I know some like to mod PC cases around here but how about modding a lens? I decided to butcher an old 28mm manual lens I had lying around and turn it into a tilt/shift style lens. It was pretty successful so I blogged about my exploits here: http://planet-veato.blogspot.co.uk/2016/02/building-tiltshift-lens.html Have a read if you fancy having a go. I do have some slight regret as the lens I chose was actually in very very good condition and a good sharp lens at that! I would advise picking something cheap up from eBay if you fancy it yourself.
Not the same level of mod but I converted a Tessar 50mm with a faulty A-M Mechanism into a full time manual lens. It's been working fine for the past 3 years.
Great thread idea! I also "modded" a few lenses. I think I also posted about this one in the latest purchases thread: A Konica Hexanon 45mm f/1.8, the fixed lens of a Konica Auto S2, adapted to Fuji X mount using step-up rings and a reverse adapter. Separate focusing helicoids with a screw mount are really expensive (even the Chinese ones), so I reuse the helicoid of a crappy Izumanon macro diopter to adapt several lenses without helicoid to my Fuji X-E1. The base is the X-mount part of a set of macro tubes. I actually didn't plan for this but when I received the tubes I noticed the segments connect using a 52x0.75 screwmount, just like a 52mm filter, which is super convenient. On the right a specialized large format Steinheil 56mm f/1.9 macro lens of an oscillograph (completely rubbish for normal usage but very high resolution at high magnifications) which I gave a 67mm screw mount using a Canon EOS to M42 adapter I had lying around and a 55mm-67mm step-up ring. Together a high quality macro lens (though a bit clumsy in operation, and terrible with flaring): The rings which used to hold single lens elements of the macro diopter can be screwed out and have a ridge which I simply tape my projector lenses to. Here for example my Leitz Wetzlar Elmaron 80mm f/2.8 (super soft but flattering for portraits). No aperture of course, but lots of fun to use. I'm also planning on making something similar to veato's tilt-shift lens with the medium format Schneider-Kreuznach Radionar 105mm f/4.5 I took from an old bellows camera. It has a wide enough image circle (at least 9x9cm) to allow for a lot of tilt and shift. Right now I'm working on modifying the broken auto aperture mechanism of an otherwise beautiful Rollei Planar 50mm f/1.8 to a normal, sane design. I have no idea why the makers of this lens went for such a stupid, fragile construction instead of using what works perfectly in 99% of other lenses.
