Techie question. (radio slaving strobes)

[Phloating Phlasher]

I think "Thunder Grey" was a Larsen-made one?

Trigger voltages weren't a problem till the Nikon F3 came out IIRC. We had a customer who paid a premium to get the "Firstest, latest & greatest" & fried it the first day!
The 611 is high at 180 DCv, but I have a couple of "Wein Safesynchs" attached to the 611 sensors & the GX8R ringlflash which use the old 180DCV trigger voltage.
The 285HV (with its "safe" low voltage trigger) is actually the big problem!

The "peanut" slaves, & the old HV optical ones were parasitic, they took power from the sync circuit. That was the problem with the "New, Safe" 285HV. They went too far! The 180v wasn't just reduced to 8 DCV, But even lower to 4.5 DCv. Because of that they didn't trigger because of the low input voltage!

[Doc Sharptail]

Ran into a bit similar problems with "modern" optical slaves not triggering the Sunpak 3600 A/T. Both are less than a year old. They trigger the tiny voltage nikon SB-22 just fine.



There's a look at my simple 2 bounce flash set-up. It's fine for the smallish subjects, mostly- provided they aren't too reflective.



With the 180 volt trigger 3600 A/T corded into the p.c. socket on the D-810 on full manual power. The SB-22 was firing at reduced manual "M/D" (motor-drive) off the optical slave. Nikkor 50mm f2 at F5.6 and ISO 64. Un-manipulated except for re-size to fit here.



Bounce reflections get a little different without a snooted fill. I actually kind of like this accidental effect. Same lens and settings as above.



Nikkor 200mm Micro f4 at F8 here and ISO 64, full power auto on the Sunpak head. That is the lens on the D-810 in the first photo.

Toying with the idea of getting a modern flash, but am still pretty well un-decided yet.
Ideally, I'd end up with something with full and fractional manual control. That old Sunpak 3600 A/T is getting a bit on the wrong side of 40 years old, and my trust in it not frying the camera ain't all that great.
We shall see a bit later on, especially if there is something at a good price on the used market.

Regards,

Doc Sharptail

[Phloating Phlasher]

If you do get new strobes there's an on line DIY page where they show how to make bounce cards with "craft foam", it just straps on with a velcro wrap-strap.
You can get the stuff at hobby stores or on-line.
All the "nun's wimple" types shown in my earlier pics are from there.

DSCF4592.jpg

[Doc Sharptail]

Your Sunpak handle flash looks to be an up-date(?) over the 3600 A/T.

I think I am going to wait until I can find a Nikon unit from the mid to late 80's with a bit more power- something in the G/N 40 (meters) range. I don't really need all the automation of I-TTL and auto focusing heads and reflectors- when it comes to flash, I usually end up going to full manual operation anyways.

Regards,

Doc Sharptail

[Phloating Phlasher]

Its non dedicated, but thyristor auto exposure IIRC 5-stop range & manual power reduction from FULL to 1 /128th.
GN in ft is 160 & 100 Iso

My other potato masher is the later 622
Dedicated (by swapping module only) or auto thyristor/manual with power reduction also from FULL to 1/128, GN in ft is 180/220 (depending on interchangeable head) & & 100 Iso
The HUGE advantage to me is the swiveling, tilting & zooming head. "C" cell battery packs are also quick change, but I've never managed to run one down!

DSCF4595.jpg

[Doc Sharptail]

I think my particular Sunpak was a short term offering, and likely one of their first "pro-sumer" efforts- aimed of course at the "advanced amateur".

Build quality seems a step down from the 422-D shoe mount I gave to my sister. The main fly in all this ointment is the power source. I really can't envision true professional use with this unit, unless the A/C adapter is used.

It runs a bit better than I was expecting it to with 6 double "A" NIMH's in it. I can get 32-36 full power manual frames out of them before the capacitor starts slowing due to voltage drop, and about 40-50 full power auto frames. It starts to push a bit on the hard side at low ISO's and smaller aperture values, which some of my better macro lenses require for optimal definition. There is not a lot of on-line reference for the 3600 A/T, which leads me to believe production was fairly short. The rotating swivel head on it is actually pretty useful. I got it without the zoom panel, which is a fairly common occurrence with this design. There are several Vivitar's around with the same missing zoom panel problem.

I have a bit of looking around and reading to do yet, before I can find something that will work the way I want, with a bit more power.

Regards,

Doc Sharptail

[Phloating Phlasher]

Agreed, there's a very noticeable build quality drop between the 611 auto & the 622 Pro!