Is there anywhere out there where I can have my old Gossen Luna Pro recalibrated to work with 1.5v cells? I've heard of similar procedures for older cameras.

-- sheldon hambrick (shambric@us.ibm.com), July 06, 1998

Answers

The better solution is to purchase the battery adapter kit from Gossen for around $18. This lets you use 1.5v SR44 batteries in the old Luna-Pro. It is apparantly a ring which both surrounds the smaller silver-oxide cells for fit and steps down the voltage to the correct 1.35v.

I just ordered one from Bogen (Gossen distributor in US). B&H also has them listed on their web site.

Zinc Air batteries also work, but last only a few months of use.

-- Richard Ross (ross@hrl.com), July 06, 1998.

Don't let other vendors tell you that you can use other batteries - bogen/manfrotto (they bought out gossen) told me that if I don't use the adapter the other batteries that I was sold could damage the unit.

Get the adapter and save yourself the aggravation.

-- Stuart Goldstein (satgre@worldnet.att.net), July 06, 1998.

The gossen kit just makes the sr44 cells fit, it doesn't change the voltage, the meter will still need to be recalibrated unless it's an F or later, which is what the kit is intended for, finding out how to do it on the net isn't easy, I spent a while looking for info on recalibrating my canon FTQL, no luck, worked it out myself in the end, best silver cell to use in my FTQL was a 357, alkaline are a waste of time in older gear, 76 silver cells aren't very good either.

Wein cells are the easy route, life can be very short if you are in arid area, MR9 adaptors aren't as good, unless the meter takes a constant current, some repairmen apparently don't know how to recalibrate a mercury meter for silver oxide over the whole light range, an electronics type person would be a good bet

-- gandalf (foo@bar.com), March 25, 2002.