dork question about magicshine plug, batteries
 

I am not a battery or flashlight guy, so be gentle...

1. My MagicShine cable seems to have a problem near the cable. Can I get a new plug, cut the cable (it's longer than I need anyway) and put the new plug in? If i can, where can I get a plug? Is it any sort of "standard" thing? I can solder, if that helps.

2. I have four Magicshine batteries (don't ask...) that I've mixed up. Can I use a volt meter to figure out which ones are still good, and how good they are, or do I need to hook them up and see how long it takes to kill them?

Thanks!

Best place to get a plug is buy an extension cable and hack that.
Assuming its a DX magicshine clone...
eg
http://www.dealextreme.com/p/5-4mm-m...864-25cm-32753
http://www.dealextreme.com/p/5-4mm-m...64-100cm-32751

For battery testing yeah you really need to measure runtime.

A Y-cable will work also. This can yeid one male for the lighthead and two female connector for the battery end. However, most y cable outer insulated jackets are not so thick and robust as some extension cable. If the bad connector is the battery end, becareful you do not short out the battery from cutting the whole cable with one cut. Instead skin the outer insulator jacket first then cut each individual wires.

When soldering the wire, stagger the wires such that one is longer than the other. Use three shrink tubing. One for each wire then one large one to cover both splice. This staggering allow for a cleaner splice eliminating a huge bulge.

A volt test of the battery will not tell you if the pack is unbalance nor has it loss some capacity. You will need to load test it as mention in the previous post. Best to bench test it with the light head running and a cool fan blowing to keep the lighthead temp cool.

If you have two MS lighthead and a Y cable, you can test those pack in half the time and the double load will also tell you which pack are best.

Did you participate in the Geoman recall for Magicshine batteries? If not, and it's not too late, you should do so. Apparently the old batteries are a potential risk for fires. One of my MS lights had a faulty connector on the cable as well. They replaced it with a whole new light unit, but I'm sure the plug could be replaced. Check with your local Radio Shack and see if they can recommend something.