The pins of the male connector don't protrude beyond the back of the set which has a slot with just enough clearance for the female connect to pass through so that the only time that the pins are exposed is when the connector is removed.
I've vever come acros a connector without a cord grip (usually moulded serrations in both sides so that the flat flex is firmly clamped when the fiving screw is tightened.
My point being twofold. One, that where a risk has been shown to be effectively non-existent by the situation occurring many times without harm befalling man or beast then it should be treated that way, and two, that having assessed and used countless mains extension leads without harming the afore mentioned man or beast, I am de facto qualified to test mains extension leads.
There are some where the live chassis is accessible with a regular mark one finger!
Perhaps the solution is if that is your thing, to visit all the likely shops and leave them a card saying if you get any donations of this kind of kit, please let me know and I will come get it.
(or failing that, offer to do free PAT testing for them on the understanding you can keep any "interesting" stuff that won't pass the test).
I've not encountered a lot of connectors on the appliance, but IMLE they mostly failed. Some had bare pins sticking out, though a lot were as you say shrouded. Shrouded connectors were frequently touchable live when part-way in. Bulgins were usually unscrewable without a tool, so require a mod to stop that
And that circa 1910 hotplate? It had 3 sticking out pins connected to differing points of the element. The mains lead had 3 separate 1 pole sockets on. The power level depended on which pins the L&N sockets were pushed onto. The remaining pin was of course live. Hopefully you pushed the socket on the 3rd green wire onto it, and didn't foolishly connect it to earth in the plug. Of course there was no earth conection on the hotplate. But even with all 3 connectors on you could still touch the live bits.
I've seen tons of old mains connectors that lacked an effective cordgrip. It's a frequent problem
I spent 9 years repairing radios and TVs from 1960 - 69, so saw a wide variety of sets dating back to the early/mid 50s from numerous manufacturers and never saw a set with exposed pins. The connectors were all variants of a 5A 2 pin flex connector, which is exactly what we used on the bench - the manufacturers special version never left the customer's home.
There was a variant we occasionally saw, a polarised connector with one standard size pin and one thin pin but a length of matchstick in the appropriate hole of the female bench connector resolved that problem!
By the end of the 60s, all manufacturers had moved away from the detachable mains lead concept and new sets had integral leads.
H yes, the Bulgin P73 and P74 and the later miniature P360 - I remember them well! What form does the mod take?
Yes, I can recall a number of plugs that were expected to be fitted with cables much thicker that thin twin flex that left a lot to be desired!
Fair enough. I have, on very rare occasions, come across knobs with a short plastic grub screw fitted on top of the metal screw but I doubt you could find them these days and, of course, they would need BA threads!
Thinking about it, the knobs must have been specially made too as you wouldn't normally expect to find a threaded hole in the plastic part.
50s TVs were the first things I tried to repair, but mostly my experience has been with anything other than TVs. Largely various audio stuff.
It's a long time since I even saw a Bulgin. A small screw somewhere stops it unscrewing by hand, but I don't recall just where the screw went, other than through the plastic thread.
yes, and a lot with what are perhaps best described as unsuccessful attempts at cordgrips.
Turns out it's quite practical to duplicate old knobs now. Silicone to make a mould + resin.
It's quite easy yuo just make them comply to the necessary safety rules.
Like the vulcan bomber, remove the nuclear weapons and all weapons and makew sure that no one can just jump in and take off in it it is then consider safe, but it;s still an aircraft that can be seen and viewed.
Indeed - I have an extension lead with a 3A fuse fitted (and I have written on the plug and the socket "3A fuse fitted") I don't think this would be good for a 3kW load.
I am not overly popular with some of the people I work with either, and I work with one hell of a lot of Hi Vis and forward parking spotters.
If I do raise a H&S issue then it's with good reason and flippant know it alls that get away with things for years do get their come uppance eventually. Accidents may be less frequent than years back, but the results are the same, with the added costs of court proceedings.
If a faulty lead had been provided and the equipment used was class 1, the lady would have been at a much higher level of risk, in fact the risk may be a certainty of shock or electrocution if the circumstances were right.
Taking every reasonable step to ensure safety isn't an overkill at all. It's to be expected and anything else is negligence.
Methinks the lady would be better off finding other venues if what should be normal adherence to current practices is "overkill".
I hope for everyones sake the heating to the hall isn't by gas!!
Electrical knowledge plus knowing what issues to look for. I don't doubt you have the former. Hopefully you have the latter too, though it's not implied by either electrical knowledge or years of experience.
HomeOwnersHub website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here.
All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.