Part 2: New cheap batteries for the gx680

Since my last post on the subject, i have also been testing out two other battery convertions with 5 and 6 aa cells. A six cell aa conversion with 2600mAh 1.2v aa cells gives a whole lot of juice. Further more, one can quick charge them with the original gx680 mk1 power house of a charger.

However, AA rechargeables are bad in cold weather. At about 0 degrees celsius both kinds of expensive rechargeable cells i tried ran out in a few hours with the meter viewfinder turned on, whereas the nominally weaker pentax batteries lasted for 3h each. Indoors, the six cell pack lasts the whole night, though.

The 5 AA holder, on the other hand, is a super backup when im out in the field, any store has disposable AA:s if i would run out of batteries. (I don't want to test the 6 aa holder with 1.5v batteries since it measures 9.8v with new 1.5v disposables).

Anyway, if you want to build a 5 or 6 cell battery, you can pretty much follow the instructions for the pentax conversion. Just remember to remove the resistor. You can get 5 cell and 6 cell holders on ebay.

So what conversion is best?

That depends on if you are converting one or two batteries and on whether you plan to use the camera in the field in cold weather or not.

My recommendation are as follows:

A: If you have only one battery to convert, go for the pentax conversion! Those batteries work well both in the field and indoors and you can recharge one while you use another one. If you are on a roadtrip, you can also use the 12v car plug that comes with the charger. If you need more batteries later, they are cheap and you don't need to build anything new.

B: If you have two batteries to convert and only intend to use your gx680 indoors or never shoot in cold weather. Go for two 6-aa packs with 2600-2700mAh 1.2v rechargable cells, if you put the lid back on, they will look exactly like the original fuji batteries and you prevent someone to put six 1.5v disposables in them by accident.

C: If you have two batteris to convert and want to use the camera both in the field and in the studio. Go for one pentax conversion and one 5-aa conversion. Then you are super safe since you can buy disposables if all the pentax batteries should run out or you forgot to charge them. You could also go for a 6-pack and get a dummy battery, but i wouldnt risk someone (most likely me) putting almost 10v into my camera by loading six 1.5v batteries by misstake.