Nikon SB-600 Sync Connector - brochure

Nikon SB-600 Modification - adding an external sync connection Rev2

Page 1 of 16 2011 LensTracks.com 2011 LensTracks.com

January 2011 Rex Peterson [email protected] http://www.lenstracks.com Disclaimer:

The procedure outlined in this document worked for me, on my Nikon SB-600. It may not work for you. There are dangerous voltages present inside this flash unit. If you dont know what you are doing and how to deal with these voltages, dont open your flash unit. If you turn your flash into a non-working piece of junk, dont blame me. The procedure outlined below will certainly void your warranty.

There are a couple of sets of instructions I have seen on the internet which guide brave souls through the process of adding a 1/8 phone jack to their Nikon SB-600 allowing the use of triggering devices without using the hotshoe. My procedure is somewhat different than that given in others instructions, and since deciding I needed to modify a couple more flash units it only made sense to document the process. The main difference in my procedure is the use of a different mini jack, the location of the jack and the ability to easily tighten the jack securely with the flashs front cover off. Everything else should work similarly.

What you will need

1. Nikon SB-600 flash, preferably yours. 2. 1/8 mono jack (3.5mm will work). I used RadioShack #274-0251 (pkg of 3). 3. Small screwdriver, small needle nose pliers. Small modeling knife. Pliers. 4. Drill and bits, 1/16 thru 7/32. 5. Small soldering iron & solder (if you are even THINKING about using acid core

solder, quit now while you are ahead). 6. About one foot each of two colors of wire, something from maybe 28 to 34 AWG. 7. Ruler, masking tape & pen.



Definitions

To make sure we are all calling the same parts the same names, I have identified the major body parts of the flash.

Foot Head Front half Back half We wont be opening the head.



Step one - make sure there is room

Since I dont know if there have been any manufacturing changes to the SB-600 since its introduction, I always like to open it up before drilling a hole to make sure there are no surprises. The flashes I have modified are between serial numbers 2208354 and 3011568. If yours falls within this range you shouldnt have any problems. Here are the disassembly steps: Remove the batteries. Point the head straight up and rotate 90 exposing 4 screws (DONT REMOVE YET).

Remove the 4 screws holding the foot in place.

2 screws towards the front 2 screws towards the rear



Unsolder the black wire from the copper foil. Remove the connector for the wires to the foot.

Remove on each side the FRONT screw on the top of the main body (two total).

Only remove the FRONT two screws

NOT this one



Slide the front cover off. There are 2 metal brackets which will fall off from the bottom and the battery cover should fall off as well. Note: the head of the flash can come loose from the front half of the body. Be aware of this and dont let it fall off.

Inspect the area shown to ensure Nikon isnt surprising you by moving things. The connector needs to fit in this area.

Assuming there is nothing unforeseen here, put the front back on. It helps to either tape it together or wrap a rubber band around the body to keep things in place.



Place a piece of masking tape on the front half of the body as shown. Measure at two places to create a line 18mm away from the seam of the body. Then measure from the parting line on the curve, 13 mm to locate the spot to drill.

This piece of tape is holding the body together...

Drill the Hole Ok - you are now at the point of no return. To help you do a nice job, let me explain a little about drilling holes in plastic.

1. Drill a small pilot hole first. 2. Skip the next larger bit and drill the next size larger hole. 3. And so on, never increasing the size by more than skipping one bit at a time. 4. Jumping to the final size too soon will usually cause the bit to grab in the plastic

and can tear the plastic instead of cutting it. 5. Unless of course you have a step bit, but then you wouldnt be reading this

section anyway. 6. I used 1/16, 3/32, 1/8, 5/32, 3/16, 7/32.

Parting line I measured from

Drill here



The particular RadioShack connector I used requires a 15/64 hole. I dont have a 15/64 bit, and a 1/4 bit would make the hole pretty sloppy. So - after I drilled the 7/32 hole I enlarged it slightly using an X-Acto knife, checking with the connector often to get a perfect fit.

Prep the connector

Cut this tab off of the connector, it gets in the way of the board holding one of the LEDs in the flash. Bend the other tab as shown. Solder on two wires as shown. Use two different colors of wire as it Does make a difference where they go on the far end.

I will call this the tip and this the body



Install the connector in the hole, and tighten the nut securely. Make sure the connector is oriented as shown, it MUST be aligned this way for clearance of the LED board.



Thread the wires as shown, and put the front cover back on.

Angle the front cover to get the LED board behind the connector, while ensuring the clear plastic shields get tucked inside the cover (both the top & bottom shields).


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Before sliding the front cover all the way on, install the two metal brackets and the battery cover.

The brackets have a gentle bend in them, closer to one end. This is the end which goes towards the back of the flash. I find it easiest to put the battery cover in place and hold it with your thumb before sliding the cover on.



Install the two screws in the top front, they are the smaller of the screws you have removed.

(note the battery cover in place, guess who usually forgets?)



Now you have your flash about wrapped up, with the connector installed & two wires hanging out the bottom (and you remember which wire goes where, correct?).

Now comes the hardest part which is soldering one of the wires at the bottom of a hole, and I havent figured out an easier way to do this. I read where someone tried to remove the PWB from the foot and didnt have much luck as the pin actuating mechanism is in the way. You could cut the orange wire & splice your wire to it (which certainly would be easy), and if you choose to do so make sure to put some shrink tubing over the connection.



I did it the hard way...

Solder the wire which comes from the tip of the connector (I used brown) to the point where the orange wire is soldered to the board. Solder the wire which comes from the body of the connector (I used yellow) to the point where the black and white wires are soldered (not on the board). This is the other end of the black wire which you previously unsoldered. I used a vise & a box to position things to make it easier.

Tip Connection

Body Connection



Plug the connector back in carefully. The orientation can be seen in this photo which is an enlargement from page 4.

Finally, solder the black wire to the metal shield.



Now you can attach the bottom using the 4 remaining screws.

When you install these 4 screws, dont tighten them until they are all installed & snugged up a little. This allows the metal brackets to move around prior to final tightening. Make sure all the screws you removed are pretty tight so things dont come loose, at the worst possible time.

******** Update ******* After writing this article, I wrote another to explain how the little PC board in the bottom can be removed to make the soldering portion easier (may be helpful back on page 13). This document is available on my website and is called Nikon_SB-600_foot.pdf.



Having this connector gives you some interesting capabilities. For example, you can mount the flash on the hotshoe of your camera and plug your radio remote into your new jack, allowing you to fire off-camera flash as well as on-camera. HOWEVER - make sure all the flash are in Manual mode, as you dont want the pre-flashes triggering your remotes. Good luck, I hope this procedure helps you if you should decide to modify your flash. And if by chance you find this helpful and it saves you some time, please consider a small donation to keep me interested in writing these things. You will find a donation link at:

www.lenstracks.com If you have any suggestions for another modification project or repair, please send me a note. Thanks, Rex Peterson

Documents

Nikon SB-600 Sync Connector - brochure