I've heard different answers. Supposedly, the Spotmatic F's use a bridge
circuit similar (identical?) to the K1000, and hence their meter calibration
is not affected by battery voltage. However, older Spotmatics (500, 1000,
SP, SPII) don't seem to have this type of circuit. Their meter is affected
by battery voltage - how much so, I don't know. The use of the mercury
battery was due to its steady voltage during its lifetime. No other battery
chemistry has such a stable output voltage vs. life.
My camera shop recommends a diode being added to my older Spotmatics when
switching from mercury to silver oxide batteries. It is designed for just
this purpose, and cost's about $10 (meter calibration not included). They
then calibrate the meter with a silver oxide battery. I have no complaints
about the metering of my Spotmatics using this fix.
About 6 months ago, there was a gentleman from Austria selling new old stock
mercury batteries for the Spotmatics on Ebay. In the fridge, they should
have a shelf life of many decades.
Cheers,
Gerald
----- Original Message -----
From: "Wieland Willker" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: "Pentax-list-NEW" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Sent: Tuesday, January 23, 2001 5:26 AM
Subject: Spotmatic batteries
> I have just found out an interesting bit about the Spotmatics and that is
that it uses
> Mercury batteries (e.g. PX625), which are not produced anymore (at least
not in Germany).
> It is therefore quite difficult to get those batteries and keep the
Spotmatic working. Is
> this true and are there any work-arounds?
>
> Best wishes
> Wieland
> <><
> ---------------
> Wieland Willker, Bremen, Germany
> mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> http://www.uni-bremen.de/~wie
>
> -
> This message is from the Pentax-Discuss Mail List. To unsubscribe,
> go to http://www.pdml.net and follow the directions. Don't forget to
> visit the Pentax Users' Gallery at http://pug.komkon.org.
>
>
-
This message is from the Pentax-Discuss Mail List. To unsubscribe,
go to http://www.pdml.net and follow the directions. Don't forget to
visit the Pentax Users' Gallery at http://pug.komkon.org.
