Forming Day

[Mal Paso]

I now have 5 Norman strobe power packs not in daily use so I got them all out today and ran them 2 hours to form the capacitors. Those with power trim I started low and worked up to max. The P2000Ds all produced a nice full power pop. The 2424 sounded less powerful but the light meter said otherwise. The 4000 was solid as usual. I hadn't thought about care and feeding of my equipment but old strobes need to be plugged in every so often. I need to put this on my calendar to do every few months.

[LabRat]

Great!!! And don't forget to take any rechargeable battery gear, turn on, let it run the batteries down to 0 charge and give it the full proper charge...

And don't forget to go through your gear + household items that contain the usual dry cell batteries (on camera strobes, motor drives. Light meters, flashlights etc) and replace all and inspect for leakage (modern batteries really bad for this, especially some brands)... Rechargeable types should not be swollen or deformed... A cheap DVM can be used to check for proper voltages of cells...

As we speak tonight, I am re-forming several battery powered small strobes, including a Norman 200b, a Nikon potato masher, and a few on-camera types for near future use... Checking if not getting hot, sounds normal, and leaving old batteries on until exhausted, and leaving batteries out until next use (storage)...

Steve K

[Mal Paso]

Good thought! Those alkaline cells can be nasty. I lost a Fluke voltage probe to batteries that expanded and caught others before the corrosion got bad. A little vinegar will clean up the white residue followed by a water dampened cloth. Vinegar though, mild will remove plating if left on.

[Duolab123]

Good advice!!

[Mark Sampson]

I haven't used my Dyna-Lites in six months or so. I'll follow your advice... they aren't making any more of those so I should take care of them.