SDU-5/E BA-1574 Distress Strobe Light Batt Adapter 5BA

Description

Mercury Battery Warning
The above unit originally used BA-1574/U or 4RM1B Mercury based batteries.  Mercury is one of the heavy metals that has been found to be bad for humans. (Lead wine containers may have caused the end of the Roman empire?)  Any military battery whose model number is BA-1001 to BA-1999 is a Mercury battery.  These should be kept in Zip-Lock bags and disposed of in accordance with hazardous materials regulations.  If any crystals form on the battery they should be considered as poison.
Buyer to pay shipping and handling.
PayPal is OK.
I make these in the U.S.A.
Shipping FOB
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First Class International shipping you as buyer take the risk.
See
About Me
for background information on Brooke Clarke, N6GCE.
On Apr-03-02 at 22:52:03 PST, seller added the following information:
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SDU-5/E Battery Adapter   5BA
©
Brooke Clarke, N6GCE 2000 - 2018
Engraved Top
Stands on Cap
General Information
This is a cap designed to fit the
SDU-5/E Distress Marker Light
and allows the use of readily available type 123 commercial photo batteries.
Photo installed on SDU-5/E Strobe
It turns out that the adapter allows the
SDU-5E to stand
on it's end without any batteries, the BA-1574/U is shorter and the SDU-5/E falls over.  When batteries are installed it will
stand on just the cap
.
Positive end of Lithium battery goes to the cap.
Tested with either Duracell or Radio Shack 123 batteries. 2 each
Duracell DL123A
or CR123.  You can use a pair of any of the 123 photo batteries, but do not use the new rechargeable type because their shelf life is very short.  The rechargeable batteries should be OK for use in a disco situation where you're not concerned about shelf life.
Threads Notice
23 May 2007 -About 1 in 1,000 SDU-5s have threads that are undersized.  This happens when the tap used to make the strobe gets worn out.  To check the threads in the strobe I now have a certified Go-NoGo plug gauge (shown at left laying on it's Calibration Certificate) and in case the threads need to be chased I also have the needed bottom tap.  If you buy my adapter and find that your strobe has defective threads I will clean them up for the current cost of postage.  This applies to all past customers just send me the strobe and the cap.  If you have tight threads contact me.
O-Ring Notice
BA-1574 Gap
5BA Gap
Less than 1% of the time an SDU-5/E is made with a defective female battery thread that will cause the battery to make contact before the O-ring.  If you install the BA-1574/U or BA-5374/U in these units the O-ring will not seat properly.   If this happens to you let me know and I will send you a part to fix it (no charge).
Not Tested
I have not tried to certify this adapter to any specifications or get any approvals for it.  I know of no problems but, if you use it for life saving applications you do so at your own risk.
Battery Life
The LiMnO
2
DL123A is rated at 1.4 AH with a 100 Ohm load.,  The SDU-5/E pulls about 100 mA (12V/100 mA = 120 Ohms) so might last 14 hours.  The BA-1574/U is rated for only 9 Hours at 80 deg F, so this adapter may offer over 50% more capacity.
The booklet in the bottom of the
BT-2B
battery tester shows the effect of cold on Mercury batteries.  At 80 deg F and a meter reading of 1.0 there are 9 hours operation in the battery, but at 32 deg F there is only 30 minutes of operation.  The LiMnO
2
battery looses only about 10% capacity at 32 deg F.  Note the BT-2B tester is obsolete since all the batteries it was made for are Mercury types and the replacements are different chemistry and can not be easily tested.
Some Sources for Batteries
The 123 type of photo battery is sold in camera and drug stores and most supermarkets as well as on the internet.  They typically are blister packed in either singles or doubles (two are required for this application).  Shop them as the price varies a lot.  Last I heard
Streamlite
had a good deal on a box of 12.  If you have access to military supplies your local PX  probably stocks the BA-5123 batteries for the Streamlite flashlights.
New Version 2
As of 12 April 2004 Engraved  adapters are the only ones available.
New Price
I have not changed the price for a couple of decades.  My costs have gone up so am raising the price a few dollars.
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