The Lantern Battery & Your Speedlite: A Match Made In Heaven!

 The Lantern Battery & Your Speedlite: A Match Made In Heaven!

Demetri Martin

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I noticed that there are no B batteries. I think that's to avoid confusion, cause if there were you wouldn't know if someone was stuttering. 'Yes, hello I'd like some b-batteries.' 'What kind?' 'B-batteries.' 'What kind?' 'B-batteries!' and D-batteries that's hard for foreigners. 'Yes, I would like de batteries.'

Demetri Martin

Read more at http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/d/demetrimar414432.html#Mf83Zvw5j7IKgoKk.99

"I noticed that there are no B batteries. I think that's to avoid confusion, cause if there were you wouldn't know if someone was stuttering. 'Yes, hello I'd like some b-batteries.' 'What kind?' 'B-batteries.' 'What kind?' 'B-batteries!' and D-batteries that's hard for foreigners. 'Yes, I would like de batteries.' " - Demetri Martin

In this post, I'll be showing you how to make your very own fake AA batteries to insert in your speedlite so you can use a larger 6V battery instead of standard AAs!

Note: 

1. This is a mod that does not modify your actual flash; it's not permanent. 

2. I used a Yongnuo YN560. You may have to modify these instructions a bit in order for it to work for your flash. 

3. Proceed with the understanding that I assume NO responsibility for the success your project. This mod may not be completely compatible with your flash, and if you don't know enough about tinkering with electronics, I would recommend asking someone for help or not trying it at all.
4. There's a lot pictures.

This is my Yongnuo 560ii speedlite. These AA batteries start strong, but after only a few full power pops, they're done. I need more juice!

Here's some of the material needed for the project. A 6V lantern battery, a piece of 1/2" wooden dowel rod, some thin two conductor wire (22AWG should be fine), 2 alligator clips, a soldering iron, a drill, a saw, a few small wood screws, some thin tape or office labels, and maybe a few thumb tacks.

     First, grab your drill and small drill bit that's just larger than one of the conductors of your wire. Drill a hole on the end of the dowel rod about an inch or so deep. Then drill a second hole on the side of the rod at an angle so it meets up with the first hole. The pictures will explain this better. It may take a few try's, but you'll get it. Push the wire into the side hole until it pokes out the end of the rod.

     Once the wire is sticking out the end of the rod, strip off about a 1/2" of the jacket. Then pull back on the wire just a bit so that the bare wire is partly inside the rod. Get one of the small wooden screws, and wrap the bare wire around the shaft of the screw and then begin to screw it into the end of the rod.

     Once you have the wire secured in the dowel rod, you'll be cutting the rod to the correct length. The reason we didn't do that first, is that it would be more difficult to drill the holes in the dowel rod if it were the length of a AA battery. So line it up next to a real battery and mark the rod.

     Next, we'll be wrapping the "batteries" with something to keep the wire tight up against the side. I used some office labels I had; they're 5/8" wide & about 5" long. I tried to use electrical tape at first, but it kept bunching up inside the flash. I would recommend labels like I used or some thin tape that doesn't rip or bunch up easily. It's not necessary, but if you want to, you can stick some thumb tacks on the end of "batteries" to give them a more finished look. They won't serve any purpose electrically, as the only contacts in use are the ends of the screws at the other end; one for the negative connection in the flash, and one for the positive connection.

When your "batteries" are all wrapped up, stick 'm in and see how they fit!

Unless you modify your battery cover in some way, the wire may cause the cover to stick up a little. My Yongnuo flash's cover is still able to close with the wire sticking out.

Moving on to the other end of the wire, we need to attach some alligator clips. I would recommend removing the "batteries" from your flash before continuing, just...because.
If you know how to solder, this should be easy. If you don't know how to solder, ask for help, watch some videos, and practice on something else first. 

When your all done, attach your two alligator clips to the 6V lantern battery. 

PLEASE BE SURE TO CHECK YOUR POSITIVE/NEGATIVE CONNECTIONS. 

The inside of the flash's battery cover should tell you which "cavities" have a positive or negative connection; you'll have to figure out which two are duds and which two lead to the circuitry inside. 

The top of the lantern battery has clearly marked terminals. Pay attention or risk ruining your flash!

It should look like this when your all done:

     Well, that's it for today; I sure hope you enjoyed the article! If you do complete the project, I know your going to love it! Yeah, there's other options available for extending shoot time with speedlites, but this is a super cheap and easy way to at least double the number of pops from the flash! Let me know if you can improve on this project, I'm always interested in new ideas!




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