New old batteries - Canon EOS 1Ds MkII

antonroland

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Hello guys and girls

Despite the fact that I don't use her daily my trusty old 1Ds MkII is still one amazing camera but her batteries are failing rapidly. Maybe THAT is why I use her less and less...

Replacement NP-E3 batteries are rather pricey and they are probably a few years old even if "new". Will I still get decent life out of them if they start working now as "new" batteries?

Yes, I am sure I could source knockoffs / generics via FleeBay but for me, despite all info to the contrary, it is the real deal or no deal.

Cheers!
 
If they have been stored for any length of time they may be knackered. NiCad cells which is probably the type in batteries that old have a tendency to self discharge and if left too long grow crystals inside bridging the negative and positive cell plates. I got my last batteries for my 1d3 from 7dayshop.com and although out of 4 I got one dead one the rest are still going as far as I know having sold the camera
 
I just bought one for my 1d MK2 from Duracell direct in Colindale, London. I think it might be a knock-off but it fits well and comes from a well known shop, early days.
£25 incl next day postage, normally I wouldn't buy one of these but thought it worth a punt as I don't fancy some ancient genuine thing.
Matt
 
Thanks for the responses guys, much appreciated!

See the thing is I probably could not sell her for more than the price of one "new" battery. Financially it makes absolutely no sense so sentiment is what keeps her alive...
 
The internals of the NP-E3 are simply a string of Ni-cad cells......you should be able to replaced them yourself. Some radio controlled model shops will make them up if you're not confident.

Bob
 
I have two DSTE brand ones on a Canon 1D MK 3 and they are fantastic. Like the originals
 
The internals of the NP-E3 are simply a string of Ni-cad cells......you should be able to replaced them yourself. Some radio controlled model shops will make them up if you're not confident.

Bob
I shall be sure to explore this, thanks!
 
I bought a Duracell version recently, no issues but early days.
Thanks Archie but on personal experience I would not allow ANY Duracell product within 30m of any battery operated device I own. Not even a cheap Chinese calculator.
 
Thanks Archie but on personal experience I would not allow ANY Duracell product within 30m of any battery operated device I own. Not even a cheap Chinese calculator.

Pease tell us more, as I have never had a problem.
 
Pease tell us more, as I have never had a problem.
I have had several leaks from AA cells but a pro photographer mate of mine had a similar experience in the early days of DSLR cameras when he had a battery leak that ruined his camera.

When he approached said company about compensation he got nothing but a big middle finger.

That was that for me. Started using Energizer and never looked back.
 
The internals of the NP-E3 are simply a string of Ni-cad cells......you should be able to replaced them yourself. Some radio controlled model shops will make them up if you're not confident.

Bob

Reviving alert!

So I recently approached a very good battery place in my home town.

Just today they informed me that the available cells are larger than the ones in the NP-E3...so dead end there...

Any suggestions?

I trawled Fleebay and found a seller who does replacement cells up to NP-E2...no NP-E3...although I might take my chances on same cells inside NP-E2 as opposed to NP-E3?
 
I shall be sure to explore this, thanks!
If they have been stored for any length of time they may be knackered. NiCad cells which is probably the type in batteries that old have a tendency to self discharge and if left too long grow crystals inside bridging the negative and positive cell plates. I got my last batteries for my 1d3 from 7dayshop.com and although out of 4 I got one dead one the rest are still going as far as I know having sold the camera

Firstly the batteries in the 1Ds2 and the 1D3 are usually NOT Ni-Cad but are Li-Ion batteries - do NOT mess with these cells as Lithium is extremely reactive and you could start a fire.
Secondly the charger you have for the 1Ds2 has a "refresh" cycle which allows the batteries to be discharged and then fully recharged so it might be worthwhile trying this first.
Thirdly I have found that if you leave batteries in the cameras they tend to discharge over a relatively short time whereas taking them out keeps them charged for a lot longer.
 
Firstly the batteries in the 1Ds2 and the 1D3 are usually NOT Ni-Cad but are Li-Ion batteries - do NOT mess with these cells as Lithium is extremely reactive and you could start a fire.
Secondly the charger you have for the 1Ds2 has a "refresh" cycle which allows the batteries to be discharged and then fully recharged so it might be worthwhile trying this first.
Thirdly I have found that if you leave batteries in the cameras they tend to discharge over a relatively short time whereas taking them out keeps them charged for a lot longer.

I had an idle googling for the NP-E3 and so far all read as being Ni-MH so not Ni-Cd or Li-ION ;)

@antonroland in the absence of a suitable source in SA could you buy from UK, USA or Australia. One source of what seems like genuine Canon ones is an EU based company, actually based in Germany with for me a UK based arm. I have bought an occasional item (not a battery) from them and have been satisfied with both price and service.
 
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Thanks Guys!

I am not unwilling to buy complete NP-E3 units (genuine Canon of course) over repacking my existing ones but I thought repacking with new cells might be cheaper...

Also, more modern replacement cells with higher milliamp hour capacity might also be nice...

My concern with buying complete NP-E3 units is that they will be a good few years old already even if unused and I am worries about decay over time...

NP-E3 batteries have probably not been produced for 8-10 years?
 
The 1DS2 uses a pack that contains Nickel based cells - no funny business, no risks, no chips - just AA size batteries.
If you have a charger/discharger for RC aircraft you might be able to re-vitalise your old pack but it is unlikely, however new packs are cheap and have higher capacity + are pretty cheap so why bother? Just search out a decent manufacturer/retailer.
 
I loved my 1d3 but it started to be a pain literally to carry as I have a knackered shoulder. There's something about the 1d series that I can't explain but the results always seem to be pretty special.
Your certaintly right there , I miss my 1D3 but having now switched to Nikon and not yet played with there FF offerings I’ll reserve judgement
 
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