In article <4jakng$1dm@newsbf02.news.aol.com>, jamesb5007@aol.com says...

>I'm seeking advice for people who know about these lenses. 14 and
>15mm rectilinear lenses. What is a good one for the money? Is there
>a hands down best lens in this category? How about the older ones?

Having owned a few of these, my favorite is the Nikkor 15mm f5.6,
though I have some reservations about it. A quote from my "SLE(MN)":

- 15mm f5.6 ------------- 3-4.5 (several samples, somewhat
variable, very low linear distortion, even center to corner
performance, very even illumination [in common with all the Nikkor
wides except the 18mm MF's, the 21mm, and the 35mm f2 MF at wide
apertures], slightly yellow color cast compared with other Nikkors,
best at f11-16, need to open 1/2 stop from meter reading, corners
improve slightly in B & W using yellow, orange, or red filter)
- 15mm f3.5 ------------- 4 (2) (poor corner performance in B & W,
good in color)

Stopped down, for color use only, the f3.5 version is excellent. For
good overall performance in both color and B & W (best with at least
the yellow filter [has built-in Y, O, R filters] in place), combined with very low linear distortion, it is hard to beat the f5.6 version
(it provides remarkably even sharpness and illumination over the
whole frame). It is available only used, and often for a (relatively)
bargain price. Don't let the speed fool you - these should all be used at smaller stops for best performance, and the very short FL allows
for some very slow hand-holdable shutter speeds (I have used mine
succesfully in some very dim places [like a synchrotron tunnel -
and f8 performance is fine for most uses]).
Hope This Helps