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Hasselblad H battery rebuild and upgrade...at a fraction of the cost

docholliday

Well-known member
TL;DR: Hasselblad 2900/3200 H batteries can be easily upgraded to 3500mah for around $50 per pack (plus a $37 hazmat fee per order)...

I'm not sure how many H shooters are here, but hopefully this helps somebody and saves them some money.

For a while now, I've been looking for a replacement cell/pack to update the 2900/3200mah Hasselblad H5/H6 batteries. These batteries don't have anything special to them, containing only a pair of 18650 lithium cells, a cell balance board, and a charge controller board. So to me, the high cost of a new retail pack at ~$300 is not cost effective. And, of course, buying used packs is a shot in the dark, since one doesn't know how badly the pack was treated, how many charge cycles that pack has already been through, and the true remaining capacity of the cells. Well, at least without taking one apart and placing the cell pack on an analyzer. And, which can only occur after buying the pack, so I didn't want the headache of having to go returning it.

Here's my notes on how I did mine, in case somebody else out there wants to get "new" packs for a fraction of the cost. Two packs with shipping/tax/class 9 fee ended up slightly less than $150. I've fixed/upgraded two packs for 1/2 the cost of a new OEM pack!

Most lithium pre-made packs have their charge balance board applied axially to the end of the pack, so it's too tall to fit into the grip. These balance boards are laterally installed. The max length that the pack can be is 66mm+/-.5mm. The axially boarded packs are usually 68mm.
IMG_20200720_2320122.jpg

The original 2900mah packs were custom made for Hasselblad/Fuji and contained two Panasonic NCR18650A cells, with a nominal capacity of 3100mah. This allowed the packs to seem to have a higher than normal battery life by underrating. By the time the cells wore down to 2900mah capacity, they'd be "normal" if tested.
IMG_20200817_2257048.jpg

After looking at cells and balance boards, the cost to make my own packs was fairly high for the few assemblies I'd end up making. So it didn't make sense to buy a spot welder for the batteries and soldering the cells is a very touchy operation, as the slightest overheating can ruin the lithium matrix. I sought out different manufacturers to create a pack and most are in China with minimum orders of over 500 pieces. Plus, I also wanted to be sure the packs were made with a quality/authentic cell, not some knockoff.

So, I've been working with AA Portable Power out of California and over a few weeks of sending them specs and pics, they said they could create the packs one piece at a time. After some more requests, such as side exit wiring, a larger protector circuit, and a slightly higher current capability, as well as a laterally mounted balance board, they've added the custom pack to their catalog to make the custom order easier. The new pack uses a set of LG INR18650 MJ1 cells, which are rated nominally for 3500mah and my analyzer reports a capacity of 3610mah new. The nominal voltage is also a hair higher of .035v per cell, but since a fully charged 2s1p cell pack is around 8.45v, won't make a difference.

The new cells have been installed in my packs and they are working great. The camera actually operates a bit smoother and of course, lasts quite a bit longer.

In case somebody wants to upgrade their own packs, here's the details:
1. The packs are $45.45 each, but for each shipment, you have to pay a class 9 hazmat fee of $37 (doesn't matter if it's 1 or 10+ packs) and the usual tax/shipping. Takes about a week to custom make the packs, and then another few days as class 9 can only be shipped ground. Packs: https://www.batteryspace.com/custom...3-5ah-25-44wh-4-2a-rate-2s-s-inr18650mj1.aspx

The new pack is at the top, the old at the bottom:
IMG_20200817_2243494.jpg

2. The connector on the end is a standard "BEC" or JST/RCY connector, common for drone battery packs. I ordered mine without the connector, as I have tools and parts to crimp my own. For an additional $2-3 dollars a pack, they will add the connector onto the end for you, making the pack plug-n-play. You'll need to have them add a BEC/JST-RCY connector, female, with pin 1 positive. Keep the leads short, somewhere around 2-3" from the pack. Here's their page on the connector: https://www.batteryspace.com/connectoradaptor2pcsbecfemaleconnector6long22awg.aspx

Measure yours and add to your order notes the length you'd like. Here's what the connector (and components) look like:
IMG_20200817_2309097.jpgIMG_20200817_2249082.jpg

And here's the process:
1. Open the grip by using a spatula, guitar pick, or butter knife to slide under the top inlay. Don't go too deep. There's a bit of glue along the long edge so you may have to slide around a bit to break the glue. You can see the glue ridge also in the last picture on this post...
IMG_20200817_2241422.jpg

2. Slide out the insert and remove the battery. Unplug the JST connector. BE CAREFUL that you don't break the connector wire to the board, or you'll have to resolder it! The battery is held into the casing by a thin layer of silicone caulk on the bottom. Use a pencil or wooden dowel to rock the battery a bit and it'll come out. Then, use something to scrape the remaining caulk out and blow out with some canned air or a compressor to ensure that you'll have all the possible space for the new, higher capacity cells.
IMG_20200817_2246111.jpg

3. I found a crack one of my grip casings...inspect and see if you find any. I fixed this with a layer of UV adhesive, which is as hard as glass. You can also use some epoxy or fiberglass to fix cracks. The liquid runoff you see is Loctite 770...nothing to worry about.
IMG_20200817_2330041.jpg

4. Reassemble the pack. Be careful not to stress the male side (white connector) where it solders to the little charge control board. The insert may have a set of ridges underneath the top contacts that keep the insert from sliding all the way down. I had to use a scalpel and shave a bit of these two "ribs" off.
IMG_20200817_2335237.jpg

5. Perform a two button reset on the pack, then charge overnight using the "newer" charger! It will take longer than normal as the capacity is higher. LiOn terminates the charge based on current and the cells will top off correctly, just takes longer to do so. The autofocus on my camera is snappier, the AF illuminator is crisper, and the camera lasts longer.
 
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docholliday

Well-known member
Here's a few more pics:

This is the original pack sizing compared to the standard/hobbyist/DIY battery with an axial balance board. The balance board is under the heat shrink "bulge" at the right where the leads come out:
IMG_20200818_0118371.jpg

Here's the underside of the insert (under the battery contacts). You can see the ridge that I trimmed at the top to get the pack to fit. Don't cut it too low, as the contact can fall out or you can crack the insert around the contact. On this one, I used a set of nippers to just bite off a few chunks:
IMG_20200818_0120189.jpg

Here's the lateral balance board from the OEM pack. The yellow square device is a semiconductor "fuse":
IMG_20200804_1750508.jpg
 

citizin

Active member
I've done all my Batteries.

Three of the larger grips with 2x Panasonic 3600mah 18650 cells.
Five of the smaller grips. replaced the CGA14500 with 2x Panasonic 2040mah 18500 cells.
 
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docholliday

Well-known member
I've done all my Batteries.

Three of the larger grips with 2x Panasonic 2500mah 18650 cells.
Five of the smaller grips. replaced the CGA14500 with 2x Panasonic 2000mah 18500 cells.
Only 2500mah on the large grips? You actually went to less capacity?
 

docholliday

Well-known member
Checked the order form in the email they were 3600mah. Edited my post and my memory.
Ah, that makes more sense! Must be the Panasonic NCR18650G cells. I had tested those cells and they only tested out to 3495mah but showed a much higher/quicker wear rate than the LG MJ1. I set my analyzer to cycle a set of cells 20 times and then measured the average capacity throughout. I usually am a huge fan of Panasonic/Sanyo cells, but those didn't impress me very much.

I originally planned to use the NCR18650GA cells, but they were .25mm longer average and I wanted to keep the pack as tight as possible.

As for the older/smaller packs, I didn't even bother to upgrade them as I don't like the tiny feel of the grip with those packs on.
 

citizin

Active member
Yeah These are the 18650's I went for.

I had ordered three of the larger grips to replace the 5 smaller ones. When it came time to replace their cells, I decided to add on these 18500's since it didn't raise the price of shipping and it made the the total cost per unit seem more reasonable.

The larger grips see way more use since there's also a RRS plate on the camera, but it's nice to have a cache of fully charged smaller grips if needed for for not even $40 more.
 

robmac

Well-known member
Good time to revive this thread with a question:

Is there any reason why one could not remove the battery from an older 18500 grip (or any grip) and simply install a female plug in say the base of the grip to accept juice from a 7.4V NPF Series battery?

Afterall, 7.4V is 7.4V, as long as the battery has its own onboard protection circuitry (which NPF would) and can supply the current draw...

The grips circuitry would remain intact, you just replace the low-mAh 7.4V voltage source with one with a 7.4V source with a much higher mAH higher capacity (and larger form factor).

You would need to remove the battery to charge it on it's own charger, but attach a NP-F battery 'sled' to an arca clamp (or in your pocket win cold weather) and run a coiled lead to the grip socket and you could have say 6600 mAh worth of shoot time.

I did similar with an OEM Hassy DC grip (since sold) that I rigged to run off AC or an NPF battery, but I've now a dead 18500 grip and a nice unused SmartRig NPF sled, so....
 

docholliday

Well-known member
Good time to revive this thread with a question:

Is there any reason why one could not remove the battery from an older 18500 grip (or any grip) and simply install a female plug in say the base of the grip to accept juice from a 7.4V NPF Series battery?

Afterall, 7.4V is 7.4V, as long as the battery has its own onboard protection circuitry (which NPF would) and can supply the current draw...

The grips circuitry would remain intact, you just replace the low-mAh 7.4V voltage source with one with a 7.4V source with a much higher mAH higher capacity (and larger form factor).

You would need to remove the battery to charge it on it's own charger, but attach a NP-F battery 'sled' to an arca clamp (or in your pocket win cold weather) and run a coiled lead to the grip socket and you could have say 6600 mAh worth of shoot time.

I did similar with an OEM Hassy DC grip (since sold) that I rigged to run off AC or an NPF battery, but I've now a dead 18500 grip and a nice unused SmartRig NPF sled, so....
You could do that, but it would be just as easy to get the actual AC adapter battery slug and plug a large battery sled to it, if you needed to buy the parts. Since you already have the parts at hand, you might as well make one as it wouldn't cost you anything.

It would be horribly inconvenient though, as it you'd be fumbling around with that extra cable under handheld usage. I had made one years ago for my Contax 645 that sat inside my coat pocket and ran a wire up the sleeve out the arm hole for cold weather usage. Using it on a tripod was alright since I could hang the battery, but having to remember to plug/unplug the battery when putting the camera down was really annoying. I ended up modifying an old Quantum battery casing that screwed onto the bottom of the tripod socket so I didn't have to remember that lead all the time.

Just be careful where you put the socket - that battery casing is "structural" and likes to crack. If you put it where the stress lines get torqued too much, it may come apart unexpectedly on you while holding that pack.
 

robmac

Well-known member
Thanks.

I actually had the AC adapter kit rigged up for a battery sled (or AC use), but sold it as I never used it on AC and it seemed an overpriced solution to get 7.4V to the camera - given I never used the AC brick. But now I have some spare NPR batteries, an extra sled and an all-but dead 1850 grip, so.....

When I had the setup, I attached the sled to a small arca clamp and clamped it to the vertical arm of an L bracket and then to the DC grip via a short coiled cord - much like with the under-slung Quantum setup you mentioned. The NPF battery was just slapped into the sled on the L bracket and away you went.

A short NATO rail and clamp would be an even lighter setup (and one-hand attachment method). The H series do have those 5mm sockets on the side for the GPS system...hum.

Anyway, the aluminium SmallRig single-battery sleds are nice as they're equipped to mount on a camera cage, they lock the battery in securely and have a power meter. They also have a 7.4v socket and a 12V one - but with different sized barrel plugs - JIC.

I also a had longer cord so I could attach the battery sled to a tether case or put in a pocket (vs carry on camera) , but as with your example with the battery in your pocket, the cord was a PITA.

Good warning on the grip casing - thanks.
 
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robmac

Well-known member
As a follow-up: Idea works perfectly.

Took an older near-dead 1850mAh grip, removed the battery, mounted a female plug into a hole drilled into the base of the now empty grip, connected it to the battery leads, sealed it all up Bob's your Aunt.
Can now run the H5D off any of our 7.4v NP-R batteries via a Smallrig sled through a coiled LanParte yellow -tip (5.5/2.1mm) cord. Will be interesting to see how the camera's battery level indicator correlates to the one on the sled.
Just waiting for the NATO rail and flip-lock clamp to quick-release mount the battery sled via the two M5 sockets normally used for the H series GPS unit. Just need to cut-to-length two metric hex bolts for the NATO rail as the sockets on the Hassy are pretty shallow. Some gaff tape will have to protect the GPS contacts. The gaff tape tab on the 4800mAh battery shown is simply to make it easier to remove from the NP-R battery slot in the case.
 

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docholliday

Well-known member
As a follow-up: Idea works perfectly.

Took an older near-dead 1850mAh grip, removed the battery, mounted a female plug into a hole drilled into the base of the now empty grip, connected it to the battery leads, sealed it all up Bob's your Aunt.
Can now run the H5D off any of our 7.4v NP-R batteries via a Smallrig sled through a coiled LanParte yellow -tip (5.5/2.1mm) cord. Will be interesting to see how the camera's battery level indicator correlates to the one on the sled.
Just waiting for the NATO rail and flip-lock clamp to quick-release mount the battery sled via the two M6 sockets normally used for the H series GPS unit. Just need to cut-to-length two metric hex bolts for the NATO rail as the sockets on the Hassy are pretty shallow. Some gaff tape will have to protect the GPS contacts. The gaff tape tab on the 4800mAh battery shown is simply to make it easier to remove from the NP-R battery slot in the case.
That looks good! The thing I hated about having an external mounted pack (even the Quantum one) was the extra added weight and unwieldiness of the camera. I actually don't mind the normal weight of the H system handheld (even with long lenses). I'm actually used to carrying that kind of camera and it's the small, light cameras like the x1d and small SF cameras that I can't handle. But, it's that extra bulge that throws my flow off!

The good thing about that is that you can pretty much double or triple the capacity with a single pack, especially if you're tripod shooting. They make those up to 6.6Ah and at one time there was a company working on a 9.6Ah version. I had looked in the past of converting a V-mount AB pack system with parallel batteries into a ground/back pack for extended night outings (non-work shooting). Makita tools has a backpack that takes 4 19.2v/6.0Ah batteries for powering their tools under extended field time. I thought also about adapting that for really long weekends, but never got around to designing a high efficiency step-down regulator circuit for it.
 

robmac

Well-known member
The latest batteries from Hassy are 3200mAh. The NP-R battery shown in my pic is 4800mAh, so a 50% increase. I've ones that are 6600mAh. IIRC I picked up a pair of those 4800 mAh batteries plus a charger for something like US$60 via B&H or maybe Amazon.

That's not too bad. What is the capacity of those batteries vs the original grip?
 

robmac

Well-known member
Thanks much. Unlike some DSLR systems, the H system has no idea what power source it's connected to, which makes life a lot easier.

If I keep the NP-R batteries to a reasonable size, attaching the sled via a low-profile NATO rail & lip-lock clamp (thus keeping it as close to the camera body as possible while still allowing QR) it won't throw off the cameras balance.

Anything bigger than say the 4800 mAh, I'd likely feed via a longer cable and a tripod QR mount. That said, could also mount via a small arca clamp to an L bracket, or even to the hot shoe if you kept the batteries to a reasonable size



That looks good! The thing I hated about having an external mounted pack (even the Quantum one) was the extra added weight and unwieldiness of the camera. I actually don't mind the normal weight of the H system handheld (even with long lenses). I'm actually used to carrying that kind of camera and it's the small, light cameras like the x1d and small SF cameras that I can't handle. But, it's that extra bulge that throws my flow off!

The good thing about that is that you can pretty much double or triple the capacity with a single pack, especially if you're tripod shooting. They make those up to 6.6Ah and at one time there was a company working on a 9.6Ah version. I had looked in the past of converting a V-mount AB pack system with parallel batteries into a ground/back pack for extended night outings (non-work shooting). Makita tools has a backpack that takes 4 19.2v/6.0Ah batteries for powering their tools under extended field time. I thought also about adapting that for really long weekends, but never got around to designing a high efficiency step-down regulator circuit for it.
 

docholliday

Well-known member
Thanks much. Unlike some DSLR systems, the H system has no idea what power source it's connected to, which makes life a lot easier.

If I keep the NP-R batteries to a reasonable size, attaching the sled via a low-profile NATO rail & lip-lock clamp (thus keeping it as close to the camera body as possible while still allowing QR) it won't throw off the cameras balance.

Anything bigger than say the 4800 mAh, I'd likely feed via a longer cable and a tripod QR mount. That said, could also mount via a small arca clamp to an L bracket, or even to the hot shoe if you kept the batteries to a reasonable size
For me, it wasn't about the weight or balance - it was the form factor that got in my way. Once you get used to holding a camera in a certain way and doing things like rolling the body around in your hand, those form changes really break the stride. That's not too big of a deal for non-working people but during a fast paced production shoot, little things like that can really screw up one's groove! Just a simple little shape change often meant that your hand/arm was in the wrong place and that made for an awkward, unstable grip that could cause shake or delay.

It is still better than shooting a wedding in the early days of digital with a massive Quantum battery on the belt (or two), wires going to the flash and camera (and/or back), and possibly even a data cable coming from the camera back down to a belt-worn "storage unit". Or shooting with an RZ on bracket, full prism, two Quantum flashes + Pocketwizard on the bracket swivel bar, a full 800w/s configuration Qpaq-X over-the-shoulder, and spare RZ backs on the belt.

Yeah, the H system is nice in that the battery "level" is determined by voltage and not by a fuel-gauge chip. That makes modding batteries or external power adapters so much easier. Do be careful if you mount things on the hotshoe. It's not the hotshoe that's weak. It has a large metal plate inside the prism that the screws go into. However, it's the plastic prism casing and the prism-to-body latches that are the weak point and could be easily ripped apart if the item on the hotshoe got hit or by inertial movement. Also, since the metering is in the prism, even a slight torquing of the prism body could make the spot meter not align properly to the viewfinder center.
 

robmac

Well-known member
Doc,

Good point on form factor. Never had the pleasure of Quantum packs, etc., but no desire to try anything like it.

Thanks for the tip on any hotshoe mount. As much as I mentioned the idea, I'll personally never use it as I hate the idea of anything > weight of a trigger on any hotshoe.

Always makes me nervous when I see DSLR video shooters mounting the kitchen sink or even a handle on a hotshoe vs. just buying a $150 cage.
 

docholliday

Well-known member
Doc,

Good point on form factor. Never had the pleasure of Quantum packs, etc., but no desire to try anything like it.

Thanks for the tip on any hotshoe mount. As much as I mentioned the idea, I'll personally never use it as I hate the idea of anything > weight of a trigger on any hotshoe.

Always makes me nervous when I see DSLR video shooters mounting the kitchen sink or even a handle on a hotshoe vs. just buying a $150 cage.
Yup, I am in total agreement. A hotshoe was never meant to hold all the LCD monitors, racks of transmitters, or even a long shotgun microphone. Could you imagine the force that a 14" shotgun puts on that shoe if it gets hit at the far end? Physics says that lever + fulcrum = bad for hotshoe. Most hotshoes are held on by at most 4x 1.4mm or so screws. I get worried at times when I have a heavy flash on my Canon setup if I'm out in the field. And that's on a 1-series body which is full magnesium.

On my H bodies, I never put anything on the hotshoe, not even Pocketwizards, if I'm out in the field. I use a RRS "Wedding bracket" and put all my flash + transmitters on that instead. The PW IV is nice since it's low profile, so I don't mind it on the shoe, but the PW III was an accident waiting to happen with that sharkfin sticking straight up off the prism!

Quantum packs, wedding brackets, and big Quantum flashes made a still shooter feel like a Steadicam operator. Well, kinda, since the Steadicam user has the luxury of the vest and auto-counterbalancing plus weight distribution. The QTM flashes put out beautiful light, but between the weight and the body tethering, would make one hate life after an hour of use.
 
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erickphoto

New member
would you sell a battery with the adapter already made to some of us?
I love the idea of using the Sony battery but I don’t have the knowledge to create it.
 
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