Re: [Leica] Battery for M6 (long, and maybe useless!)

["Tom Schofield" <tdschofield@email.msn.com>]

Hi Bruce,

Thank you for an informative post from one who is obviously knowledgeable in
the area!  Can you comment upon using two 1.5 v silver batteries instead of
a 1/3N Li battery?  My M6 TTL has gone through several sets in 6 mos, and
the silver batteries seem to last longer.  Are silver as good in low
temperatures?

Tom

- ----- Original Message -----
From: <MicroGrid@aol.com>
To: <leica-users@mejac.palo-alto.ca.us>
Sent: Saturday, January 15, 2000 7:28 AM
Subject: Re: [Leica] Battery for M6 (long, and maybe useless!)


> I have lurked, and posted a few questions on this list for about a year
now.
> I really don't have time to read everything you all post but it is very
> interesting. My ears perk up when the topics touch batteries. Our business
is
> manufacturing "MicroGrid, a mesh used as the substrate in the manufacture
of
> advanced batteries. We supply this to the world's battery manufactures,
> primary as well as secondary. The ones that will interest Leicaphiles are
the
> 1/3N Lithium cells, as well as the 2/3A, (CR123). Both have my mesh in
them.
> When I was going to school, I worked for my Dad in a large photo supply
house
> in Ohio, selling Leicas as well as batteries.
>
> Suffice it to say that I have heard all of the conventional wisdom of the
> foibles, brand preferences, etc., of battery choices, from hearing aids,
to
> car batteries.
>
> I just wanted to compliment the posters on this list. I monitor many
> application lists such as this for battery related items. There is much
less
> repetition of some of the "conventional falsehoods" here than anywhere.
> For camera meter applications, it would be hard to beat a cylindrical
lithium
> battery, such as the 1/3N. I am not familiar with where the voltage cutoff
is
> on an M6, ( I still have not made up my mind between another M5 or an
M6HM)
> but the discharge curve on a 1/3 N cell is stable enough to be predicted
and
> accommodated. Lithium would be my choice hands down.
> Another poster mentioned cold weather. Lithium excels here as well. The
> military chose LiSo2 cells 20 years ago because of theirwide temperature
> tolerance, (heat as well as cold).
>
> For high Drain applications such as flash, gram for gram Lithium is the
clear
> winner. The 2/3A Lithium cell made all of those P&S possible, with their
> motors for focus & winding as well as capacitor recharging.
>
> So if I do add an M6  to my collection of 25 tear old Leicas, you can bet
> there will be a Li cell in it.
> BTW I was at Varta's plant where they still made the Mercury PX625's last
> month. They have stopped production of these cells, (German Law) so buy 10
> and refrigerate them if you can find them. If there is no Chinese
producer,
> and I don't think so, that will be it. The best alternative is Zn-air.
>
> Sorry to respond so late, and so long to this post.
>
> Bruce Bowman
> Killingworth CT
>