Lots of noise is being made about the 285HV Vivitars.  I have been familiar with this flash almost as long as I have owned cameras.  I got my first Vivitar 285 in the early seventies as a primary light source to use on my Nikon Film Cameras. Almost three and a half decades later I’m still using them for the tough shots where I need something that does what I want it to do and not what it thinks it ought to do. I have fixed, altered, repaired, changed, modified, and electrocuted myself working on this particular model.  And I like to control things, so all you aficionados of the "P" mode and total auto TTL need not bother with some of the ideas.   It does something really nice. It’s called "Manual Mode". 

We take manual mode for granted and having  spent a good portion of my life in the lab have seen the results.  With an affectionate tone, I’m also the one that coined the phrase “the cockroach” strobe since it’s been around for decades and you never can kill one... well most can't.  I have shown the 285HV on my website for almost twenty-five years while producing a battery pack that I built and worked specifically with it.  In it's day, I called it the Jacobs Battery Pack.  Today it’s called  "The Black Box” and they work on anything with six volt technology.

The older 285HV's are strong, can take a fair amount of abuse and many are still around.  BUT be aware of some of the older ones shortcomings. Read on. These "workhorse" strobe units were manufactured in four countries, Japan, Taiwan, Korea and now the mainland China.  They have been around in various sub-models and  incarnations since the 70’s.  Though similar in shape, size, and function, they differ in sync voltage, the inner green boards are different which can be very dangerous to the newer digitals, and other not so easily noticeable really subtle changes.

The newer 285HV (B&H) units are more adapted to the lower sync constraints of the newer digitals.  BUT there are issues that effect all units regardless of manufacture.  ANY and I repeat ANY strobe can be pushed beyond it's limits.  There is a group of sports shooters out there burning their Nikon SB-800's into oblivion or the yellow tube of death.  The Canon 550-580 series flashes simply die.  Burnt motherboards from too rapid a use.  My packs thus do not use acceleration are only slightly slower ( milliseconds to a full second but there is less a chance of burn out or burn up.   I try to make my products "idiot proof" unfortunately as my friend Marc says the some of the idiots are working overtime to correct the situation.

In the original models from Japan ‘70-’82 the sync voltage didn’t matter as the cameras had heavy duty mechanical metal triggers.  This high sync voltage will fry a new digital camera.  The voltage does vary by age of the unit.  Funny but after taking a few new ones apart, I found the Japanese Dark Blue 305-320 capacitor which oddly has shown up in some of the newer mainland Chinese models.  Same product for 35 years or they had a lot in stock.  Most modern digital SLR’s and advanced compact digitals like the Fuji 7000-9000 series can’t tolerate high voltage from the likes of the early Japanese versions of this strobe.

FEATURES:
The 285HV regardless of vintage does not have I-ETTL or E-ETTL or any other letter of the alphabet. (Good) It does have an on-board sensor, basically a light to subject and squelching circuit that have various manual and auto settings. Ancient, but works.  This is light of a very simple, subject to  distance nature, and in shutter speed mode you can control the amount of background illumination by simply altering the shutter speed. Slower the speed the lighter the background. 

The only other mode or alternate mode is Automatic. In the automatic mode, you have several colored settings that correspond to F stop and distance scales on the lighted side bar computer.  It’s primitive, but it works. Especially when you gang these guys up and use them in teams of up to ½ dozen or more. 

Where?  For really big shoots of big items with long time exposures like Lear jets, Fire trucks and Large boats at night using time exposure and manual flashing.  Similar to painting at night. We have triggered as many as ten of these guys using a piece of board with nails and wires just like they set off pyrotechnics and cheap third world bombs.  I knew my military experience would become useful to me one day. Our motto was "Be all that you can Bomb". We have also placed these in corner of a room and made a 360 lighting setup. Just shoot it's the same all over.  They excel in this mode as a standalone because of the variable manual and auto range settings. And they work great independently either by optical or radio slave. Great for side illumination on dance floors, large Wedding venues and Quinceañera's.

INSIDER STUFF
The newest model of the 285HV is back by DEMAND. Rarely do I believe much in press releases in the Photo industry since have been in it 50 years or more and I write about people, places and things.  Especially after digital era started.  Different venue, different slick faces and you have to take it one blurb at a time. I know what I see on the bench.

Vivitar Corporation is basically out of the flash game as are many aftermarket companies.  Some just don't know it. When your best seller is a forty year old design it tells you something.  It's tough to do aftermarket in a hot competitive arena with two giants and some also-rans changing the gear specs faster than a hooker getting out of her clothes in Nevada.
I don't blame them. Cameras come in too many models, too many changes, and too much retooling and competition.   The 285HV is now literally a B&H, Adorama, Calumet item. The build of this old/ new model is still all plastic, almost the same on the outside but now the changes start. 

The new one is made in China. How do you tell?  The country of origin used to stamped or molded on the bottom next to the hotshoe used to say JAPAN, KOREA and TAIWAN or CHINA, now it says nothing. The molds were redone and the nameplate indentation erased. You can see the fill-in job if you look closely.

It only says CHINA on the box now meaning SOMETIMES UNPREDICTABLE QUALITY from our friends with the dubious quality control and working conditions.

It has a plastic single pin hotshoe. I suggest changing the plastic shoe when they chip or crack or if you contemplate using Pocket Wizards.   The main reason for changing is  The sync cords from Vivitar for their ports are proprietary, and they stink. Never have they been consistent or instilled confidence. They are not proprietary with most 1/8, 3.5,  or mini-pins. the metal foot as shown has a HD synch connection.

The breadboards are typical Chinese quality, cheap but they work.  They are not the same quality of the Japanese Malaysian, Korean, versions. They just WAL-MARTED my favorite off camera strobe. The metal foot can help in some cases solving the weakness and continuity problems with a better sync port or the Pocket wizard conversion.  Both Black Boxes and Tuxedos will power the Vivitar 285HV's and they also make great kickers and hair lights.  READ THE DISCLAIMER.

We have and eBay is flooded with inexpensive  $7.00 feet that are metal, and obviously stronger plus it contains a Standard PC Synch Port and a better nylon screw-lock. (See Photo)  Our brothers in India ( I think ) did a fine job with this knockoff, crude but they work.  You can also blow $50.00 on one of the higher level ported shoes but they won't accomplish anything except blow the frugality angle to bits.  Caution: I change about five or six of these a day and though it appears simple there are pitfalls. The contacts have to be roughed up, the wires are 24 gauge and you will melt them in a second and regular flux won't work as expected. Quality of the metal used.
 

ISSUES, GUIDES, BATTERY PACKS: 
I sell/sold/made/modified/altered a lot of packs for this unit in forty years.  The 285HV (all) uses a battery holder or clip for four "AA" batteries. I will be hacking it and making a module out of it. Running this flash on batteries is a disaster for a pro. Even worse for an amateur running on sheer guts. You read me right. Flows like Molasses in January.  It is very slow on AA cells. You need a pack.

Another issue with this strobe is the guide number.  The party line states close to the following numbers for flashes and guide numbers.  So most reviewers or "repeatists"  credit the great amount of flashes rather than tell you about the guide number or 10-20 second charge times or speed. I'm not an advocate of hyped-up over clocked strobes but 10-20 sec. between flashes is too much unless the Bride fainted and the groom is dragging her by the hair down the aisle or visa versa.

The slow recoup rates might be OK for events like a Chess Match at an Alzheimer's Convention.  Supposedly they tested in Manual Mode, on a 75 Degree day. Strobe pre-flashed to warm capacitor and other dull bits of info. I score it a ten on the B.S. meter. A pack, mine, or almost anyone else's makes this into a lady.

OK, you just got some of the pitfalls. Me Negative, hell no, just informative and I have no ties to them so I can tell it like it is.   Because this is a really GREAT STROBE based on it's heritage. In the camera business, as great an evolutionary item as the first Pentax Spotmatic or Nikon F.  Once you get past the advertising, myths, B...S, eBay hype, and arse-to-lip embellishers off their game, and use it to it's potential, it's a reliable, tough workhorse that can take a lot more punishment than most of the designer stuff today unless they are modified too far off the original designs.  I can tell you the shoe wiring is a lot thinner than was on the originals.

BOTTOM LINE  "Trust your light meter, not the propaganda" and don't underestimate Chinese quality, you might get a stinker.  It's not bad though Of 100, so far two or three have been bad and I caught them before we altered them. Once they are altered, they will lose their warranty.  But there is risk in crossing a street, smoking in a dynamite factory, having a taste for blowfish, and taking a sobriety test after eating gorgonzola cheese.
 

We'll talk about a backup first. Most newer photographers are what I call a linked buyer. It's brandsmanship. You own a Nikon, you use a Nikon flash. You own a Canon, you use a Canon flash. Some of which are so expensive you really can't afford anything else.  Then you shoot a wedding and something fails and you are dead.  No backup. 

Consider this for a second, the 283/285's are  are simple units. Their job is to make light. They are built like tanks. They are strong, and the one weak part, the foot breaks before it rips the top of your camera off, and is easily repairable with a metal foot.

Downside, the 285’s big capacitor and breadboard are not fast on AA cells.  My battery packs were originally designed for this slowpoke strobe almost 35 years ago. The Armatar's and all the  other aberrations were all modifications of the 285HV.  It ain't no faster today.  It is proven, they work and they excel in REAL use and CAPACITY with my pack without accelerators or fly-back capacitors. 

The number one repair on the Vivitar 285, (I have cleaned a hundred) is the corrosion of the battery compartment caused by people forgetting about leaking AA's, leaving them in after a shoot hot and then moisture corrodes and ruptures the cells and there goes the compartment.

My pack eliminates that because we have NO batteries in the strobe period. In fact we seal the compartment, that's right, we screw the door shut, no modules fall out and we build our own modules on a full conversion.  I have never had anyone ask me to convert the strobe back to batteries.  You'll never go back to AA's.  

THE DEAL
NOTE:  If you buy my BLACK BOX pack and have the AA battery clip, I will build you a cable module for the LOW cost of $15.00 each. No pack, the price goes to 20.00.  You heard me right!  I have probably built a thousand of these cables. They look like the one in the picture.

All offers do not include postage to you unless we can combine it with another product you buy. It depends on how much I can stuff safely in a FLAT RATE postal box.  Send the unit to me and I will do the conversion for $15.00 and that includes the door slit, the fake batteries cable and DIN plug.  I will make you a HD straight low resistance fully soldered and hand built 4 foot cable.  Also available is 6-8-10 foot cables for light stand use.

You must enclose the battery clip with it.  I also convert the "Black Box to two din ports so each box can power two 285HV's.  There is a small charge for this upgrade of 12.00 plus shipping.  We can add the metal foot $15.00 Installed and do the door slit to finish the conversion and turn that thing into a more reliable addition to your flash package.

PERFECTION  and CHEAP!
Another great idea from the Gadgetmeister, the Frugal Guru

Striving again to keep costs down and do the same job as the expensive units is what I live for.  It's not a cheap streak in me. I'm not that frugal.

I will indulge myself when I feel a need for something nice. BUT a lot of what's out there is pure hype and I consider that a fair target of opportunity. 

Anyway, the hot item is dueling Vivitars, and other dual flash setups. You can also use either Canons Or Nikons if available and your pocket can stand it. If not the Vivitars do a fine job. Light is light and as long as you control IT, you are the photographer.



DENNIS REGGIE:
The revival of this technique gets credited to no other than Dennis Reggie, though many of us have done this years ago before Dennis took his first picture.  Actually this idea has been around for thirty, maybe forty years or more. 

BOB NEWTON:
One of the first to use dual flashes was Bob Newton of Newton Brackets.  Dennis revived it when he decided to sell his bracket for $200.00.

The ULTIMATE VERSION:
We just make it a heck of a lot cheaper and better quality than the other guys.  We have seen some cut angle iron but that starts at 40.00 and that's a lot for simple unfinished iron.  We go high end, we send it off to the metal refinisher and edges buffed, de- galvanized in part, acid bathed and then plated with the same stuff used on 1000 dollar guns. In the photo above you can see the umbrella holder base by PhotoFlex, the best one we have found and two of the new Vivitar 1/4x20 bases. and the two front holes are for the pocket wizards plus two smaller holes topside for safety wire.

It is constructed out of Zinc Coated Steel and is certified for Los Angeles Earthquakes, Riots, Star studded Red Carpet Award Shows and Florida Hurricanes.  Also Jimmy Carter and Habitat for Humanity endorsed these. If it will hold houses together, it will hold your strobes and the entire project requires NO TOOLS, NO DRILLING and NO SKILLS other than common sense.

Installation is nuts and bolts easy.  The Black Box with two VIVITARS shot into a umbrella does a great job with a decent F11 or used side by side as a SUPER WIDE for those large Bridal shots especially with some of the larger Brides and Wedding parties we have today.  Here are approximate costs of the parts and some of the labor.  It does not include the light stand, umbrella and holder.

 

There are about 7 people making brackets for these pairs, it's a flooded market just like mortgage brokers two years ago.  Some are money makers like Reggie's costing over $200 and one site has a piece of angle metal for forty dollars plus, plus, plus.  It is my intent to bring you ideas and a great product for lesser costs. I like that.  Why? Yours truly always looks for the best financial solution for my customers so they have more money left over to purchase my products.  This is the ULTIMATE dual bracket.