I finally got my Cactus triggers.

[John_05]

It took almost 2 weeks, but I finally got them.

I had time to mod 1 receiver today, and it works pretty well.

I bought 1/8" mono jacks and mono plugs to connect the AA battery holders to the receivers instead of hard wiring them right into the receivers.

This is what the battery pack looks like. One wire broke when I stripped it and wound up being a little longer than the other, but I went back and fixed that. I plan on using some shrink tube tomorrow to make them look better, and give it bit more strength.

Here is what the receiver looks like with the jack installed.

Side view.

Please ignore the poor soldering job. I haven't soldered anything in 10 years, so I'm just glad they held.

I couldn't find velcro at the stores I went to, so I haven't added that yet. Even with the battery pack dangling from the receiver, it still works well.

I haven't found suitable lanyards for the receivers yet either, but I'll be adding those as soon as I can as well.

I'd just like to say thank you to everyone that helped me in the thread I posted a couple weeks back asking for opinions, and a big thank you to JerryPH for posting the link to his blog that showed the mods he did.

When I get a chance to use everything, I'll be sure to post some pictures.

 

[Phranquey]

Really nice job, I like the mod with the 1/8" jack. I have a Cactus V2s set on the way to give it a try, and I will be doing this as well as Jerry's transmitter antenna mod. Thanks for sharing.

:thumbup:

 

[Alpha]

I'm a little confused. What's the purpose of the battery pack? To add extra life?

 

[Phranquey]

I'm a little confused. What's the purpose of the battery pack? To add extra life?

Better economy & longer life. The receiver uses one of the small 3v batteries, which are very expensive for the life you get out of them. This way you can use cheaper AA's and get some extra life.

 

[John_05]

Really nice job, I like the mod with the 1/8" jack. I have a Cactus V2s set on the way to give it a try, and I will be doing this as well as Jerry's transmitter antenna mod. Thanks for sharing.

:thumbup:

You're welcome.

I like it better with a detachable power source. It makes packing it all up a little easier, I can change packs in seconds without having to unscrew the battery holder, and no real worries of anything happening if I were to accidentally drop the battery pack.

I plan on doing the rest of them tonight, and I'll also be doing the antenna mod for the transmitter too. When I do, I'll take better pics to show the whole process.

 

[John_05]

I'm a little confused. What's the purpose of the battery pack? To add extra life?

Yes. That, and cheaper power.

The 3v batteries they use cost between $3 and $6 each depending where you go. This way I can use the rechargeable AAs I have and not worry about trying to buy harder to find, more expensive batteries.

Also, if my rechargeables run out of power while I'm out, I can just toss in alkalines and keep going.

 

[Big Mike]

Nice work. I'll get around to modding mine one of these days...but I still think I'll be getting something better...PWs or Skyports etc. I'm sort of waiting for the Radio Popper Jr. to make it's appearance.

 

[John_05]

Nice work. I'll get around to modding mine one of these days...but I still think I'll be getting something better...PWs or Skyports etc. I'm sort of waiting for the Radio Popper Jr. to make it's appearance.

Thanks Big Mike.

I originally planned on getting a set of Cyber Syncs, but I figured I'd be better off getting the Cactus sets for now since I'm only getting them to learn and not to make money.

I've only had a little time to shoot with them so far, and they've worked flawlessly every time for me. If they keep working this well, I doubt I'll need to buy anything "better."

The only mod I haven't done yet is the transmitter mod. I'll probably get those done tonight.

I did get one receiver that was DOA too, so I'm waiting to get it replaced. Once I get it and modify it, I should be "good to go" for a while.

 

[Big Mike]

I have problems with mine, but I don't think it's really the fault of the unit. For whatever reason, it doesn't seam to work very well when on the hot shoe (when used outdoors, indoors it works fine). It does seem to work better when attached with a PC cord, but the connection at the camera is finicky and requires constant pressure.

 

[John_05]

I have problems with mine, but I don't think it's really the fault of the unit. For whatever reason, it doesn't seam to work very well when on the hot shoe (when used outdoors, indoors it works fine). It does seem to work better when attached with a PC cord, but the connection at the camera is finicky and requires constant pressure.

You shoot Canon, right?

Mine does the exact same thing when I use a PC cord hooked to my 580 EXII.

The person I talked to at Flash Zebra recommended these cords to remedy the problem...

http://www.flashzebra.com/products/0103/index.shtml

I haven't gotten mine yet, so I can't say how they work. I plan on ordering one this week though, so I will let you know how it works when I get it.