENIT MC HELIOS-44M-6 58mm 1: 2 h308 - multi-coated version of the Valdai plant. You can view the lens view here.

ZENIT MC HELIOS-44M-6 58mm 1: 2 h308-a - unlike h308, it has matte aperture blades.

ZENIT MC HELIOS-44M-6 58mm 1: 2 h308-b - unlike h308 has a different focusing ring

ZENIT MC HELIOS-44M-7 58mm 1: 2 h309 - multi-coated version of the Valdai plant. You can view the lens view here.

Plant 'Zenith', Vileika

Found here here one more unusual copy which, judging by the logo, was made at the Zenit Optical-Mechanical Plant, Vileika, Republic of Belarus.

ZENIT MC HELIOS-44M-5 58mm 1: 2 h401 - M42x1 / 45,5, black case

I am sure that there are much more modifications. If you know useful information on any modification, please indicate its serial number hxxx, describe the distinctive properties in the comments, and attach photos with its appearance. I will add new modifications only if there are photographs where it is clearly visible that the modification differs from existing ones.

In the future, this article will be finalized. There is no need to write in the comments 'but I have this one, it is not here'. It is better to send information about him in the comments, I will add it.

Reviews for the Helios-44 2/58 lenses:

  1. Helios-44 2/58 [KMZ, 13 petals, M39, silver, No. 0220423]
  2. Helios-44 2/58 [KMZ, 8 petals, M39, silver]
  3. Helios-44 1: 2 F = 5,8 cm П [KMZ with replaced lenses, No. 0007220, review of the lens from the reader Radozhiva]
  4. HELIOS-44M 2/58 [KMZ, 8 petals, serial number 7843528]
  5. HELIOS-44M 2/58 [Jupiter plant, Valdai, 8 petals, serial number 8027170]
  6. HELIOS-44-2 2/58 [plant 'Jupiter', Valdai, 8 petals, serial number 83052779] + autofocus review
  7. MS Helios 44-3 2/58 [MMZ, 8 petals, 8619437, 9167912]
  8. MC Helios-44M-4 2/58
  9. Helios-44K-4 58mm 1:2 [KMZ, 6 petals, Pentax K]
  10. MC Helios-44M-4 58mm 1: 2 [plant 'Jupiter', Valdai, 6 petals] + autofocus review
  11. MC Helios-44M-5 58mm 1: 2 [Jupiter plant, Valdai, 6 petals]
  12. MC Helios-44M-6 58mm 1: 2 [plant 'Jupiter', Valdai, 6 petals]
  13. MC Helios-44M-7 58mm 1: 2 [plant 'Jupiter', Valdai, 6 petals]
  14. An article about most of the major modifications of the Helios-44 series
  15. Gallery of pictures on MC Helios-44M-4
  16. Look at modern the lenses 'Helios' can at this link
  17. A lot of Helios of all varieties can be found on ebay this link

Original 'Carl Zeiss Jena Biotar 2/58 ':

  1. Carl Zeiss Jena Biotar 1: 2 f = 5,8cm T [17 diaphragm blades, M42]
  2. Carl Zeiss Jena Biotar 2 / 58 T [12 diaphragm blades, M42]
  3. A lot of Biotars of all varieties can be found on ebay this link

Look at modern the lenses 'Zenitar' и 'Helios' can at this link.

Thank you for attention. Arkady Shapoval.

Add a comment: Nicholas

 

 

Comments: 207, on the topic: A Thousand and One Nights with HELIOS-44

  • Maksim

    I have Helios 44-2 7537038 of the Jupiter plant and is similar to h 401 but there is no letter R and the yellow and red point is smaller. Tell me what kind of model it became

    • Maksim

      I complement

      • Maksim

        similar to 301 or rather

  • voicenemo

    "ZENIT MC HELIOS-44M-6 58mm 1: 2 h308-b"
    Error in caption on the lens image:
    on the photo - the Helios ring with the inscription 44M-6, and on the caption under the lens on the very picture of this lens - Helios 44-M7 (h309)

  • Andrei

    Good day! It was already written here that black versions of Helios 44 with M42 come across. I think this is from the Zenith ES photo sniper kit. Helios 44E was marked. If so, they have been produced since 1965.

  • Alexey

    Hello! Why is M52x0,75 sometimes written on the front ring of Helios? But at the same time, the actual thread is M42x1

    • Michael

      And why “Dead Souls” was written by Gogol and the monument to Pushkin? ;)
      Because the size M52x0,75 is not the size of the lens attachment to the carcass, but the size of the thread FOR THE BLEND !!!

      • Andrei

        Now the questions will begin what a hood is.

        • Gregor_S

          five points!

          • Alexey

            Let's laugh together)

        • Alexey

          There will be a counter question, and only one - with your answer, did you try to show the peculiarities of a freakish character in our post-Soviet space?)

          What if in my place there was a real, but sincerely interested beginner?
          Well, not everyone understands right away, everyone is dumb at first. And everyone goes through a period of collecting and mastering information. You didn’t do any good with your answer.

          • Andrii

            Hmmm, a bunch of thoughts about what to do. Mabut, after all. Alexander, on the other hand, why not read here about your Helios and independently know what you think about your food, just write a comment for dumb food. What are you checking for? You know, it’s dumber to feed it, and then it’s better to do it yourself. Axis tse і є the particularity of the black character, showing yaku ti.
            If I want to clarify the baggage of Zalissya, I shouldn't think too much about simple meals.

            • Andrii

              Alexandru = Alєksєy

      • Alexey

        Yes, Mikhail, it was the most idiotic question) I guessed half an hour after the publication of his post. Tupanul)
        Usually I use Canon optics, and I only had the first and second versions of helios from my father's old zeniths, and they did not show thread steps for light filters. For everything was standardized. And given some more skill in working with metal on machine tools as a hobby and experience in cutting a variety of threads, I was unnecessarily confused about this topic

  • Shakhno

    Hi all!

    Is it possible to put a start helix on a nickle without turning?

  • spitzer

    I have KMZ Helios 44 Start 5,8 cm, but without the letter P

  • Denis

    Hello. Tell me, is it worth taking MS HELIOS-44K-4 of 1992, judging by the number 9202145, from the Zenith plant? Does anyone know about the build quality from that period?

  • Vadim

    surper, great classification, thank you.

  • Nicholas

    I had a Biotar 58mm 1:2 lens. Our Helios-44-2 is very similar to it. I was surprised by one detail of the Biotar lens, where the rear lens, the metal frame, protruded more than the Helios-44-2 lens. Because of this, on the Zenit-12 DSLR, the jumping mirror touched the Biotar lens barrel a little.

    • Rodion Eshmakov

      Recently, by the way, I found a video ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d0wXURCoCX8 ), in which biotar and the usual 44-2 were compared head-on. To its credit, for the most massive gelik, it turned out to be better than the post-war biotar. Otherwise, it would be just a cruel curiosity.

  • Daniel

    Hi, I think there is an error in the linen of this lens ” Helios-44-2 2/58 h204 ”. The photo represents a Valdai lens but not a Solomo MMP Even if they are probably very close. sincerely. Daniel

  • X

    On the Internet, I found such a unit

    • Rodion

      Belarusian late version for some special security cameras. The most simplified design based on 44-2 / ​​44-3. No aperture preset.

  • Sergei

    It was Belarusian manufacturers who tried so hard to reduce the dimensions of Helios-44 in order to shove it into the case of the “Duty” camera for the police department, sobering-up stations, bullpen, etc.
    And they photographed criminals, hooligans, homeless people, drunks, etc. etc.
    Therefore, the camera and this lens have a bad aura.

  • frol-aleksan

    Caught on Avito KMZ-shny Helios 44 P 2.0-16. I didn't see that in the article. Is this the result of assembling one lens from several, or was there such a modification too?

    • Rodion

      There were those too, it's like the early h105.

  • Manuel

    ¿Qué modelo es este, con 16 hojas? / Which one is this with 16 blades?

    • Sergei

      Early silver-colored KMZ models for M39 threads had 13 aperture blades.
      If you need more, there are early Biotar Carl Zeiss Jena 58mm/2 models with 17 petals.

    • B. R. P.

      Lo más probable es que sea falso.

  • alarm

    hello.Could they be helios 44M model h110?Wider focus ring and sn.in frontplate?

  • alarm

    front

  • alarm

    compare to h111

  • nicolas

    Hello,

    j'ai deux exemplaires 44m-4 valdai. Un de 1986 et l'autre de 1988. Bien que d'apparence semblables, ils différent énormément par la dominante de couleur des photos qu'ils délivrent.
    Les conditions des prices de vue avec mon K3:
    – balance des blancs sur nuageux
    – ouverture F2
    – cible a 60cm
    – aucune lumière directe
    – aucun voile nuageux
    – ISO 300
    - 1 / 2500

    la première série donne une dominante froide alors qu'avec le second exemplaire la série est sur de dominant très chaudes. C'est particulièrement flagrant sur les verts mais ce décalage est présent sur toute la game.

    La seul différence que j'ai noté entre les deux cailloux est la couleur du revêtement des lentilles. Mes deux exemplaires ne sont pas MC mais ils ont bel et bien un revêtement de surface. L'un a un reflet rouge/orangé et l'autre a un reflet violet/bleu.
    Les photos a dominantes froide sont prises avec l'objectif a retement rouge/orange et les photo plus “Pop” avec une colorimétrie plus chaude sont issue de celui avec le revêtement violet/bleu.

    Existe t'il un moyen de connaître les revêtements utilisé selon l'année de construction ?
    Suis je le seul à avoir constaté cela?

    cordially
    Nicolas

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