Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2000/10/02

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Subject: Re: [Leica] Leicameter MR-4 batteries
From: Dante A Stella <dante@umich.edu>
Date: Mon, 02 Oct 2000 18:50:09 -0400
References: <B5FDFFFB.9A91%jbcollier@home.com>

Wein makes washers that they put on commercially-available zinc-air cells and
sell for big money (more power to them for finding a way to market them).  Those
washers (from  their 625 cells) come off and go onto EPX675 hearing aid cells
(less than $1/each and not taxable - a senior citizen product - in Michigan).
Makes me wonder if the Wein patent has ever come under fire.  It is worth the
$5-7 though just to get the washers.  At least you only have to shell out for
them once.

I don't know if there's really a voltage difference, but I regularly use the
EPX675s (nom. 1.4V) with no modification in cameras that took PX675s (1.5v) with
no problems whatsoever.  Maybe the zinc air rating is just 1.35 rounded.

And Bob Shell couldn't be behind ZnAir, since as far as I know, they were
invented for hearing aids and long before he was anyone on the scene.  Maybe he
advocated them for cameras.

John Collier wrote:

> Wien is making ZnAir batteries that put out 1.4v and have similar discharge
> characteristics to mercury batteries. They are very cheap, very long self
> life but a short life when activated (depending on local humidity). Check
> out the archives for more details.
>
> JBC
>
> > From: Martin Howard <howard.390@osu.edu>
> >
> >
> > OK, those of you who use the Leicameter MR-4, what do you use instead of the
> > old mercury batteries, given that there is probably no voltage stabilization
> > circuit in the meter and the different voltage discharge characteristics of
> > the silver and lithium type batteries?
> >

In reply to: Message from John Collier <jbcollier@home.com> (Re: [Leica] Leicameter MR-4 batteries)