Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2000/09/07
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]Here is the situation on Mercury batteries and their replacements OEM Mercury PX625 PX13- 1.35 V No longer allowed to be produced in US, Europe. Those were the only countries with plants, outside Asia. The last plant producing mercury cells was Varta in Ellwangen Germany. They were ceasing production when I was there last December. The only place where their might still be production is China, but none of my people there can find anything out about such production. AlkalinePX625 1.5 V Currently produced and available. The increased voltage can cause your meter to read incorrectly, but as long as the voltage in consistent, this can be accomplished by changing the ISO, or by a repair facility. Regardless, alkaline chemistry has a different discharge curve, meaning as the battery ages it's voltage is reduced. The mercury puts out 1.35 for a long period, but as it begins to die the voltage drops suddenly. Alkaline puts out 1.5 v then it declines through 1.35 and finally dies. There is no indication that your battery is putting out say, 1.2v and thus your meter is giving you a poor reading. So a meter on alkaline properly adjusted, will be fine, as long as your batteries are fresh. The level to which the batteries voltage drop will affect your transparencies exposure is up to your level of tolerance. The cris adapter uses AgO2 batteries and thier problems are somewhat similar to the alkaline. The Wein cell is a size adapter for ZnAir cells. These cells are the closest match for mercury having voltage of 1.4V and a very similar discharge curve. Buy this cell, and when the battery dies, pop it out of the adapter, and put in a new ZnAir "76" cell. They don't last long once you open them, but they are very inexpensive. It's all a question of tradeoffs. I'll be happy to answer any questions about batteries if you would like to email me privately or on list. Bruce Bowman Killingworth CT Our company is a supplier to the battery industry, I own a whole lot of PX625 consuming equipment:(