DIY 'Hydra' mains lead

[danilo]

Nice bit 'o craftsmanship there, oddly attractive as well.
Seems as a whole lotta work though

I'm lazy and just buy/use these.. 2 for 10$
power strip.jpg

[YNWaN]

Nice one . I'm thinking of building one of these . Won't be as nice as yours cosmetically though .

Well the cosmetics do nothing for the sound . Actually, I'm not sure silicone is such a good idea as it will take a very long time to set. You can buy the potting compound quite easily from eBay.

[brian2957]

OK thanks Mark .

[YNWaN]

Nice bit 'o craftsmanship there, oddly attractive as well.
Seems as a whole lotta work though

I'm lazy and just buy/use these.. 2 for 10$
power strip.jpg

You are quite right, it is a whole lot of work - bit of fun though .

The problems with the extension lead you show are 1/ the neon indicator is considered a no no and is often removed, 2/ there are more connections in the line and 3/ it isn't star earthed/wired. A lead like the one I have built is specifically intended to overcome these points.

[Colin Wonfor]

What epoxy did you use? What is it dielectric breakdown voltage ? What is it fire retardant spec like ? is it self extinguishing ? And what is it temperature working range ?

I am just think of safety and home insurance problems.

So the CE specs would be useful, also note some Epoxy not only produce heat when setting can also give of gasses so ventilation is recommended, and just another point you covered the connections in tape some tape reacts with other plastic to become brittle and even in rare cases liquid, so the tape spec would be cool to have. The next thing is the epoxy Hydroscopic some are so water ingress may happen.

Reaction between plastic like Polystyrene and PVC as in power cable in polystyrene boxes and loft insulation striping the cover of in time another fire risk.

Take care Col

[YNWaN]

I used a product called PX-700K-1 made by Robnor Resins. You can find the Technical data and material safety date here if you really want to:

http://www.robnor.co.uk/robnor-produ...plication.html

Manufacturers summary description:

High electrical insulating characteristics
High adhesion
Low shrinkage
Good thermal conductivity
UL94 V-0 @ 1.5mm
Excellent chemical & water resistance
Does not contain halogens

As you can see, water ingress is not an issue but why would it be - a bunch of 13A sockets in a plastic box is more likely to suffer water ingress.

Some info on the electrical tape used (prior to being encased in the above resin):

http://www.hellermanntyton.co.uk/sit...5x10/710-00104

I'm quite happy that my cable is at least as safe as any other - but thanks for the concern.

[Colin Wonfor]

As you can see, water ingress is not an issue but why would it be - a bunch of 13A sockets in a plastic box is more likely to suffer water ingress..

But the 13Amp socket is in free air without the possibility of osmosis but encapsulation can and does cause problems we had that on the Euro Fighter, fixed now phew. So sometime low shrinkage can add problem when use other plastic as the epoxy heats and the cools gaps become apparent , a slight problem.

You basic idea is bloody good I was just being over careful.

The Robnor products are very good good choice.

This is worth noting on there spec:-
Causes skin irritation. May cause an allergic skin reaction. Causes serious eye irritation.
Harmful to aquatic life with long lasting effects.

http://www.robnor.co.uk/images/safet...X700K-1_BK.pdf

http://www.robnor.co.uk/images/techn...d/PX700K-1.pdf

[YNWaN]

Colin, each joint is fully soldered, wrapped in insulating tape and then fully potted - hopefully that is sufficient (it will only ever be used indoors and unlikely to see combat ).

[Colin Wonfor]

Combat, it would win I am sure, I will duck quickly he he

[sq225917]

Mmm glossy and mattness in one toy.