Vivitar 2800, power saver Options

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First I need to say I do not know why this works and maybe you should not try this. Also if you don't know... the flash capacitor will bite ...real hard...do not touch the contacts.

Here is how I have modified the Vivitar 2800 flash unit.

An original 2800 will charge the capacitor and then turn off the charging circuit to save power. If the flash is not used before the voltage drops too low, you have to turn it off and back on again for it to charge again, even if you disconnect the batteries. If you do flash it, it will recharge and then turn off like before. It is hard to put into words but if you have one, you will understand.

To make the flash recharge itself again when just sitting idol, I connect a 220k~470k resistor across the switch terminals. When this is done, the flash will charge as before and cut off when the voltage goes to about 335v. .. Now when the voltage drops below about 250v the charging circuit will charge it back up.

You may or may not find this usefull...212