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During my recent 3-week vacation, I had one minor problem at the end of each day when I checked into the motel. And that was half the time, I didn't have the ability to charge up the 6 batteries I had been using (3 gripped bodies). The problem wasn't enough chargers.... the problem was usually lack of electrical outlets. Today, most lodging facilities are woefully inadequate in terms of spare outlets, most being taken up by the TV & cable box, a fridge, micro, clock, etc.
Another problem was, even if I did have enough outlets, some were so old they wouldn't support the weight of the charger and battery. Yea, I know... I can plug them in with the supplied cord, but even then, sometimes it was only one battery at a time as I only had one outlet available.
So I started scheming on a solution. Of course, my first thought was to see if there were any commercially-available multiple-battery chargers made. Yep... ebay and Amazon both have 'em. But they would only charge a paltry two batteries............ for a hundred bucks! Nope, not an option for me.
I engineered several different designs in my head using the 4 chargers I do have, with the goal of being able to use all 4 at once, utilizing only a single power outlet, and still be small and lightweight. At first, I thought about bolting or epoxying 4 chargers together with internal wiring run between them. But in the end, the answer was a result of Nikon's 'Soviet-style' charger design. You know, the one where you can either plug the charger directly in, or swap the adapter for a cord. I felt my solution was easy, simple and elegant. Not to mention......... cheap.
Now, I know some of you are going to say, "Gee, you dolt... just buy one of those 6-outlet strips that are sold at Best Buy, K-Mart, Radio Shack, Wal-Mart, and even the freakin' gas station!". Well, I said I wanted it small and light. And those clunkers any anything but. Remember.... this is for travelling! Small and light rules.
What I did was go to the local camera store in search of 4 additional power cords. Thinking they'd stock just the Nikon OEM cords for $40 per, I didn't hold my breath. Surprisingly, they stocked a ProMaster version, and they were a whopping $3.99 (plus the gubbamint's cut) out the door. NOW we're talking!
Being an electrician by trade, this was a stupendously easy project. Just cut the cords to length, strip the ends, slide on some heat-shrink tubing, and splice them together. Slide up the heat shrink into place(two layers.... two smaller pieces to cover and insulate the two wires and a larger one to wrap up the whole mess).
The end result: I call it my Medusa Cord.
Total cost: $17.02 for the cords, and $3 would be a stretch for the cost of the heat-shrink. 50¢ would probably be much closer.
I can now plug in all four of my chargers into one solitary outlet..... Leaving other outlets available for my laptop, cell phone & Phantom chargers, etc. And not have to get up 4 times during the night to change batteries in a charger. So when I check out the next morning, I have six fully charged, rarin'-to-go batteries!
Another problem was, even if I did have enough outlets, some were so old they wouldn't support the weight of the charger and battery. Yea, I know... I can plug them in with the supplied cord, but even then, sometimes it was only one battery at a time as I only had one outlet available.
So I started scheming on a solution. Of course, my first thought was to see if there were any commercially-available multiple-battery chargers made. Yep... ebay and Amazon both have 'em. But they would only charge a paltry two batteries............ for a hundred bucks! Nope, not an option for me.
I engineered several different designs in my head using the 4 chargers I do have, with the goal of being able to use all 4 at once, utilizing only a single power outlet, and still be small and lightweight. At first, I thought about bolting or epoxying 4 chargers together with internal wiring run between them. But in the end, the answer was a result of Nikon's 'Soviet-style' charger design. You know, the one where you can either plug the charger directly in, or swap the adapter for a cord. I felt my solution was easy, simple and elegant. Not to mention......... cheap.
Now, I know some of you are going to say, "Gee, you dolt... just buy one of those 6-outlet strips that are sold at Best Buy, K-Mart, Radio Shack, Wal-Mart, and even the freakin' gas station!". Well, I said I wanted it small and light. And those clunkers any anything but. Remember.... this is for travelling! Small and light rules.
What I did was go to the local camera store in search of 4 additional power cords. Thinking they'd stock just the Nikon OEM cords for $40 per, I didn't hold my breath. Surprisingly, they stocked a ProMaster version, and they were a whopping $3.99 (plus the gubbamint's cut) out the door. NOW we're talking!
Being an electrician by trade, this was a stupendously easy project. Just cut the cords to length, strip the ends, slide on some heat-shrink tubing, and splice them together. Slide up the heat shrink into place(two layers.... two smaller pieces to cover and insulate the two wires and a larger one to wrap up the whole mess).
The end result: I call it my Medusa Cord.
Total cost: $17.02 for the cords, and $3 would be a stretch for the cost of the heat-shrink. 50¢ would probably be much closer.
I can now plug in all four of my chargers into one solitary outlet..... Leaving other outlets available for my laptop, cell phone & Phantom chargers, etc. And not have to get up 4 times during the night to change batteries in a charger. So when I check out the next morning, I have six fully charged, rarin'-to-go batteries!
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