Minolta Lenses from 1981 to the present -- the time period of the Non-Rokkor Minolta lenses
This is the current and final series of manual-focus lenses from Minolta.
Since Minolta had nearly perfected lens features by this time, the
differences from the earlier MD Rokkor-X series were
minimal, and largely cosmetic. Most noticeably, they dropped the ROKKOR
name from the lens nameplate. These lenses are simply marked "Minolta"
-- both in the US market and abroad. This has led to some difficulty
regarding what to call these lenses. Just calling them "MD" isn't adequate,
but they can't be called "Rokkor", and to call them just "Minolta" or even
"Minolta MD" would lead to more confusion. As a result, they are typically
referred to as "MD Minolta" or "Non-Rokkor Minolta" lenses. There has
been a lot of speculation as to why Minolta dropped the "Rokkor" nameplate.
Sure, the lenses were all clearly marked "Minolta", but Minolta wanted
more name recognition. Other lens brands, like Rokinon, sounded like
Rokkor and led to confusion on the part of the consumer. By simply
calling the lens "Minolta", it was clear who the manufacturer was. No
one else could do this.
But there actually were some changes to the lenses -- other than just the
nameplate. Specifically, a lock was added on the MD pin feature.
Many people found that the aperture ring could be moved off of the
smallest aperture setting (which was used for the shutter-priority mode on
the XD cameras) too easily on the MD Rokkor-X lenses,
leading to exposure and viewfinder-display problems. The new MD lock
prevented this problem. It required an additional change, however.
Since the focal length of the lens had been inscribed on the lens barrel
exactly in the same place where the MD lug lock needed to be, Minolta moved
the focal length marking to the other side (left side) of the f-stop scale.
The additional inscription on the opposite side of the lens was dropped.
No big deal -- unless all of your other lenses have the old inscriptions
and you have become accustomed to using them.
This new series also added more plastic parts to the lens barrels, and some
of the zoom lenses were now made by Tokina and Cosina (in China), instead
of Minolta (in Japan and Malaysia). In addition, most MD lenses (but
not all) have an additional tab that connects inside the camera mount --
inside the camera mount of the X-600 camera, that is. It is used for
the focus-verification system of that camera and is completely non-functional
on any other Minolta camera. All it does is indicate to the focus
verification system what the maximum aperture of the lens is. This
helps make the focus verification more accurate.
In addition, most of these lenses have the feet focusing-scale in orange
numbers instead of the green numbers of the MD Rokkor-X series. Why
the change? Your guess is as good as mine. Maybe Minolta determined
that people confused the green focus scale with the green maximum-aperture
mark and the green shutter-priority setting. Who knows, but it is nice
to have things color-coded on complicated camera systems -- I guess. Maybe
they just got a good deal on orange paint that year! Again, if all
your other lenses have green etchings, an MD Minolta lens might be a little
harder to work with.
Also, the rubber waffling on the focusing ring saw some changes. The earlier Rokkor-X lenses had eight rows of waffling per inch. On the Non-Rokkor lenses, there were three styles -- although they all look the same from a distance. A few lenses kept the original waffling, but most earliy, non-Rokkor lenses appeared with a nine rows of waffling per inch. It still had the same rubbery feel of the Rokkor-X waffling. Later on, lenses appeared with ten rows of waffling per inch. In a final change, the waffling became a little bit harder -- more rigid. As a result, some people say that it is more subject to slippage than the older waffling. In other words, you need to apply more pressure -- a more firm grip -- on the new waffling. The old waffling was a softer rubber, and requires only the slightest touch to "stick" to your fingers. These changes are minor and hard to notice. They may reflect in the waffle manufacturer.
These lenses were designed for cameras that have TTL meters. To use, the aperture and shutter speed dials are adjusted until the needles in the viewfinder match, and the exposure is taken. These lenses will work fine on earlier cameras. But a few of the newest MD lenses will not fully function on the oldest cameras (without modification) since the MD pin is a tiny bit too long. Specifically, with earlier SR models with an MD lens, the minimum f-stop cannot be selected because the MD lug will bind on or strike the body's front cover or one of the screws securing it. All other f-stops can be selected. This is true of the SR-1, SR-2, SR-3. SR-7, SR-1s, and SR-M used "as they are". However, all f-stops on MD lenses can be used on any SR-1s, SR-M, SR-1, or SR-7 bodies with serial numbers over 2500000 by having the screw changed. While Minolta no longer offers factory replacement of the screw, any repair shop should have an assortment of fine-threaded screws and be able to match one with a more flush head (or you can file the original screw-head down yourself).
In sum, the major changes on these lenses were (not all lenses have these):
As with the previous series, not all lenses in the series were MD, not all
lenses in the series were MC and some were not even automatic. Some
of these lenses are still being made today. You can identify these
lenses by the front panel around the lens (see above picture). The
name "ROKKOR" does not appear on the lens.
| 7.5mm | 4-22 | MINOLTA MD 7.5mm 1:4 JAPAN | 180 | 12/8 | built-in | auto | yes | yes | 1.5' | 2.7"x2.5" | 12.5 oz. |
| 12.5mm | 2-16 | MINOLTA BELLOWS MICRO 12.5mm 1:2 JAPAN | -- | 4/4 | special | manual | no | no | -- | 1.3"x0.9" | 1.5oz. |
| 16mm | 2.8-22 | MINOLTA MD 16mm 1:2.8 JAPAN | 180 | 10/7 | built-in | auto | yes | yes | 10" | 2.8"x1.7" | 9.3oz. |
| 17mm | 4-22 | MINOLTA MD 17mm 1:4 JAPAN ø72mm | 104 | 11/9 | 72 | auto | yes | yes | 10" | 3.0"x2.1" | 11.5oz. |
| 20mm | 2.8-22 | MINOLTA MD 20mm 1:2.8 JAPAN ø55mm | 94 | 10/9 | 55 | auto | yes | yes | 10" | 2.5"x1.7" | 8.3oz. |
| 24mm | 2.8-22 | MINOLTA MD 24mm 1:2.8 JAPAN ø49mm | 84 | 8/8 | 49 | auto | yes | yes | 1' | 2.5"x1.5" | 7.1oz. |
| 24mm | 2.8-22 | MINOLTA MD 24mm 1:2.8 JAPAN ø55mm | 84 | 9/7 | 55 | auto | yes | yes | 1' | 2.6"x2.0" | 12oz. |
| 24-35mm | 3.5-22 | MINOLTA MD ZOOM 24-35mm 1:3.5 JAPAN ø55mm | 84-63 | 10/10 | 55 | auto | yes | yes | 1' | 2.5"x2.0" | 11.2oz. |
| 24-50mm | 4-22 | MINOLTA MD ZOOM 24-50mm 1:4 JAPAN ø72mm | 84-47 | 13/11 | 72 | auto | yes | yes | 2.3' | 3.0"x2.8" | 14oz. |
| 25mm | 2.5-16 | MINOLTA BELLOWS MICRO 25mm 1:2.5 JAPAN | -- | 6/4 | special | manual | no | no | -- | 1.3"x0.7" | 1.5oz. |
| 28mm | 3.5-22 | MINOLTA MD 28mm 1:3.5 JAPAN ø49mm | 75 | 5/5 | 49 | auto | yes | yes | 1' | 2.5"x1.6" | 6oz. |
| 28mm | 2.8-22 | MINOLTA MD 28mm 1:2.8 JAPAN ø49mm | 75 | 7/7 | 49 | auto | yes | yes | 1' | 2.5"x1.7" | 6.5oz. |
| 28mm | 2.8-22 | MINOLTA MD 28mm 1:2.8 JAPAN ø49mm | 75 | 5/5 | 49 | auto | yes | yes | 1' | 2.5"x1.7" | 8.6oz. |
| 28mm | 2-22 | MINOLTA MD 28mm 1:2 JAPAN ø49mm | 75 | 9/9 | 49 | auto | yes | yes | 1' | 2.5"x2.0" | 9.4oz. |
| 28-70mm | 3.5/4.8-22/30 | MINOLTA MD ZOOM 28-70mm 1:3.5/4.8 JAPAN ø55mm | 75-34 | 8/8 | 55 | auto | yes | yes | 2.6' | 2.5"x2.7" | 14.8oz. |
| 28-85mm | 3.5/4.5-22/28 | MINOLTA MD ZOOM 28-85mm 1:3.5/4.5 JAPAN ø55mm | 75-29 | 13/10 | 55 | auto | yes | yes | 2.6' | 2.5"x3.4" | 1lbs. 2.5oz. |
| 35mm | 2.8-22 | MINOLTA MD 35mm 1:2.8 JAPAN ø49mm | 63 | 5/5 | 49 | auto | yes | yes | 1' | 2.5"x1.5" | 6oz. |
| 35mm | 2.8-22 | MINOLTA SHIFT CA 35mm 1:2.8 JAPAN ø55mm | 63 | 9/7 | 55 | auto | no | no | 1' | 3.3"x2.8" | 1lbs. 3.8oz. |
| 35mm | 1.8-22 | MINOLTA MD 35mm 1:1.8 JAPAN ø49mm | 63 | 8/6 | 49 | auto | yes | yes | 1' | 2.5"x1.9" | 8.4oz. |
| 35-70mm | 3.5/4.8-22/30 | MINOLTA MD ZOOM 35-70mm 1:3.5/4.8 JAPAN ø55mm | 63-34 | 7/7 | 55 | auto | yes | yes | 1.6' | ? | ? |
| 35-70mm | 3.5-22 | MINOLTA MD ZOOM 35-70mm 1:3.5 JAPAN ø55mm | 63-34 | 8/7 | 55 | auto | yes | yes | 2.6' | 2.7"x2.6" | 12.9oz. |
| 35-70mm | 3.5-22 | MINOLTA MD ZOOM 35-70mm 1:3.5 JAPAN ø55mm | 63-34 | 8/7 | 55 | auto | yes | yes | 1.1' | 2.7"x2.6" | 12.9oz. |
| 35-105mm | 3.5/4.5-22/28 | MINOLTA MD ZOOM 35-105mm 1:3.5/4.5 JAPAN ø55mm | 63-23.3 | 14/12 | 55 | auto | yes | yes | 4.9' | 2.7"x3.5" | 15oz. |
| 35-105mm | 3.5/4.5-22/28 | MINOLTA MD ZOOM 35-105mm 1:3.5/4.5 JAPAN ø55mm | 63-23.3 | 16/13 | 55 | auto | yes | yes | 5.2' | 2.7"x3.6" | 1lbs. 1 oz. |
| 35-135mm | 3.5/4.5-32/41 | MINOLTA MD ZOOM 35-135mm 1:3.5/4.5 JAPAN ø55mm | 63-18 | 14/12 | 55 | auto | yes | yes | 4.9' | 2.7"x3.9" | 1lbs. 2oz. |
| 50mm | 3.5-32 | MINOLTA AUTO BELLOWS MACRO 50mm 1:3.5 JAPAN | 47 | 6/4 | 55 | auto | no | no | -- | 2.2"x1" | 4.1oz. |
| 50mm | 3.5-22 | MINOLTA MD MACRO 50mm 1:3.5 JAPAN ø55mm | 47 | 6/4 | 55 | auto | yes | yes | 9" | 2.5"x2.2" | 7.3oz. |
| 50mm | 2-22 | MINOLTA MD 50mm 1:2 JAPAN ø49mm | 47 | 6/5 | 49 | auto | yes | yes | 1.5' | 2.5"x1.4" | 5.4oz. |
| 50mm | 1.7-22 | MINOLTA MD 50mm 1:1.7 JAPAN ø49mm | 47 | 6/5 | 49 | auto | yes | yes | 1.5' | 2.5"x1.4" | 5.8oz. |
| 50mm | 1.4-16 | MINOLTA MD 50mm 1:1.4 JAPAN ø49mm | 47 | 7/6 | 49 | auto | yes | yes | 1.5' | 2.5"x1.6" | 8.3oz. |
| 50mm | 1.2-16 | MINOLTA MD 50mm 1:1.2 JAPAN ø55mm | 47 | 7/6 | 55 | auto | yes | yes | 1.5' | 2.6"x1.8" | 11oz. |
| 50-135mm | 3.5-32 | MINOLTA MD ZOOM 50-135mm 1:3.5 JAPAN ø55mm | 47-18 | 12/10 | 55 | auto | yes | yes | 4.9' | 2.7"x4.6" | 1lbs. 1oz. |
| 70-210mm | 4.5/5.6-22/27 | MINOLTA MD ZOOM 70-210mm 1:4.5/5.6 JAPAN ø49mm | 34-12 | 12/9 | 49 | auto | yes | yes | 3.9' | ? | ? |
| 70-210mm | 4-32 | MINOLTA MD ZOOM 70-210mm 1:4 JAPAN ø55mm | 34-12 | 12/9 | 55 | auto | yes | yes | 3.6' | 2.7"x6" | 1lbs. 8.4oz. |
| 70-300mm | 4.5/5.8-22/28 | MINOLTA MD ZOOM 70-300mm 1:4.5/5.8 JAPAN ø55mm | 34-8 | 13/9 | 55 | auto | yes | yes | 5' | ? | ? |
| 75-150mm | 4-32 | MINOLTA MD ZOOM 75-150mm 1:4 JAPAN ø49mm | 32-16.5 | 12/8 | 49 | auto | yes | yes | 3.9' | 2.7"x4.5" | 15.7oz. |
| 75-200mm | 4.5-22 | MINOLTA MD ZOOM 75-200mm 1:4.5 JAPAN ø55mm | 32-12.5 | 15/11 | 55 | auto | yes | yes | 3.9' | 2.7"x6.1" | 1lbs. 8.2oz. |
| 85mm | 2.8-16 | MINOLTA MD 85mm 1:2.8 JAPAN ø55mm | 29 | 6/5 | 55 | auto | yes | yes | 2.6' | 2.8"x3.1" | 15.2oz. |
| 85mm | 2-22 | MINOLTA MD 85mm 1:2 JAPAN ø49mm | 29 | 6/5 | 49 | auto | yes | yes | 2.8' | 2.5"x2.2" | 10.1oz. |
| 85mm | 1.7-22 | MINOLTA MD 85mm 1:1.7 JAPAN ø55mm | 29 | 6/5 | 55 | auto | yes | yes | 3.3' | 2.8"x2.4" | 1lbs. |
| 100mm | 4-32 | MINOLTA MD MACRO 100mm 1:4 JAPAN ø55mm | 24 | 5/4 | 55 | auto | yes | yes | 1.5' | 2.6"x3.5" | 13.4oz. |
| 100mm | 4-32 | MINOLTA AUTO BELLOWS MACRO 100mm 1:4 JAPAN | 24 | 5/4 | 55 | auto | no | no | -- | 2.2"x1.1" | 5.3oz. |
| 100mm | 2.5-22 | MINOLTA MD 100mm 1:2.5 JAPAN ø55mm | 24 | 5/5 | 55 | auto | yes | yes | 3.3' | 2.5"x2.6" | 11oz. |
| 100mm | 2.5-22 | MINOLTA MD 100mm 1:2.5 JAPAN ø49mm | 24 | 5/5 | 49 | auto | yes | yes | 3.3' | 2.5"x2.6" | 11oz. |
| 100-200mm | 5.6-22 | MINOLTA MD ZOOM 100-200mm 1:5.6 JAPAN ø55mm | 24-12.5 | 8/5 | 55 | auto | yes | yes | 8.2' | 2.5"x6.8" | 1lbs. 4.1oz. |
| 100-300mm | 5.6/6.7-22/26 | MINOLTA MD ZOOM 100-300mm 1:5.6/6.7 JAPAN ø55mm | 24-8 | 10/8 | 55 | auto | yes | yes | 3.3' | ? | ? |
| 100-300mm | 5.6-32 | MINOLTA MD ZOOM 100-300mm 1:5.6 JAPAN ø55mm | 24-8 | 13/10 | 55 | auto | yes | yes | 4.9' | 2.7"x7.4" | 1lbs. 8.3oz. |
| 100-500mm | 8-32 | MINOLTA MD ZOOM 100-500mm 1:8 JAPAN ø72mm | 24-5 | 16/10 | 72 | auto | yes | yes | 8.2' | 3.6"x13" | 4lbs. 7.6oz. |
| 100-500mm | 8-32 | MINOLTA MD ZOOM 100-500mm 1:8 JAPAN ø72mm | 24-5 | 16/11 | 72 | auto | yes | yes | 8.2' | 3.6"x13" | 4lbs. 7.6oz. |
| 135mm | 3.5-22 | MINOLTA MD 135mm 1:3.5 JAPAN ø49mm | 18 | 5/5 | 49 | auto | yes | yes | 4.9' | 2.5"x2.9" | 10.1oz. |
| 135mm | 2.8-22 | MINOLTA MD 135mm 1:2.8 JAPAN ø55mm | 18 | 5/5 | 55 | auto | yes | yes | 4.9' | 2.5"x3.2" | 13.6oz. |
| 135mm | 2-22 | MINOLTA MD 135mm 1:2 JAPAN ø72mm | 18 | 6/5 | 72 | auto | yes | yes | 4.3' | 3.2"x3.8" | 1lbs. 9.6oz. |
| 200mm | 4-32 | MINOLTA MD 200mm 1:4 JAPAN ø55mm | 12.5 | 5/5 | 55 | auto | yes | yes | 8.2' | 2.5"x4.6" | 14.8oz. |
| 200mm | 2.8-32 | MINOLTA MD 200mm 1:2.8 JAPAN ø72mm | 12.5 | 5/5 | 72 | auto | yes | yes | 6' | 3.1"x5.3" | 1lbs. 8.7oz. |
| 250mm | 5.6 | MINOLTA RF 250mm 1:5.6 JAPAN | 10 | 6/5 | 39/62 | fixed | no | no | 8.2' | 2.6"x2.3" | 8.7oz. |
| 300mm | 5.6-32 | MINOLTA MD 300mm 1:5.6 JAPAN ø55mm | 8 | 5/5 | 55 | auto | yes | yes | 14.8' | 2.5"x7.3" | 1lbs. 8.5oz. |
| 300mm | 4.5-32 | MINOLTA MD 300mm 1:4.5 JAPAN ø72mm | 8 | 7/6 | 72 | auto | yes | yes | 9.8' | 3.1"x7.0" | 1lbs. 8.9oz. |
| 400mm | 5.6-32 | MINOLTA MD APO 400mm 1:5.6 JAPAN ø72mm | 6 | 7/6 | 72 | auto | yes | yes | 16.4' | 3.3"x10" | 3lbs. 2.8oz. |
| 500mm | 8 | MINOLTA RF 500mm 1:8 JAPAN | 5 | 6/5 | 39/77 | fixed | no | no | 13.1' | 3.9" x 3.3" | 1lb. 5oz. |
| 600mm | 6.3-32 | MINOLTA MD APO 600mm 1:6.3 JAPAN | 4 | 9/8 | special | auto | yes | yes | 16.4' | 4.3"x14.7" | 5lbs. 4.6oz. |
| 800mm | 8 | MINOLTA RF 800mm 1:8 JAPAN | 3 | 8/7 | special | fixed | no | no | 26' | 4.9"x5.8" | 4lb. 5oz. |
| 1600mm | 11 | MINOLTA RF 1600mm 1:11 JAPAN | 1.5 | 6/5 | special | fixed | no | no | 66' | 7"x12.8" | 13lbs.14oz. |
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