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Re: [OM] 6V Power Pack

Subject: Re: [OM] 6V Power Pack
From: Jan Steinman <jans@xxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: Tue, 15 Jun 1999 18:19:00 -0700
>From: Chris Johns <lc-johns@xxxxxxxx>

>...if you know how to rig up a holder and cable that works just as well,
>I'd be interested in that approach too.

Unless you're a collector, and want "the real thing," or are terminally
timid about electricity and solder, you can easily roll your own.

The connector is available at Radio Shack. Beware and keep your receipt --
there are several "standard" co-axial power connectors. I think Olympus
uses one with a 3.5mm ID, but I'm not certain.

The hardest part is the battery holder. Again, at Radio Shack, you can buy
various holders that will hold four AA, C, or D cells, but they are meant
to be enclosed, and are ugly and fragile. You can plop the whole thing
inside a child's sock if you're not too particular.

I bought a miner's headlamp at an outdoors store. It came with a nice
holder for 4 D cells, which I cut off, putting a plug on the end, and
putting a jack on the light. Voilla! Instant universal 6V source, with a
free head lamp thrown in! (The entire headlamp plus the extra parts was
about half of the eBay price for the overpriced Olympus 6V power pack.)

You can also wire up a rechargeable battery of some kind. Sealed lead-acid
6V batteries are also a Radio Shack item, although you can do a lot better
on price if you shop around. You should charge them with a regulated power
supply, or a dedicated charger designed for them. If you merely connect
them to a 6V "wall wart," you may overcharge them and reduce their life.

Finally, get a hunk of two-conductor wire (not needed with the miner's
lamp). Solder the center conductor of the power connector to the "+"
terminal of the battery, and the outside conductor to the "-" terminal.
(Actually, polarity is not important to the modelling lights, but IS
importand to Winders!)

If you're really ambitious, and have a lot of 6V stuff with various
connectors, pick a "standard" and then make little adaptors between that
and the various 6V devices you need to power. I use Anderson Power Pole
connectors for this purpose, as do many ham radio operators.

Radio Shack is ubiquitous, but expensive and clueless. ("You've got
questions, we've got blank stares!" :-) For some real fun, pick up a copy
of Radio Electronics at your neighborhood newstand and look through the ads
in the back. You'll find all the parts mentioned here, some for as little
as 100f the Radio Shack price.

: Jan Steinman <mailto:jans@xxxxxxxxxxx>
: 19280 Rydman Court, West Linn, OR 97068-1331 USA
: +1.503.635.3229

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