Repair or rebuild Ni-cad pack for MD4

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filmshooter
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My local camera repair shop used to be able to rebuild the Ni-cad pack for the Nikon MD4 motor. The shop's changed owners and the new people don't want to deal with film cameras. Does anyone know of a shop that can still rebuild these packs? Thanks,
 
It should be possible - while phased out in new equipment, NiCd cells still are available for repair purposes. Still, the F3 is 30 years old, and its quick charger will be way out of spec for dealing with current NiCd cells, so any replacement might be rather short-lived.

If you intend to work that drive seriously (rather than charge it once and dump it on a shelf), I suspect that getting another MD-4 with battery crate (these seem to be much cheaper than separate battery crates), a set of NiMH cells and a charger for the latter might be a much better and cheaper long-term solution...
 
I do have the battery crates that came with all three MD4s but appreciate the faster speed, as Noserider points out. I will be in touch with the service Freakscene suggested. Thanks.
 
Try Lithium AA batteries. That's what I used to use with this hideous abomination which totally spoils the lovely F3 design. Lot lighter too. BTW I still have mine if anyone wants it? No longer need it, prefer using the F3's without these days.
 
It's actually quite easy to rebuild the packs yourself. I did mine and got the cells from china. I used a piece of copper pipe, cut and hammered flat very thin to make the connection straps and just soldered it all back together. Took around an hour and I used higher power cells which the normal charger was used but for 1.5x normal charge time. From memory I think it's 14 cells.
The cells I used are marked Ni-Cd 1.2v 2/3AA 400mAh.

I got them from here
http://www.hellobatteries.co.uk/search.php?search_query=2/3
 
Use NiCad Lady

Use NiCad Lady

Ni Cad Lady rebuilt my MD-4 battery packs last year. The new cells have about 50% higher capacity (330 mAH vs 200 mAH for the originals). It works fine with the Nikon charger, which is not entirely dumb and seems to have some logic to sense charge levels.

Ni Cd cells have the least internal resistance of all the rechargeable cells. This means they can pump out the amperes when high current is required. NiMH can't compete, although on spec they may have higher overall charge capacity. When the motor demands current, they won't deliver as much, due to higher internal resistance.
 
Robert Lai said:
When the motor demands current, they won't deliver as much, due to higher internal resistance.
Click to expand...

But what for? Shooting film at high rates was a sometimes inevitable nuisance, back when press photographers needed it - nowadays, there is no more commercial requirement for it.
 
red snapper said:
Try Lithium AA batteries. That's what I used to use with this hideous abomination which totally spoils the lovely F3 design. Lot lighter too. BTW I still have mine if anyone wants it? No longer need it, prefer using the F3's without these days.
Click to expand...

Is it just the weight? Always hear lots of positive comments about the F3+MD4 combo, made me wonder what I was missing out on.
 
I think with the pack I built it was running at 6 frames / sec. On AA's it was 5.
I never used it and gave it and the charger away with a motor I sold.
I never liked the Nikon motors anyway as they just doubled the size of the camera.
 
Advantages of the motor drive MD-4

Advantages of the motor drive MD-4

1) Big grip
2) Fast film winding. Try capturing a train or airplane, or even kids sports without one.
3) Battery pack provides power to the camera. Makes shooting in below zero (C) temperatures possible.
4) With the NiCd pack, the voltage provided to the motor is higher than with the AA battery pack in. Makes for a faster wind.
5) Heavy stable combination allows slower hand held shutter speeds.
6) Integrates with my databack that prints between frames MF18.
7) Power rewinding.
8) Environmentally friendly as the NiCd is rechargable. Don't need to throw away lots of AA cells.
 
Robert Lai said:
8) Environmentally friendly as the NiCd is rechargable. Don't need to throw away lots of AA cells.
Click to expand...

Well, I agree on all other points. But not on that. The environmental footprint of NiCd cells is enormous - pretty much every landfill from the days of careless cadmium use now is a danger for a wide area around it.
 
I thought about that issue of Cd contamination. However, a responsible user will have this cells recycled, just as Hg in fluorescent bulbs should be properly disposed of for recovery.
 
Any store which specializes in batteries should, and usually does, have a recycling jar.

Cheers,
Dez
 
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