Pentax SFXn Lithium Battery Grip Problems

Hello, I recently got an SFXn second-hand but I'm having problems fitting my 2cr5 lithium battery into the grip? I talked to the seller and he said that it should work and that we used the same battery. Is there something I'm missing here? It just won't fit no matter which way I turn it around.

Thanks!

Looks like the battery is too big or is in some kind of case? How tall is the battery?

I have an SFX AA battery grip for sale in the classifieds: link, it will fit (just has 'SFX' printed on the side) although you may want to try a different 2CR5 first to make sure the camera works.

John.

Is the area under where it says Lithium + - a hollow cavity ?

As it looks like you'd need to tuck the top of the battery up inside a hollow area - else, indeed the battery is too big.

Interestingly, the design of my SFXn battery cover is a very different design, to the extent that the electrical connections are at the other end.

I've just had a look at the compartments for my SFX and SFXn.



SFX SFXn battery compartments par Kris Lockyear, on ipernity

The one on the left is the Fb for the SFXn as shown in Waggy's post, the one on the right is for the SFX. The S7 has an entirely different set-up. As you can see, for both of them the contacts are in the top of the holder, not the bottom.

I'm rather bemused as to what your battery grip is. It looks like the top bit (with the C on my copy of the grip for the SFX) has been changed and some sort of different base has been inserted. It maybe a mod for a different type of battery. I'll do some more research.

Thanks, Kris.

I've now checked the manual and the Hove Fountain book on the SFX/SFXn and neither mention another type of battery grip, so I'm afraid it remains a bit of a mystery. AFAIK, the SFX/SFXn were the only bodies that used this sort of removable grip. The SF7 has the batteries inserted from the base, and I think the MZ series is similar (I don't have any of those).

Your best bet is to pick up another battery grip, there seem to be a few about. Note that the grips for the SFX and SFXn are interchangeable. The main visible difference is the logo on the SFXn is on the camera not the grip.

Cheers, Kris.

There is another one but it is designed to take AA size ordinary batteries. Will this accept normal batteries - the fact it says Lithium on it is beside the point if it has been modified in some way.

It is too short a space for AAs. The 2CR5 is shorter than an AA. It's all very odd.

K.

My SFX/SFXn 2CR5 grips are the same as womble's (including the 'C' on the SFX grip), it's a strange situation.

The 2CR5 battery is 6v and 34mm tall, the grip may have been modified to take two 3v CR2 batteries which are 27mm tall - are there any contacts at the 'top' (in the photo where 'Lithium' is) which would 'bridge' two 3v batteries in series?

The Lithium battery grips are much easier to find on ebay than the AA ones, although I'd be wary of a camera if the wrong batteries have been shoe-horned into it.

The SFX manual says to use a DL233A (34.5mm tall) or a 2CR5 (43mm tall) and to use the inner frame for the shorter DL233A. It seems they dropped support for the DL233A with the Fb grip. However it does suggest the original lithium grip could take the 2CR5. Umm....

The footnote on the right of the page that Bertie posts says "Insert BR.P"dp within the inner frame..." to use the smaller battery. Presumably this can be removed to go back to 2CR5s.

I'm not sure I have the SFX manual, only an SFXn one.

K.