Bad news

I hate to be the bearer of bad news but the #675,zinc/air hearing aid battery, a popular replacement for 1.35

volt mercury batteries may be headed in the same direction. My wife has been telling me for some time (so she

says) that I need a hearing aid so I took a hearing test today and discussed the results with an audiologist who

said its up to me how I wnt to live my life but if I want to hear the birds in the trees, rushing rivers, and

leaf shutters I should test out several hearing aids. I explained to her that I would like models that used #675

batteries for obvious (to me) reasons but she said no modern hearing aids were being designed to use those

batteries and that were only being kept in production to satisfy the needs of older people who had purchased

these models years ago and that as the users died off so would the supply of the #675's. So if any of you have

older relatives and friends with these hearing aids buy them a warm sweater or some vitamin pills and when the

day comes you might as well toss your old cameras into the grave too.

<p>As long as they make Schottky diodes, those old cameras can be upgraded to use the 1.55 silver oxide batteries and such an upgraded meter should operate with about as much accuracy as one operated with a zinc oxide battery. So I'd say bring on the death panels... (I am kidding, of course).</p>

<p>I know that the zinc-air cells gop bad in a few years just sitting around<br>

any suggestions about how to store some for 5-10 years?<br>

or should I look for shottky diodes?</p>

<p>Another solution is to simply use an alkaline or silver oxide battery and get familiar with how much to adjust the ASA dial on the camera. There's really not that much difference between the voltages. As the higher voltage battery will push the needle higher, lower the ASA dial to compensate. Simply use Sunny 16 or a known good meter, set your shutter and aperture, and set your ASA dial to centre the needle in for your chosen film speed. Make a note of how much to adjust and remember it. I've done that with my Chinon CS. It works fine.</p>

<p>Guess I'll be using my Studio Deluxe a little more in the future.</p>

<p>I have seen this coming for a while. Already you have to go to the better stocked drugstores to find these. Radio Shack still has plenty, and at good prices, but I don't suppose that'll last forever either. When you look at the size of modern hearing aids, the writing is on the wall.</p>

<p>But, is it really that big a deal? What's the next size down? I think it's called #13. They are the same height, just a bit smaller in diameter. They have the same voltage, but I suppose somewhat less capacity. I'm sure we'll be able to get them to fit battery compartments designed for 675 and even 625 sizes with a little ingenuity (and some washers and kitchen foil).</p>

<p>The CRIS battery adapter has the diode built in, and it's a drop-in piece. I haven't gotten to that point yet (still have a load of ZA's), but when I do, I expect to be lazy enough to go that route rather than rewire the 40 or so cameras that I would have to convert.</p>

<p>I'm with Richard and August. A few CRIS adapters would solve the problem for me, but so far even that has been unnecessary due to the cheapness and availability of the 675's. If that changes, there may be another suitable zinc-air substitute, otherwise there are the adapters and even the wein cells which work with no adapter but are simply more expensive than the 675's.</p>

<p>What I don't understand is why no one has invented miniaturized light meters. If they can put GPS in a watch and a video camera lens the size of a flea on an ipod Nano, why is the smallest light meter still the Gossen Digisix. Surely if someone made a good meter the size of a casio watch, many of us would forget about all these batteries for old meters and just stick a new meter on top of the camera or on our wrists.</p>

<p>I had my three Canon F-1's meters recalibrated so that they are accurate with 1.5V batteries.</p>

<p>Can't the same be done with other bodies?</p>

<p>The Wein Zinc Air batts will last a decade on the shelf as new. Considering the size of 675 and the size of the average ear, I am not surprised at the audiologist's answer. My father's aids were fitted inside the ear and held tiny batteries and worked nicely. As the aids have been evolving smaller, so have power cell requirements. I have used hearing aid batteries in some of my meters & old Konica bodies etc, but honestly, they don't last very long compared to Wein cells. Some meters & older cameras can be modified to take modern cells. Gossen used to do the mods to Luna Pros etc. There are other adapters and kits you may be able to find to accomplish your change too with some googling and inventiveness.</p>

<p>I've used the Cris adaptors for years with excellent results. Of course, sometimes that means running a $20 camera with $35 worth of battery and adaptor, but they last forever.</p>

Ben, regarding mini light meters, it would be trivially easy for someone with the right skills and access to write light meter apps for any modern cell phone or handheld email device that has a camera. So far, the iPhone is the only one I know of that actually has such an app. Of course, that wouldn't solve all of our problems, since many cameras need those cells not just to meter, but to work at all.

<p>I still have one pack of 6 brand-new PX675 Mercury Batteries from my Konica days, if anybody wants them. Been in the freezer since I bought them new in 2001. Sold the last 6 for £30.00 on fleabay a few months ago...</p>

<p>Regarding the comment by Rob Holz, Sep 10, 2009; 09:15 p.m.:<br>

Rob (or anyone)---How many f-stops off was your own camera's meter when you switched to an alkaline or silver oxide battery? I realize this will not apply to all camera meters. Thanks!</p>

<p> </p>

<p>I have a bunch of cameras where I simply don't even bother to serach for batteries for the in-camera meter. One of them is my faithful Pentax Spotmatic-F.<br>

I do have a wide collection of hand held meters some using 675 replacements but most using dead normal AAA batteries... and I always can abuse my DSL to be used as a mere meter ;)</p>

<p> </p>

<p><em>What I don't understand is why no one has invented miniaturized light meters.</em></p>

<p>Ask and ye shall receive. The "Voigtlander VC Meter II" is available online for around $175, and slips onto a hot/cold shoe. Google will reveal many reviews and vendors.</p>

<p>Zane, thanks. I'd seen the old Leica meters which were a bit larger and wouldn't fit a lot of cameras, but I wasn't aware of this latest model from Voigtlander. It looks like it would fit the bill for a lot of classic cameras.</p>

<p>Re: the comment by Rob:</p>

<blockquote>

<p>As the higher voltage battery will push the needle higher, lower the ASA dial to compensate.</p>

</blockquote>

<p>That is not true. An ASA compensation will not be valid over the full range of EVs; at least on stop underexposure at low light if adjusted for sunny scene. Even the Schottky diode is not a fully accurate solution... Many cameras with CdSe light cells have two variable resistors for calibration (high- and low light); I guess that is because CdSe cells had a sizeable manufacturing spread.<br>

Recalibrated a Rollei35 for Silver-oxide;<br>

For other cameras (no photocell, not re-calibrated) bought (10€) a Sixtino. Without the hard case, easily kept in my pocket at the end of its metal leash.</p>

<p>Bob, mine wasn't off by much more than a stop. It was merely a suggestion that has worked for me.</p>