Wired replacement battery Canon LP-E5 for EOS DSLR

The Rebel XSi DSLR on the shelf had not been used in at least 5 years and the original battery pack was long dead. The Canon official wired battery replacement or new battery packs have been out of production for years. I could buy a third party replacement but this is quicker and cheaper.

To put it together you need the battery connector from an old battery pack (or figure out where to buy them, I don't know). Patient prying will get the two halves apart. Desolder the connector from the battery/PCB assembly inside, then connect your 7.4V plugpack with the correct polarity to the connector. The central ‘T’ terminal does not appear important when not charging. Take the silver LiIon cells to a battery recycling place - be careful not to puncture them or bridge the terminals with anything conductive.

The connector then slides into the larger of the two shell pieces.

The lid of the battery unit is held in place by a countersunk M3 screw. A M3 bolt should fit snugly into the recess in the larger unit. Tie a knot in the cable for strain relief and leave slack inside before putting the two halves together to ensure that the cable cannot be yanked off the soldered connector.

Once together the connector is held in place by the lid. Now the old EOS camera is ready for use with a telescope again.

Be very careful if you do not have a 7.4V plugpack - I have no idea how tolerant these cameras are to varying voltage. I am using an official Canon transformer that came with an old video camera. I would definitely not try 9V!

Apparently this will work with other Canon cameras, possibly EOS Rebel XS, Rebel T1i, Rebel XSi, 1000D, 500D, 450D, Kiss X3, KissX2 and KissF.