S&S MDX-D200 fibre optic sync cable

I started thinking about modifying my S&S MDX-D200 housing to be able to use optic cables synced strobes.

There is enough space in the housing to semi lift the strobe head so it can fire inside.

I thought I could fix fibre cable next to strobe head and the other end at the edge of top display window.

I could then fix sync cable on the other side of that window.

Obviously it would block part of the window, but I guess I could live with that.

Any reason why it would not work?

I started thinking about modifying my S&S MDX-D200 housing to be able to use optic cables synced strobes.

 

There is enough space in the housing to semi lift the strobe head so it can fire inside.

I thought I could fix fibre cable next to strobe head and the other end at the edge of top display window.

I could then fix sync cable on the other side of that window.

 

Obviously it would block part of the window, but I guess I could live with that.

 

Any reason why it would not work?

There are other options including changing the bulkhead that might get you more reliable results.

Bill

Are you looking to get TTL? If not, check this out:

http://wetpixel.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=44632

Changing bulkhead seems much more elegant/dependable.

Where could I get replacement bulkhead for s&s?

Are you looking to get TTL? If not, check this out:

http://wetpixel.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=44632

Thank you for the link.

Interesting but it creates extra complexity (also not sure if I can squeeze it into the housing).

I guess I would explore this solution only if I experience problems with built-in strobe (overheating/battery drain).

Please check that the camera really fires without the flash completely up because nikon cameras need to be modified for this (that is why modern housings have a "big head"); canon cameras have not this "problem". Once you have solved this I would go with an empty bulkhead and hugyfot optical fiber plug, which is good for two fiber cables, although there is only one in the pics:

Dave: What do you mean by "modifying Nikon cameras"?

Richard

I have not done it but a friend mine has: You have to dismount the top part of the camera and bend a small piece in the flash head mechanism so the camera "thinks" the flash head is completely up when it is not...

I checked and D200 fires inside MDX-200 housing. One just needs to remove a little plate (routing wires for regular sync cord).

Then there is just enough space to make it work.

Are such bulkheads housing specific or is it some standard?

i.e. can I use Hugyfot for S&S housing?

I checked and D200 fires inside MDX-200 housing. One just needs to remove a little plate (routing wires for regular sync cord).

Then there is just enough space to make it work.

 

Are such bulkheads housing specific or is it some standard?

i.e. can I use Hugyfot for S&S housing?

I don´t know about hugyfot bulkheads on a s&s housing but all you need is an empty/hollow s&s bulkhead (maybe an old bulkhead that you can "empty") because the fiber adapter has standard nikonos thread, and that is the same in all nikonos bulkheads...

I have not done it but a friend mine has: You have to dismount the top part of the camera and bend a small piece in the flash head mechanism so the camera "thinks" the flash head is completely up when it is not...

My D200 still has enough life in it that I'm not going near it to "modify it"!

But how I wish I could be rid of these synch cords!

I checked and D200 fires inside MDX-200 housing. One just needs to remove a little plate (routing wires for regular sync cord).

Then there is just enough space to make it work.

 

Are such bulkheads housing specific or is it some standard?

i.e. can I use Hugyfot for S&S housing?

I have a DX-D80 (for Nikon D80) camera and have tried something similar with a the Hugyfot acrylic optical plug.

My experience below is from the DX housing, I'm not to sure if the bulkheads will be exactly the same as the MDX housing. Your mileage may vary.

The electronics of the bulk head were easily removed by desoldering the wires to the bottom of the bulk head and removing a single C-clip. The electronics in the bulk head could then be removed and the bulk head was empty. The Hugyfot adapter then screws into the empty bulk head with the bottom of it protruding just below the end of the bulk head. However, there is one problem. At the bottom of the normal bulkhead there is a little metal notch that prevents the strobe connection from rotating when it is inserted. This notch causes the bottom most o-ring of the adapter to not sit properly and it is pushed up, making it very tight to screw in the adapter. As this o-ring is providing the waterproof seal, I am worried that it might become kinked and let water in. I've tried the housing in the pool and it doesn't leak, but have managed to take it any deeper on a proper dive yet.

There would be 2 options to fix this:

1) Grind away the small notch at the bottom of the bulk head. Given the limited space in the bulk head this would be quite hard.

2) Cut a groove in the Hugyfot adapter that is a bit higher up for the o-ring to sit. I'm not sure if the plastic would melt on a lathe, if you wanted a nice clean cut.

Lastly, if your D200 will fire the flash inside the housing you don't need to modify it at all. To get my D80 to fire, I did have to modify it as the flash didn't quite have enough room to open up.

Thank you. That is very useful information.

Hi,

Is it also possible to change a bulkhead in a Sea and Sea housing(Canon D7) for an external Monitor??

Thanks,

Søren

Hi,

 

Is it also possible to change a bulkhead in a Sea and Sea housing(Canon D7) for an external Monitor??

 

Thanks,

 

Søren

Not sure about that. Presuming they use the standard size bulk head and you could get a spare connector for the bulkhead it would be possible. But your housing would have to have enough room to accept the video cable on the camera.

Not sure about that. Presuming they use the standard size bulk head and you could get a spare connector for the bulkhead it would be possible. But your housing would have to have enough room to accept the video cable on the camera.

Thanks, i will try to see if possible with some kind of bulkhead for a monitor.

Søren

David,

thank you very much for this pretty inspiring tip ! I plan to switch to fiber optic cable my sea&sea MDX-40D rig as well. I still have two points to deal with :

- the one mentioned by Jesper. I have not unmounted yet the bulkhead and can't yet figure out if the little alignment piece affect the positioning of the Hugyfot optical plug.

- routing the light from the internal flash to the Hugyfot optical plug end. I made a few tests, and my Z240 strobe only fires when the end of the fiber optic cable is touching my EOS50D internal flash. When putting the FO cable close to the current bulkhead, it just doesn't fire. I suspect, I should put something white enough to reflect the flash light up to the Hugyfot bulkhead.

Should anyone succeeded in solving these points, I would appreciate to hear about the tips.

Thanks !