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Spotmatic TTL Light Meters

tedwhite
Posted 07/10/2005 - 03:59 Link
I wonder if one could pull the collar off a used up Wein cell and fit it to a battery that might work if only it had a collar.

Ted
Kim C
Posted 07/10/2005 - 09:03 Link
tedwhite wrote:
I wonder if one could pull the collar off a used up Wein cell and fit it to a battery that might work if only it had a collar.

Ted

Hi Ted,
I have several collars. They are not realyy necessary in the Spots but I do need them for the Fujica ST601 and 701. Mine came off some S400 Kodak batteries which are the silver version of the mecury 400. The collars just pressed offwhich is how I found that the £5 S400 was in relality an 80p 394 labeled S400 with a collar

I haven't tried it with a wein cell but if you have a dead cell, what have you got to lose

Kim
George Lazarette
Posted 07/10/2005 - 11:15 Link
Well, that was quick. Ordered batteries off Ebay yesterday morning; received them this morning, 23 hours later.

The only trouble is, that the meter doesn't seem to work. To be fair, the seller said it didn't work, but I had been hoping he was playing safe as he didn't have a battery to test it. It seemed as though he had got the camera for 50p in a car boot sale.

No matter, good photographers don't need meters anyway.

G
Kim C
Posted 07/10/2005 - 13:11 Link
Hi George,
Just a thought. Silver/alkaline cells have a different polarity from the old mercury 400's and often people try to fit them the wrong way (myself included ) It is worth taking the bottom cover of and checking the contacts underneath. If someone has left a battery in for some time, this quite often gets corroded and is a simple job to check.

Kim
tedwhite
Posted 07/10/2005 - 15:49 Link
George: If you got a Wein cell they usually take up to a half hour to work. Something about the air-zinc makeup (same as most hearing aid cells). When you pull off the tab it lets air into the tiny hole and brings it to life. I think that's what happens.

Ted
George Lazarette
Posted 07/10/2005 - 18:51 Link
Thanks for your suggestions, Kim and Ted.

The batteries are alkaline, not Wein, and I've taken the bottom plate off. Everything looks fine, and spotlessly clean, but it still doesn't work.

Ah well, Overcast 8, here I come.

G

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