DIY project - External Power Pack

[Ozzie_Traveller]

G'day all

Over the years I've become tired of the small AA batteries fading away while I'm shooting a 2-hour studio shoot, so I've made up an external power pack

It's a "rainy-day" type of DIY project .... Materials needed -
1x lo-voltage / curly cable x 1/2-metre [2ft] long
1x 13mm [1/2inch] stick of balsa wood
2x small alligator clips
2x small screws
various small tools, glue etc

1- Here's the completed setup


2- the curly cord with its alligator clips


3- the balsa wood bits cut & glued to replace the AA batteries


4- small mod to flashgun battery lid to accept cable


I use these flash guns as slave guns in the home-studio, and they often have a few minutes wait time between shots as I rearrange the subject
Now I can shoot for 6-8 hours over several sessions before the recycle time starts to increase [BTW- having a larger battery does not speed up the recycle time - that is inherent within the flashgun design]

Other things-
The curly cord comes from an old flash PC cord found in the bottom of a junk box, all cable joints are soldered.
The battery has a strap taped to it and via this strap, I hang the battery onto the studio light stand, or slide it into my trouser pocket when I'm mobile with the flash on the camera

Hope others find this helpful
Regards, Phil

[dan8238]

Phil:
Great idea. Thanks for the response and I'll give it a try.
Dan