F-in FCUs.....
 

Whilst having a good ole struggle yesterday connecting a cable up to
an FCU, I got to wondering (as you do) why they have to be so damned
awkward: On this one, the connections are on the back, screws on top
and the flex outlet on the bottom. Although the real problem was not
having quite enough cable in the ring main side, fixing the flex
around the connector block was a right pain. It's not helped by the
fact that they're always inside or round the back of something
unshiftable, so you have to stand on your head in the dark to do it.

I'm sure these things end up fiddly to keep costs down but does anyone
know (for future reference) of an easy to use version? I'm thinking
flex terminals under a plate on the front or some such design.

F-in FCUs.....
 

In article ,
GMM writes:
Whilst having a good ole struggle yesterday connecting a cable up to
an FCU, I got to wondering (as you do) why they have to be so damned
awkward: On this one, the connections are on the back, screws on top
and the flex outlet on the bottom. Although the real problem was not
having quite enough cable in the ring main side, fixing the flex
around the connector block was a right pain. It's not helped by the
fact that they're always inside or round the back of something
unshiftable, so you have to stand on your head in the dark to do it.

I'm sure these things end up fiddly to keep costs down but does anyone
know (for future reference) of an easy to use version? I'm thinking
flex terminals under a plate on the front or some such design.

The MK ones, like just about all the stuff they design themselves,
are designed to be very easy to use. Even supplied with the screws
undone, ready to pop the conductors in. All screws accessed from
the top (unlike an Ashley one I think, I was fiddling in last week,
which needed access from all sides).

There's also the type with the flex terminals in a front detachable
module to make connections very easy. More commonly called a plug
and socket.

--
Andrew Gabriel
[email address is not usable -- followup in the newsgroup]

F-in FCUs.....
 

On 26 Oct, 13:46, (Andrew Gabriel) wrote:
In article ,
* * * * GMM writes:

Whilst having a good ole struggle yesterday connecting a cable up to
an FCU, I got to wondering (as you do) why they have to be so damned
awkward: *On this one, the connections are on the back, screws on top
and the flex outlet on the bottom. *Although the real problem was not
having quite enough cable in the ring main side, fixing the flex
around the connector block was a right pain. *It's not helped by the
fact that they're always inside or round the back of something
unshiftable, so you have to stand on your head in the dark to do it.

I'm sure these things end up fiddly to keep costs down but does anyone
know (for future reference) of an easy to use version? *I'm thinking
flex terminals under a plate on the front or some such design.

The MK ones, like just about all the stuff they design themselves,
are designed to be very easy to use. Even supplied with the screws
undone, ready to pop the conductors in. All screws accessed from
the top (unlike an Ashley one I think, I was fiddling in last week,
which needed access from all sides).

There's also the type with the flex terminals in a front detachable
module to make connections very easy. More commonly called a plug
and socket.

--
Andrew Gabriel
[email address is not usable -- followup in the newsgroup]

Yup - I've seen them there new-fangled plugs and sockets, but they
wouldn't quite do the jobbie I was doing....

Actually, it was an MK I was working on and they are undoubtedly
better than the rest. It was as much that it occurred to me that some
kind of plate on the front of a DP FCU with the outlet connectors
under it would allow wiring/unwiring without furtling about round the
back of the thing, turning the power off etc etc. That would also
prevent anyone from tugging the existing cabling out when they change
whatever's connected to it (although if they are loose, it's probably
a good thing if they do fall out and have to be re-fixed - like nearly
every connection in a socket in my house did when I first moved in!).
Some cooker outlets are a bit like it, in that there's a cover with a
connection block behind but of course they're not switched within the
unit.

F-in FCUs.....
 

Andrew Gabriel wrote:

There's also the type with the flex terminals in a front detachable
module to make connections very easy. More commonly called a plug
and socket.

A 13-A version of a clock-connector would be useful.
Does anyone make one?

Martin.

F-in FCUs.....
 

Cost, because most of the designs are "inheritive".
Out of curiosity I did CAD out some alternative Grid ideas based on
dissassembly. Terminals do have to be on the rear because of the
frame, the problem is the existing "86mm footprint". If we had a 102mm
footprint we could have front terminals.

Some things do help though.
Use 47mm backbox in place of 35mm (more tail space), use 1G+1G 35mm to
"magic up" longer tails & more space in place of 1G; use Wago 3-Lever
& 5-Lever terminals with flying leads for Supply to SFCU (very useful
for inaccessible cooker hoods where you can't lean on cooker hood or
tiled in cupboards, sleeve the wires re screws obviously).

That said, I am sure MK used to do a "micro-plug with screw retention"
decades ago. It might have been eliminated by the requirement for
shuttered outlet & sleeved pins.

There are some amusing "defects" in MK.
Masterseal grid screws inaccessible on some items when fitted. MK grid
Cord-Outlets are incredibly deep even for a 40mm box, try 47mm. Tunnel
Terminals, oh get real, they are incomplete so if the flat screwdriver
tip is misaligned it will slip off the screw and jam between terminal
& housing. Neon tails on 32A 1G switch & masterseal are fine solid
core which even looped back on itself can still slip out of the
terminal if solid-core. Most fans require a 3-pole isolator and fuse,
so why is the 3P isolator slimline and the FCU like a *brick* - it
looks so ugly.

Klik do some odd ones too.
Their nice 3/4-pin plug-in ceiling roses do not actually sit well on a
BESA box, they rock about. That requires the box to be sunk below the
plaster or use of their own surface mount box. Also why Klik they
screw-thread or hit-miss screw thread the lid on Klik? You almost rip
the fitting out trying to spring the cover off, a great idea made
clumsy.

F-in FCUs.....
 

In article ,
"Martin Crossley" writes:
Andrew Gabriel wrote:

There's also the type with the flex terminals in a front detachable
module to make connections very easy. More commonly called a plug
and socket.

A 13-A version of a clock-connector would be useful.
Does anyone make one?

How would it differ from a 13A plug and socket?

--
Andrew Gabriel
[email address is not usable -- followup in the newsgroup]

F-in FCUs.....
 

Andrew Gabriel wrote:
In article ,
"Martin Crossley" writes:
Andrew Gabriel wrote:

There's also the type with the flex terminals in a front detachable
module to make connections very easy. More commonly called a plug
and socket.

A 13-A version of a clock-connector would be useful.
Does anyone make one?

How would it differ from a 13A plug and socket?

By the plug not protruding from the socket, like a Shuko but even more
recessed, though with a 13-A fuse in either the plug or socket, and possibly
needing a tool to release it to prevent accidental unplugging.