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Is there any way of changing a standard 3 pin plug to a kettle lead connection?


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I'm wondering this because I'm going to be getting a power distributor/monitor (the Samson PB10Pro) which has 10 kettle lead (or the technical term IEC I think they're called) connections on the back of it but 3 of the units I use have standard in the wall plugs on the end of the cables so I was wondering if it's safe to put a kettle lead end on in stead of the plug and whether it would work or not?

CHHHHHEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEERS

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[quote name='StevieD_FenderP2009' post='1373145' date='Sep 14 2011, 01:00 PM']Ah right cool, without risk of sounding stupid, is it as easy as just taking the plug off and putting the kettle lead end on? what about the fuse that's inside a normal plug?
cheers guys[/quote]

Im no expert so cant answer the fuse thing 100% but im guessing you power block should have a fuse/fuses in it.

You do get different styles of plug, although they should all be the same fit, ive found that some are better than others, plus some have a groove down the middle. You dont need that type although they should work ok. You can also get high power rated ones but ive never needed to use one like that.

I just get the standard ones from Maplins and these seem to work ok.

As far as wiring goes its just the usual 2 or 3 wires, just like a mains plug. A few things ive brought have had those moulded plugs on them, i just cut them off and put a kettle plug on the end.

Edited by dave_bass5
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Best if you use something like these. The screw terminals in wired IEC plugs - Thats what theyre called - are usually pretty crap, and you cant trust the cord grip. Dont forget they aint fused either.

[url="http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/5m-Kettle-Extension-Power-Lead-Cable-C13-C14-Socket-/270596819329?pt=UK_Computing_CablesConnectors_RL&hash=item3f00d3c981"]http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/5m-Kettle-Extens...=item3f00d3c981[/url]

Always assuming that your amps use kettle leads anyway. Moulded leads much better for mains.

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Well all of the units in question's power cables are fully attached to the unit (like, soldered to the inside of the unit) so it's not a case of just changing over the cable as they don't use kettle leads already. What I'm asking about is taking off the standard plug that's on it (the sort you plug into a wall or whatever) and replacing that with the male end IEC plug and whether or not it would work. By the sounds of it it would

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Just to recap....

You have 3 units that have "built-in" mains cords (i.e. the mains cables cannot be disconnected from the units) and you want to connect them to your power distributor/monitor ?

If that's correct, then yes you can do this. What you need are these connectors -

[url="http://www.maplin.co.uk/euro-line-plug-1360"]Maplin Euro Line Plug C14[/url]


Remove the 13 Amp plugs and replace them with the above C14 plugs. The C14 plug has Live, Neutral and Earth clearly marked inside the plug. The screw terminals can be a bit fiddly but patience pays off.

The units themselves should be internally fused in any case. The fuse fitted to a 13Amp plug is really there as a last resort. The Samson unit will have overload protection also (there's a circuit breaker on the front of the unit that will trip in the event of an overload fault in the same way that a fuse would blow).

Note that if you ever need to operate these units separately in future (i.e. without the Samson) you can just plug a standard IEC (kettle-type) lead, with a 13A socket on one end, directly into the C14 plug that you've fitted.

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[quote name='BOD2' post='1375560' date='Sep 16 2011, 02:17 PM']Just to recap....

You have 3 units that have "built-in" mains cords (i.e. the mains cables cannot be disconnected from the units) and you want to connect them to your power distributor/monitor ?

If that's correct, then yes you can do this. What you need are these connectors -

[url="http://www.maplin.co.uk/euro-line-plug-1360"]Maplin Euro Line Plug C14[/url]


Remove the 13 Amp plugs and replace them with the above C14 plugs. The C14 plug has Live, Neutral and Earth clearly marked inside the plug. The screw terminals can be a bit fiddly but patience pays off.

The units themselves should be internally fused in any case. The fuse fitted to a 13Amp plug is really there as a last resort. The Samson unit will have overload protection also (there's a circuit breaker on the front of the unit that will trip in the event of an overload fault in the same way that a fuse would blow).

Note that if you ever need to operate these units separately in future (i.e. without the Samson) you can just plug a standard IEC (kettle-type) lead, with a 13A socket on one end, directly into the C14 plug that you've fitted.[/quote]

thank you so much for that Bod! That's exactly what I was hoping for. I'll get some of those ordered as soon as I get the Samson unit which should be next month.
Again, thank you so much for that! You're a massive help

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  • 2 weeks later...

[quote name='vsmith1' timestamp='1317208362' post='1388032']
Maplin - expensive try CPC:

[url="http://cpc.farnell.com/pro-elec/pe00070/rewireable-iec-plug/dp/PL09635"]http://cpc.farnell.c...plug/dp/PL09635[/url]

For the price of the Maplin IEC C14 you can get a ready made C13-C14 cable from CPC.
[/quote]

Thanks very much for that dude, that page is in my favourites now :)

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