AF Variogon 60–140mm f/4.6 (6000/Hy6)

Schneider-Kreuznach · Rollei 6000 · 2002 · Zoom, 13 elements in 11 groups

Also known as: Rollei AF Variogon 60-140mm f/4.6 HFT PQS · Schneider AF-Variogon 60-140mm F4.6 Rollei · AF Variogon 4.6/60-140 Rolleiflex 6008 AF · Rollei AFD Variogon 60-140mm Hy6 · Schneider-Kreuznach AF Variogon HFT 60-140 · Rollei 6008 AF 60-140 zoom · ローライ AF バリオゴン 60-140mm F4.6 · シュナイダー AFバリオゴン 60-140mm PQS ローライ · ローライフレックス 6008AF 60-140mm

Variants & identification

Variant	Mount	Years	Serial ranges	Production
AF Variogon HFT 4.6/60–140 PQS, order no. 54 501 (2002–)	Rollei 6000	2002	—	—
AFD Variogon HFT 4.6/60–140 PQS, for the Hy6 (2007–)	Rollei 6000	2007	—	—

Construction, f/4.6–32, 0.7 m closest focus, 119 × 210 mm, 2,400 g and the 122 mm thread are from the English Wikipedia list of SLX/6000/Hy6 lenses, drawn from Rollei's 6000-System lens brochure and the Hy6 manual; rolleigraphy.eu gives a 67–32° diagonal and 50–23° horizontal field, M 122 × 1 and the order number; Japanese Wikipedia gives 11群13枚 and 0.7 m.
Groups. The English list and Japanese Wikipedia give 13 elements in 11 groups; rolleigraphy.eu's table prints 13 and 13, which reads as a repeated figure. 11 groups is used.
Filter. The English list and rolleigraphy.eu give M122 × 1; Japanese Wikipedia gives φ112 mm. 122 mm, from the Rollei brochure by way of rolleigraphy.eu, is the stronger figure.
Years. Rollei's press release of March 2002 announced the lens for the second half of 2002; the Hy6 and its AFD lenses followed in 2007. No end dates were found; Japanese Wikipedia puts the end of 6008 AF production at 2014 and of the Hy6 at 2013, with the Hy6 Mod2 running until the maker's bankruptcy in March 2015.
Not found: the number of diaphragm blades, a list price (the press release prices only the 6008 AF body with magazine, under €4,000 including VAT), production figures, and any published test. Forum users' remarks on its weight exist but were not consulted as sources.

How to tell them apart (expand)

The only zoom of the system below 75 mm and the only one with autofocus; 'Heavy!' in Rollei's own brochure wording as quoted on rolleigraphy.eu, at 2.4 kg and 210 mm long with a 122 mm front thread, the largest filter size in the line
Rollei 6000 bayonet with electrical contacts and no shutter-speed ring; aperture ring 4.6–32 with an 'A' position on the AF lens, no aperture ring at all on the AFD
Not the manual-focus Variogon 75–150 or 140–280 of the SLX and PQ years, which have M95 threads and no AF

AF Variogon HFT 4.6/60–140 PQS, order no. 54 501 (2002–):

'AF' in the name and 'PQS' beside the aperture numbers; an aperture ring is present (rolleigraphy.eu)
Autofocus on the 6008 AF and Hy6; manual focus only on the 6008, 6003 and 6001; will not run on the SLX, 6006 or 6002, whose supply cannot drive PQS motors (rolleigraphy.eu, English Wikipedia list)
M122 × 1 filter thread, 119 × 210 mm, 2.4 kg (English Wikipedia list, rolleigraphy.eu)

AFD Variogon HFT 4.6/60–140 PQS, for the Hy6 (2007–):

'AFD' in the name and no aperture ring: the aperture is set on the body, which only the Hy6 can do (rolleigraphy.eu)
Same glass, size and 122 mm thread as the AF lens (English Wikipedia list, rolleigraphy.eu)

AF Variogon HFT 4.6/60–140 PQS, order no. 54 501 (2002–): Announced in March 2002 with the Rolleiflex 6008 AF as one of three Schneider autofocus lenses to follow in the second half of that year, with the AF-Tele-Xenar 2.8/180 and the AF-Xenotar 2.8/80 (Rollei press release). Rollei order no. 54 501.
AFD Variogon HFT 4.6/60–140 PQS, for the Hy6 (2007–): The Hy6 version. AFD lenses lost the aperture ring, and because no 6000-series body sets apertures from the camera, they cannot be used on anything but the Hy6 (rolleigraphy.eu). The Hy6 was announced in 2006 and sold from 2007, also as the Sinar Hy6 and Leaf AFi (Japanese Wikipedia).

Specifications

Formula: Zoom, 13 elements in 11 groups
Construction: 13 elements / 11 groups
Aperture range: f/4.6–f/32
Shutter: Electronically timed leaf shutter built into the lens, 30 s–1/1000 s (PQS), its blades and the diaphragm driven by linear motors through the lens contacts; speeds are set on the body
Min. focus: 0.7 m
Dimensions: 119 × 210 mm
Weight: 2400 g
Filter: 122 mm
Years manufactured: 2002
Country: Germany
Coating: HFT multicoating

What reviewers say

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History

The AF Variogon HFT 4.6/60–140 is the autofocus zoom Schneider-Kreuznach made for the Rolleiflex 6008 AF, the camera Rollei announced in March 2002 as the first 6×6 system camera with autofocus. The press release promised three Schneider AF lenses for the second half of that year, the 180 mm f/2.8 AF-Tele-Xenar, this 60–140 mm f/4.6 AF-Variogon and the 80 mm f/2.8 AF-Xenotar; the zoom carries Rollei order number 54 501. It is a thirteen-element, eleven-group design with a constant f/4.6, stopping to f/32, focusing to 0.7 m, and it is big: 119 mm across, 210 mm long, 2.4 kg, with a 122 mm filter thread, the largest in the system. Rollei’s own brochure, as quoted on rolleigraphy.eu, ends its description with “Heavy!”.

Electrically it is a PQS lens, with the 1/1000 s shutter and the second-generation linear motors, so it needs a body from the 6008 professional onward; on the 6008, 6003 and 6001 it focuses by hand, on the 6008 AF and the Hy6 it autofocuses, and on the SLX, 6006 and 6002 it does not work at all. The AFD version that came with the Hy6 in 2007 has the same glass and no aperture ring, the aperture being set on the body, which makes it a Hy6-only lens since no 6000-series body can set an aperture itself. The AF lens, with its ring, works on both. The Hy6 was sold under the Sinar and Leaf names as well, so an AFD Variogon may turn up with either badge on the body it came from.

Nothing in the way of a test or review was found, and no list price for the lens, only the press release’s figure of under €4,000 for the 6008 AF body with magazine. Production ended with the cameras: the 6008 AF in 2014 by Japanese Wikipedia’s account and the Hy6 line with DHW’s bankruptcy in 2015, though the successor company still supports the camera. When buying, the autofocus and the electrically driven shutter and diaphragm can only be checked on a 6008 AF or Hy6, and the two versions should not be confused: the AFD has no aperture ring and is useless on a 6008 AF.

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This history is AI-written, from the sources listed at the foot of the page. Where the record is silent it says so rather than filling the gap — but no human wrote these sentences.

Example photos

Sample photo wanted — shot with a AF Variogon 60–140mm f/4.6 (6000/Hy6)? We'd love to feature it (with credit).

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