I have used several trail cameras over the years, however nothing that would break the bank so to speak.  I do realize, "Most of the time, you get what you pay for" and with the intermediate to cheaper cameras, that holds true for sure as in my case.

Placing high dollar cameras in woods does have its risk and there are hunters and others who have no problem with taking something that doesn't belong to them....not all hunters, but it doesn't take but a few to create a negative stigma.  Another ole saying, "A rotten apple spoils the barrel."

My current camera is an antiquated Primos Truth Cam 35 which is fair, but does have some drawbacks in damp weather as the lens will fog up.  Night vision is not the best either and at dusk and dawn, it doesn't know whether to use the infra red light source or not sometimes.  Nevertheless, it works for me.

Seems like of late, the camera wants to deplete batteries a little faster than it use to, but that is just a guestimate since I haven't kept track of the number of pixs taken.  The Truth Cam 35 uses four (4) D cell batteries which is 6 volts total and wanted to try and use a 6 volt lead/acid rechargeable battery in combination with a solar panel trickle charger.

Most of the later model trail camera uses 9 or 12 volts and many use double A batteries which doesn't have a ton of available amperage which means changing batteries fairly often, therefore the usage of the said lead/acid battery might work for me since the Primos Truth Cam 35 has an auxiliary power input receptacle.

LETS GET STARTED

I have the battery and solar panel on order from Amazon and they should be here within a week +-. 

I went through a bunch of small AC charging adapter units/power supplies to find one with the right connector and cut the cable from the adapter since that unit wasn't being used for anything.  A couple insulated alligator clips will be attached to the auxiliary power input cord leads and have a small metal box with a lid for a battery compartment, whereas I will drill the appropriate size hole in the bottom of the metal box to allow the leads coming from the camera and the solar panel.  A backer board will be used to mount the metal battery compartment and/or solar panel to the tree adjacent the camera.

I believe the small metal box was a gift from Linda Driggers, retired NCDPS employee.

I will add pixs when the battery and solar panel arrives and will start on the metal battery storage box in the mean time.

I used a pair of standard alligator test leads and crimped each test lead to the power cord observing the correct polarity.

I drilled a 1/4 inch diameter hole in the bottom of the can in order to use a Greenlee hole punch/die to make a 5/8 inch diameter hole which will be adequate for the power cord and the power cord from the solar panel I have on order.  I ordered a grommet kit for electrical usage and cheap enough, however I will never use them up in this lifetime......grin if you must!

You can use a step drill bit for thin sheet metal such as this metal can, but the step drill sometimes leaves a ragged hole which required de-burring. 

The Greenlee punch has a story all its own and is one of the reasons I no longer loan tools out to anyone anymore, however I believe I have made two (2) exceptions which turned out ok.  I did have to ask one individual several times to get the item loaned back.  I got broke "from sucking eggs" many decades ago.  Read my short story titled smoke generator which is hyperlinked.

The Greenlee punches make a burr free hole and will punch a hole through much thicker aluminum.

Punch ready for a wrench or socket; just tighten the hex nut and it will cut the hole.

A good clean burr free 5/8 inch diameter hole ready for a rubber grommet.

Pix above shows the material punched out which looks like a washer.

Pix of the Greenlee punch/package which is at least 50 years old!

I used a piece of scrap treated pine decking board material; drilled a couple holes in the side of the metal box and screwed it into the pine board backer material which will be lag bolt screwed into the tree adjacent the camera.

I will shorten the length of the spring terminals of the Moultrie 6 VDC battery to prevent them from shorting out against the can lid and will insulate them from the lid also.

NOTE:  I received the Moultrie 6 volt battery yesterday and they now have the terminals protected and you make your connection from the side.

Waiting on the solar panel charging unit to give this project a test run.

RECEIVED SOLAR PANEL

I received the solar panel on 07-24-2020 and carried it outside and hooked the volt/ohm meter to it and it was showing 7 volts dc.  I also checked it in my shop with florescent lights and it was showing less than 3 volts dc, therefore the panel is working.

Sometime in the morning, our Lord willing of course, after I get back from our Local Farmer's Market, I plan to get the trail camera back in operation with the 6 volt rechargeable battery and the solar panel, plus get my mineral block out and broadcast shelled corn to get the deer coming back in.

IN THE WOODS

I got all my gear and put it in a 5 gallon bucket and headed to my hunting area.

It didn't take too long to install place the camera into position using a home made adjustable wooden bracket that I made just for this camera that allows you to tilt the camera as needed.  I use one lag screw to secure the bracket and camera to the tree.

I have used this tree before and the lag screw I used before broke off when removing the camera of which I had forgotten about.  I could not get the lag screw in the existing hole because of that and had to go back home and get my battery drill and a couple drill bits.  The tree was too hard to allow the lag screw to go into the tree without a pilot hole.

The metal box battery holder and wood mounting bracket and solar panel were bolted in place and everything was working ok.  I doubt the solar panel will put out much voltage/amperage until the leaves start dropping from the trees.

The camera angle is a little too high and when I broadcast some corn later this morning, I will adjust the camera angle down to about where I will have a mineral salt block as a yardage indicator since I plan to bow hunt only at this hunting location. 

SOLAR PANEL TOO SMALL

I checked the voltage on the camera display and it was down to 60 percent, therefore the solar panel is way too small and the fact that it is mostly in the shade, doesn't provide enough voltage/amperage.  I will change the solar panel out to one that is at least 1.8 watts and do more testing.  I don't know for sure if the small solar panel has a built in blocking diode, otherwise at night the voltage from the battery will back feed to the solar panel helping depleting the external battery.  There wasn't that many pictures on the trail camera and I believe it has lost much of its sensitivity.  It is twelve (12) years old and time to upgrade it for sure to a 12 volt camera.

I noticed last hunting season that the camera was depleting batteries too quickly.

As soon as I get my Stealth Cam G42NG running with external 12 volt solar battery source, I will retire the Premos Truth Cam 35 which has provided a lot of pictures the past twelve (12) years and time to let the ole boy out to pasture.......grin if you must!

Web page updated by Bill aka Mickey Porter on 08-02-2020.

STEALTH CAM INSTALLED

This afternoon 08-04-2020, I made a simple wood hinge plate mounting system nearly identical to the one I had on the Primos Truth Cam 35 for the Stealth Cam and also placed a cover over the top to help ward off water directly onto the cam.  The adjustable angle hinge plate system is an asset when the terrain is not flat where you need to place the cam.  There are some excellent adjustable screw in type mounting systems available, but they definitely are not secure and an opportunists thief will take your camera.  Nothing will stop a thief if he or she is intent on stealing from you, no matter what type of security system you have in place; e.g., lock box, cable lock, elevated camera position, etc.  I know first hand, working in a prison environment for 33 years these type of measures can slow a thief down and make it difficult, but it is not a deterrent for a thief had rather steal than work!

Mr. and Mrs. John Q Public are "water headed" into thinking that prison is a place of punishment for criminals.  Our prison system breeds better criminals at their craft!  Prisoners teach other prisoners how to be better criminals trying to circumvent the system and that is a fact!

I know I got on a rabbit trail aka side tracked there, but that is my normal MO, modus operandi.....grin if you must.

I did not take any pixs, but will take a few pixs of the camera tomorrow morning, the Lord willing of course.  I covered the camera with a large zip lock type bag and sprayed the treated 5/4 decking material with three different colors to help break up the outline.  The camera was already camouflaged. 

I haven't received the HME Trail Camera 12V Solar Aux Power Pack yet and will check to make sure the system is not producing too much voltage.  I recently read some reviews of said battery box and some were very disturbing as being poorly constructed and one reported it had fried the circuit board inside the battery box and the power cable from the solar panel was poorly attached and easily came loose.  I didn't do enough recon on the HME Trail Camera 12V Solar Aux Power Pack which is available from several vendors.

If push comes to shove, I can build a system myself since there is plenty of information on the internet aka YouTube showing you the ins and outs of solar panels applicable for trail camera usage.  

I pulled the camera card on 08-05-2020 and will reset the camera angle more downward.  A card reader would be a big asset when checking camera memory cards, however I utilize a spare card for such at the moment.  After breakfast and a couple errands to run, I will take the ole antiquated Canon camera and get a few pixs of the camera and home made wooden mounting bracket.  I have the Stealth Cam set for 5 mega pixels instead of the maximum of 12 mega pixels and a 2 minute delay between pixs.  When I get the auxiliary power source and solar panel operational, I will reset the camera to take pixs at a one (1) minute interval and leave the cam at 12 mega pixels to see how the auxiliary battery holds out.

I need to tweak the camera vertical position just a little bit on the wood mounting adjustable hinge bracket.  Also, I think I might add a 5/16 inch diameter cable locking device to the camera.  I have not had any trouble in the past at this hunting location as far as thief, but there is nothing like being prepared for the worst case serino.

I adjusted the camera angle downward and I believe it is where I want it.

The Stealth Cam doesn't have the height in pixels versus my 35mm DSLR camera or the ole Premos Truth Cam 35 in reference to a 750 pixel picture width versus height, of which the above pix is 750 x 422 pixels.  Plenty of room there in the view for deer though.......grin if you must.

I will add the auxiliary 12 volt battery solar system when it arrives.

Web page updated by Bill aka Mickey Porter on 08-04-2020 and 08-05-2020.

HME 12V SOLAR AUX POWER PACK

I received the HME 12 volt solar aux power pack this afternoon (08-06-2020) and tested it with the digital multimeter.  Instructions with the battery pack said to charge the battery for 20 hours, however there appears to be a full charge on the battery, but will follows the instructions.

The output of the solar panel before going into the battery was 19 volts dc depicted below.

I checked the battery voltage and it was 13.01 volts dc and as soon as I hooked the output from the solar panel circuit board, the voltage basically was reading the same thing as the battery voltage.  The solar panel voltage varies according to the angle you have the solar panel to the sun!

I hooked the output from the solar panel circuit board to the battery and checked the voltage at the camera connector and it was 13.06 volts dc, therefore the circuit board has a voltage regulator incorporated into it to prevent excess voltage to the battery/camera input.  The camera should pull the operating voltage down some, since there was no output load during this test,

I hooked the AC battery charger to the connector provided on the side of the battery box which is protected from the weather and will let it charge overnight as recommended before taking the battery pack to the woods and attaching it to the Stealth Cam.  I will remove the battery tray from the camera and check the voltage with the multimeter and will see if the camera display will show 100 percent battery charge from the auxiliary battery pack.  I will no doubt remove the eight (8) AA batteries from the battery track and run the Stealth Cam solely on the auxiliary power pack for initial testing purposes.  

This solar panel stuff is all new to me and enjoy doing and learning new things.  You basically can build one yourself for about the same price as this "store bought" one.

The acid test will be, how long will this system stay fully charged and that has many variables mostly depending on the number of pixs and/or videos taken; day versus night?

Web page updated by Bill aka Mickey Porter on 08-06-2020.

AUXILIARY BATTERY PACK OPERATIONAL

The auxiliary battery pack was placed on top of the home made battery box that is not in use at this time.

I checked the camera and everything seems to be doing ok; walked out in front of the cam and checked the picture count and it is working.

REPLACED SD CARD

I have some new SD 32G cards coming in this afternoon and will replace the old SD card that is in the camera.  That SD card has been in several cameras and from what I have seen on YouTube from those in the know, you shouldn't swap cards around into different devices without first formatting them on your pc to remove extra files that are downloaded from the devices you had them installed in.

The amp hour on the battery is 6 amp hours and curious to see how long it will last without have to recharge it with an external charging unit.  Hopefully, when the leaves drop from the above canopy, the solar panel will provide enough trickle charge to keep the battery fully charged.  It will be a wait and see game for sure!

I will remove the extra battery box and wood mounting holder which sticks out like a sore thumb when I install the new SD card this afternoon, our Lord willing of course.

With the Stealth Cam resolution set to the maximum of 12 mega pixels and the pix cropped to 750 pixels in width, I have more pixel height and in this pix it is 563 pixels versus the earlier pix of 08-05-2020 being 750 x 422 pixels.  However, the lower resolution pix does have a wider field of view when I cropped the pix to 750 pixels in width.

I removed the home made battery box and the set-up looks much better.

Deer are not feeding on the broadcast corn yet, but they no doubt will when some of the greenery gets gone.

Web page updated by Bill aka Mickey Porter on 08-07-2020

REPOSITIONED CAMERA EAST/WEST ORIENTATION

I installed a gravity fed feeder for sweet feed pellets and repositioned the east/west orientation of the camera to cover the feeder area.

The solar panel battery back was also repositioned to get a better angle toward the sun.

Web page updated by Bill aka Mickey Porter on 08-17-2020.

Web page created by Bill aka Mickey Porter on 07-22-2020 and updated on 07-24-2020, 07-25-2020, 08-02-2020, 08-04-2020, 08-05-2020, 08-06-2020 and 08-07-2020.