Vivitar 285 not working

The 283 and 285 require an adapter to hold the 4 AA batteries. This is because there is an available battery pack NC-3 (NiCad) that works with the Charge-15 rapid charger. Loose AA batteries cannot be used without the adapter known as AP-1. They are all over eBay and quite reasonably priced.

Did you get the cord with the flash unit, If so then try that to see if it's the camera, Cords are cheap to buy if you didn't rec it,

You may order the part from here. The part is USD 6.50. The shipping cost will depend on what part of the world you're in.

My first impression is that you are using the flash at its maximum capacity and completely draining the charge each time. I'd also say that you are only going to get about a dozen flash burst before the batteries are exhausted. I use several Vivitar 283's 285's and a couple 285HV's in a portable studio set up I have and the 285 HV's have got to be tuned down about 1/3 before I can get them to match the other flash outputs. If I need all out brute power then the 285HV's are used on full inside a softbox. I generally work with a 16 batteries between the two 285HV, also they need good fresh batteries off the charger. On a photo shoot I'll get maybe 15 shots before the power is down enough that I change then, I'd say powering back up it'll take about 15 to 20 seconds before they come out.

The Vivitar 285 HV is specified to have a trigger voltage of 12V. The Nikon DSLRs are specified to be safe up to 12V. This puts the combination right at the fuzzy point. It should be safe, but if the flash goes a little high while the camera goes a little low, you might run into trouble.

The 285 (no HV) is definitely a no-go.

After that long without power, the main storage capacitor has likely failed. If you can find the correct model or an equivalent one, then you'll find that they're not overly expensive but you'll need good soldering skills to replace it without damaging the new one and to ensure that the new connections are sound.

TR 2000 gives two output ^ volt and 330 volts.
Whereas 285 HV uses 6 volt and 110 volt AC
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=details_accessories&A=kitInfo&Q=&sku=638035&is=REG
I am running my 285HV with external 6volt battery pack.sort of this type.
http://cgi.ebay.com/6V-1-3AH-SLA-Sealed-Lead-Acid-Rechargeable-Battery_W0QQitemZ390166216699QQcmdZViewItemQQptZLH_DefaultDomain_0?hash=item5ad7b7fffb
I added 2 standard diodes in series (IN4001 type) and placed inside the dummy battery pack which reduces some voltage and safeguards against wrong polarity.
more details? [email protected]

Are you still having problems? [email protected]

easiest way to get these is search for them on Ebay. they are usually very plentiful. If that fails, most on-line camera stores (B&H Photo is a good one) have them on line to order

Then I'd say it's a reasonably sure thing that the green light is just burned out, The lights are supposed to be off at first, then red when there's a partial charge, then green when there's a full charge, then flashing between red and green when the "battery saver" kicks in. If you're seeing off, then red, then off, then flashing red, then that means everything in the charging circuit is working perfectly, there's just no green light.