Vintage Lens Year Calculator

Find your vintage lens’s production year using my serial number lookup tool. Select the manufacturer, enter the serial number, and receive an estimate. Choose from over 15 lens brands, including Leica, Angénieux, and Zeiss.

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Disclaimer: This calculator is a mix of information from various sources and calculations based on the first and last known serial numbers for each manufacturer. Please note that this calculator divides the serial numbers equally within missing year spans to determine the production year. In reality, production quantities may vary from year to year, and this calculator provides approximate estimates.

Current searchable serial number ranges:

  • Astro-Berlin (1921-1991)
  • Carl Zeiss Jena (1890-1942)
  • Carl Zeiss Jena (E.-GER.) (1945-1975)
  • Carl Zeiss Oberkochen (W.-GER.) (1946-1975)
  • Bausch & Lomb (1876-1942)
  • Boyer Paris (1895-1970)
  • Dallmeyer (1860-1984)
  • Goerz (1888-1926)
  • Hermagis (1867-1883)
  • Kinoptik (1933-1985)
  • Leica (1931-2011)
  • Ludwig (1934-1972)
  • Hugo Meyer Optik Görlitz (1900-1972)
  • P. Angénieux Paris (1935-1998)
  • Ross (1840-1960)
  • Rodenstock (1910-1993)
  • Schneider-Kreuznach (1919-2008)
  • Steinheil (1931-1967)
  • Taylor-Hobson (1895-1965)
  • Voigtländer (1840-1971)
  • Compur shutters (1912-1952)