I'm going to rewire an old, old 35mm projector, a Picturol Model Q - one
of these:
https://img0.etsystatic.com/054/0/7703457/il_570xN.744183042_m3td.jpg.

It was wired with a two-core flex, but since the body is metal I wonder
whether it would be better to rewire it with three, earthing the metal
body.

The flex connects directly to the terminals of the lamp socket; if the
live connection were to work loose I could imagine it making contact
with the body of the projector.

Daniele

D.M. Procida wrote:
I'm going to rewire an old, old 35mm projector, a Picturol Model Q - one
of these:
https://img0.etsystatic.com/054/0/7703457/il_570xN.744183042_m3td.jpg.

It was wired with a two-core flex, but since the body is metal I wonder
whether it would be better to rewire it with three, earthing the metal
body.

The flex connects directly to the terminals of the lamp socket; if the
live connection were to work loose I could imagine it making contact
with the body of the projector.

Daniele


Cant see why it would be a bad idea (other than robbing you of some of the
€œfun€� of using old electrical equipment. ;-)

How about some nice three core fabric covered flex?

http://www.lampspares.co.uk/3-core-b...IaAmkIEALw_wcB

Tim
--
Please don't feed the trolls

D.M. Procida explained :
I'm going to rewire an old, old 35mm projector, a Picturol Model Q - one
of these:
https://img0.etsystatic.com/054/0/7703457/il_570xN.744183042_m3td.jpg.

It was wired with a two-core flex, but since the body is metal I wonder
whether it would be better to rewire it with three, earthing the metal
body.

The flex connects directly to the terminals of the lamp socket; if the
live connection were to work loose I could imagine it making contact
with the body of the projector.

Daniele

That's an oldie.

The main body metalwork needs to be earthed. Exceptions will be if it
is marked as double-insulated - a symbol of a square within a square,
which that will not be.

On Wed, 01 Nov 2017 20:38:07 GMT, Harry Bloomfield
coalesced the vapors of human
experience into a viable and meaningful comprehension...

D.M. Procida explained :
I'm going to rewire an old, old 35mm projector, a Picturol Model Q - one
of these:
https://img0.etsystatic.com/054/0/7703457/il_570xN.744183042_m3td.jpg.

It was wired with a two-core flex, but since the body is metal I wonder
whether it would be better to rewire it with three, earthing the metal
body.

The flex connects directly to the terminals of the lamp socket; if the
live connection were to work loose I could imagine it making contact
with the body of the projector.

Daniele

That's an oldie.

The main body metalwork needs to be earthed. Exceptions will be if it
is marked as double-insulated - a symbol of a square within a square,
which that will not be.


Vintage "Class 0" appliances were commonplace. I think the OP is wise
to convert it to "Class 1"

I have a photographic enlarger, bought in 1961 that is the same.

--

Graham.
%Profound_observation%

"Graham." wrote in message
...
The main body metalwork needs to be earthed. Exceptions will be if it
is marked as double-insulated - a symbol of a square within a square,
which that will not be.


Vintage "Class 0" appliances were commonplace. I think the OP is wise
to convert it to "Class 1"

I have a photographic enlarger, bought in 1961 that is the same.

My enlarger which I used until I left home in the 1980s had been my dad's
when he was a lad, so probably dated from the 1950s. That had two-core red
(live) and black (neutral) cable, sheathed in an outer rubber coating with
fabric over it. The in-line switch was torpedo-shaped, with a slide bar at
right-angles which moved a fairly crude contact between terminals in the
live wire (*); the in and out neutrals within the switch were twisted
together and soldered.

I tended to leave it switched on permanently at the torpedo switch and
switched on/off the mains socket that powered the enlarger. The socket block
was designed for Photoflood photographic lights and each socket had a
three-position toggle switch, with centre off, then one side was normal
mains but the side of the switch added a diode into the live so as to
half-wave rectify the mains for reduced power to lessen the thermal shock on
a cold bulb.

With all that liquid around (developer, wash, fixer for paper) I really
should have replaced that cable with modern three-core cable to earth the
metal parts of the enlarger, and fitted a proper double-pole, fast-acting
switch.

It's amazing that I didn't get more problems with dust on the negatives
leaving white specks on the prints, since my darkroom was up in the loft and
there was dust and glass wool insulation fibres around. There wasn't enough
headroom to put the enlarger on a table so I kneeled on a bit of rubber
underfelt on the floorboards with the enlarger on the floor next to me and
the dev/wash/fix trays next to me and the safelight fastened to one the
rafters above my head. It all sounds very primitive.


(*) It wasn't exactly a fast, clean changeover from off to on, and if I was
a bit slow sliding the switch there was a bit of arcing - that's why I
switched the socket instead

In message
,
D.M. Procida writes

It was wired with a two-core flex, but since the body is metal I wonder
whether it would be better to rewire it with three, earthing the metal
body.

Absolutely. A common situation with old (pre war) toy train
transformers/controllers, and most pass PAT when fitted with a three
core cable. They were built to last. Interestingly, many have an earth
terminal on the casing, which I assume was for those who actually used
an earthed supply. Most were two core to a bayonet plug back then, to
go in a lamp socket. We were still using those plugs in the 50s for
various things.
--
Graeme

NY formulated on Wednesday :
It's amazing that I didn't get more problems with dust on the negatives
leaving white specks on the prints, since my darkroom was up in the loft and
there was dust and glass wool insulation fibres around. There wasn't enough
headroom to put the enlarger on a table so I kneeled on a bit of rubber
underfelt on the floorboards with the enlarger on the floor next to me and
the dev/wash/fix trays next to me and the safelight fastened to one the
rafters above my head. It all sounds very primitive.

My own dark room, in the late 50's early 60's, was - a homemade table,
4'x 6' with hardboard top in the loft for my train set. I turned the
table upright, so it sat on its 4' side against a corner. I then filled
in the open top and side with scrounged card board pinned on. For the
enlarger, I wired up a mechanical seconds timer, picked up in a surplus
shop.

I also set up some a pair of photoflood lamps, so that I could connect
them in series or parallel, dim/bright. I was hopeless at the
photography side, but enjoyed the tech side, the printing and
developing.

I only managed to once use my photoflood lights, by persuading one of
my sisters female friends to pose (innocently) for a photo, whom I had
a bit of a crush for.

Graeme formulated on Wednesday :
Absolutely. A common situation with old (pre war) toy train
transformers/controllers, and most pass PAT when fitted with a three core
cable. They were built to last. Interestingly, many have an earth terminal
on the casing, which I assume was for those who actually used an earthed
supply. Most were two core to a bayonet plug back then, to go in a lamp
socket. We were still using those plugs in the 50s for various things.

We were posh, my train set had a 5amp 2 pin plug, that then plugged
into a 5amp 2pin to BC lampholder adaptor lol

On Wednesday, 1 November 2017 19:58:03 UTC, D.M. Procida wrote:
I'm going to rewire an old, old 35mm projector, a Picturol Model Q - one
of these:
https://img0.etsystatic.com/054/0/7703457/il_570xN.744183042_m3td.jpg.

It was wired with a two-core flex, but since the body is metal I wonder
whether it would be better to rewire it with three, earthing the metal
body.

The flex connects directly to the terminals of the lamp socket; if the
live connection were to work loose I could imagine it making contact
with the body of the projector.

Daniele

Does the mains lead need replacing, other than the lack of earth? If not I'd run a separate earth wire along & round the existing mains lead. That way the original lead is retained and you get the safety upside of an earth.

If it's to sell in a shop it will require a lead that's both double insualted and earthed.

Someone suggested a cloth lead, rather out of character I think.

If there's nothing wrong with the wiring on it, just fitting an RCD plug is another option. It gives you maybe 99% of the safety benefit of earthing.


NT

On Wed, 01 Nov 2017 23:05:24 +0000, Harry Bloomfield wrote:

Graeme formulated on Wednesday :
Absolutely. A common situation with old (pre war) toy train
transformers/controllers, and most pass PAT when fitted with a three
core cable. They were built to last. Interestingly, many have an
earth terminal on the casing, which I assume was for those who actually
used an earthed supply. Most were two core to a bayonet plug back
then, to go in a lamp socket. We were still using those plugs in the
50s for various things.

We were posh, my train set had a 5amp 2 pin plug, that then plugged into
a 5amp 2pin to BC lampholder adaptor lol

Until about 1958 (can't remember exactly!) my toy trains didn't have a
transformer - they had a rotary converter. We were on DC mains.



--
My posts are my copyright and if @diy_forums or Home Owners' Hub
wish to copy them they can pay me £1 a message.
Use the BIG mirror service in the UK: http://www.mirrorservice.org
*lightning surge protection* - a w_tom conductor

In message , Bob Eager
writes

Until about 1958 (can't remember exactly!) my toy trains didn't have a
transformer - they had a rotary converter. We were on DC mains.

I suppose mine had a rotary converter at one time - I called it a key
:-)
--
Graeme

Well you could say this about lots of equipment with metal bodies, but they
still only have two core leads. I'm not going to go into the whole double
insulated theory here though. I think in the case of a bog standard
projector it might not matter either way, though the case of some things
can get a small electrostatic charge on them if there is not earth, you can
feel the buzz with running a very light finger along the case.
The main annoyance with all projectors is that the bulbs only seem to last
until you need to show some slides to someone important.....
Brian

--
----- -
This newsgroup posting comes to you directly from...
The Sofa of Brian Gaff...

Blind user, so no pictures please!
"D.M. Procida" wrote in
message
...
I'm going to rewire an old, old 35mm projector, a Picturol Model Q - one
of these:
https://img0.etsystatic.com/054/0/7703457/il_570xN.744183042_m3td.jpg.

It was wired with a two-core flex, but since the body is metal I wonder
whether it would be better to rewire it with three, earthing the metal
body.

The flex connects directly to the terminals of the lamp socket; if the
live connection were to work loose I could imagine it making contact
with the body of the projector.

Daniele

On Wednesday, 1 November 2017 23:36:05 UTC, tabby wrote:
On Wednesday, 1 November 2017 19:58:03 UTC, D.M. Procida wrote:

I'm going to rewire an old, old 35mm projector, a Picturol Model Q - one
of these:
https://img0.etsystatic.com/054/0/7703457/il_570xN.744183042_m3td.jpg..

It was wired with a two-core flex, but since the body is metal I wonder
whether it would be better to rewire it with three, earthing the metal
body.

The flex connects directly to the terminals of the lamp socket; if the
live connection were to work loose I could imagine it making contact
with the body of the projector.

Daniele

Does the mains lead need replacing, other than the lack of earth? If not I'd run a separate earth wire along & round the existing mains lead. That way the original lead is retained and you get the safety upside of an earth.

If it's to sell in a shop it will require a lead that's both double insualted and earthed.

Someone suggested a cloth lead, rather out of character I think.

If there's nothing wrong with the wiring on it, just fitting an RCD plug is another option. It gives you maybe 99% of the safety benefit of earthing..


NT

It may also be an option to make it double insulated. All it requires is sleeving plus, usually, either tying the L&N together close to where they terminate so if one comes adrift it doesn't wander to the case, or alternatively lining the metal lampholder with insulation. And ensure an effective cordgrip.


NT

On Wed, 01 Nov 2017 23:05:24 GMT, Harry Bloomfield
wrote:

Graeme formulated on Wednesday :
Absolutely. A common situation with old (pre war) toy train
transformers/controllers, and most pass PAT when fitted with a three core
cable. They were built to last. Interestingly, many have an earth terminal
on the casing, which I assume was for those who actually used an earthed
supply. Most were two core to a bayonet plug back then, to go in a lamp
socket. We were still using those plugs in the 50s for various things.

We were posh, my train set had a 5amp 2 pin plug, that then plugged
into a 5amp 2pin to BC lampholder adaptor lol

My Dad bought an H and M controller and read the instructions that it
must be earthed which caused a bit of a dilemma as Grans house we
lived had hardly any sockets and the ones that were there were two pin
5 amp.
So with all the skill of a WW2 RAF aircraft mechanic he solved the
issue by installing another 5 amp 2 pin socket about a foot away which
was wired to a gas pipe. The controller had two 5 amp 2 pin plugs of
identical make and type with one wired to L and N cores and the other
to the earth core. All that differentiated the plugs was the letter M
painted on one and E on the other and an E painted on the earthed
socket.
Normally Dad plugged it in but I suppose it was fortunate I was an
early reader.
Dad left soon after with the Big C and his replacement a couple of
years later was absolutely horrified saying it highly dangerous, this
was the Dad who I mentioned in another thread kept decades old
Gelignite in an OXO tin in the shed.

It's a wonder I actually survived the pair of them.

G.Harman

On Thu, 2 Nov 2017 06:58:52 +0000, Graeme
wrote:

In message , Bob Eager
writes

Until about 1958 (can't remember exactly!) my toy trains didn't have a
transformer - they had a rotary converter. We were on DC mains.

I suppose mine had a rotary converter at one time - I called it a key
:-)

I bought a clockwork engine for half a crown from a school chum after
we moved in with Dad 2 .
No mains at the farm so could only use the electric train set in
Winter when the generator was running in the hours I was up. Too
expensive just to run it just for my train set and in Summer it wasn't
started till after my bedtime. Not that it mattered as there outdoor
activities instead.
Later when mains electricity arrived it disarmed mother when she
attempted to curb my sessions with "stop that now You're wasting
electricity" Wind wind wind "No I'm not its the clockwork one"
"don't you start getting clever with me".
I expect we have all been there in some way.

G.Harman

In message ,
writes

"No I'm not its the clockwork one"
"don't you start getting clever with me".
I expect we have all been there in some way.

Either the above or 'don't answer me back!'.
--
Graeme

In message ,
writes

My Dad bought an H and M controller

I lusted after a Duette, as a kid.

Dad left soon after with the Big C and his replacement a couple of
years later was absolutely horrified saying it highly dangerous, this
was the Dad who I mentioned in another thread kept decades old
Gelignite in an OXO tin in the shed.

It's a wonder I actually survived the pair of them.

My poor old dad hadn't a clue how to wire a plug, which was quite fun in
the days when few if any items arrived with a plug fitted. So, he
bought a car battery charger to use in the garage, which only had a
light socket, not a power socket. Bulb was standard bayonet, so he
fitted a bayonet plug, cutting off the unnecessary third wire. Plugged
in, nothing happened. Eventually tried rotating the plug which was fine
until I picked up the metal bodied charger which was, of course, live.

Another time he borrowed my screwdriver to repair a door bell
transformer. Dunno what he did, but there was a bang, all the lights
went out and the tip of my screwdriver was never the same again.
--
Graeme

On Thu, 02 Nov 2017 09:58:57 +0000, coalesced
the vapors of human experience into a viable and meaningful
comprehension...

On Thu, 2 Nov 2017 06:58:52 +0000, Graeme
wrote:

In message , Bob Eager
writes

Until about 1958 (can't remember exactly!) my toy trains didn't have a
transformer - they had a rotary converter. We were on DC mains.

I suppose mine had a rotary converter at one time - I called it a key
:-)

I bought a clockwork engine for half a crown from a school chum after
we moved in with Dad 2 .
No mains at the farm so could only use the electric train set in
Winter when the generator was running in the hours I was up. Too
expensive just to run it just for my train set and in Summer it wasn't
started till after my bedtime. Not that it mattered as there outdoor
activities instead.
Later when mains electricity arrived it disarmed mother when she
attempted to curb my sessions with "stop that now You're wasting
electricity" Wind wind wind "No I'm not its the clockwork one"
"don't you start getting clever with me".
I expect we have all been there in some way.

G.Harman

Eye, you try and tell that to the young people of today. Will they
believe you?
--

Graham.
%Profound_observation%

On Thu, 2 Nov 2017 14:24:27 +0000, Graeme
wrote:

In message ,
writes

My Dad bought an H and M controller


I lusted after a Duette, as a kid.


Mine was just a clipper,still out in the shed somewhere.
I got a Duette in later years but never used it much as I gave it
all up soon after as life brought other things to get on and do like
career and relationships etc.
I only chucked it out last year on a trip to the local waste
management facility.
The prices some people seem to think they will get on ebay seem very
optomistic ,mine had rust streaks on it from years stored in an old
farm shed so it wasn't worth the hassle of testing and flogging it.

G.Harman

"Graeme" wrote in message
...
My poor old dad hadn't a clue how to wire a plug, which was quite fun in
the days when few if any items arrived with a plug fitted.

I once borrowed my grandpa's electric mower to cut our grass. It had a long
lead, plugged into a short lead that was hard-wired to the mower, using a
flat three-pins-in-line connector like this
http://uk.rs-online.com/web/p/products/0531431

When the cable got tangled, I unplugged this inline connector and found that
it had been wired back-to-front - with the exposed pins on the live end that
was connected to the wall plug, rather then being attached to the mower
(with the socket part attached to the live cable).

I'm not sure whether it had been supplied that way or whether my grandpa had
wired it that way round, so I rewired it the correct way round and said
nothing, so as not to embarrass grandpa - with the plug and socket fastened
together, you wouldn't know that I'd modified it.

It was a bit hair-raising to realise how close I came to touching the
exposed pins by accident...

On Thu, 02 Nov 2017 16:09:24 +0000, coalesced
the vapors of human experience into a viable and meaningful
comprehension...

On Thu, 2 Nov 2017 14:24:27 +0000, Graeme
wrote:

In message ,
writes

My Dad bought an H and M controller


I lusted after a Duette, as a kid.


Mine was just a clipper,still out in the shed somewhere.
I got a Duette in later years but never used it much as I gave it
all up soon after as life brought other things to get on and do like
career and relationships etc.
I only chucked it out last year on a trip to the local waste
management facility.
The prices some people seem to think they will get on ebay seem very
optomistic ,mine had rust streaks on it from years stored in an old
farm shed so it wasn't worth the hassle of testing and flogging it.

G.Harman


I had one of these until about 5 years ago.
http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/upl...1322040158.jpg
I got the train set when I was 5 or 6, but I remember the controller
just as much for the electro-plating and electrolysis experiments I
did when I was about 12

Only seems to be worth £5 or so.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Meccano-A2...-/132316976157
--

Graham.
%Profound_observation%

In message , Graham.
writes

Only seems to be worth £5 or so.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Meccano-A2...EASE-READ-/132
316976157

No, they are not worth a lot, but are good, solid performers and will
pass a modern PAT effortlessly. The one above is the A2, the next being
the slightly larger A3 which has a cutout that operates with a very
satisfying 'clunk' when shorted.

--
Graeme

On Wed, 1 Nov 2017 19:57:59 +0000
(D.M. Procida) wrote:

I'm going to rewire an old, old 35mm projector, a Picturol Model Q -
one of these:
https://img0.etsystatic.com/054/0/7703457/il_570xN.744183042_m3td.jpg.

It was wired with a two-core flex, but since the body is metal I
wonder whether it would be better to rewire it with three, earthing
the metal body.

The flex connects directly to the terminals of the lamp socket; if the
live connection were to work loose I could imagine it making contact
with the body of the projector.

I have a vintage sewing machine that I was happily using with live
shorted to the metal body, until one day I happened to ground myself
against something and felt a tingle. As long as you don't use
something like that while soaking wet and holding onto a water pipe
you'll probably be fine. So my choice would be to keep it original,
but other people may be more sensitive to/about mains voltage.

In article 20171104202116.6a35c0d5@Mars, Rob Morley
writes
On Wed, 1 Nov 2017 19:57:59 +0000
(D.M. Procida) wrote:

I'm going to rewire an old, old 35mm projector, a Picturol Model Q -
one of these:
https://img0.etsystatic.com/054/0/7703457/il_570xN.744183042_m3td.jpg.

It was wired with a two-core flex, but since the body is metal I
wonder whether it would be better to rewire it with three, earthing
the metal body.

The flex connects directly to the terminals of the lamp socket; if the
live connection were to work loose I could imagine it making contact
with the body of the projector.

I have a vintage sewing machine that I was happily using with live
shorted to the metal body, until one day I happened to ground myself
against something and felt a tingle. As long as you don't use
something like that while soaking wet and holding onto a water pipe
you'll probably be fine. So my choice would be to keep it original,
but other people may be more sensitive to/about mains voltage.

I don't think it can ever be wrong to add an earth wire can it?
--
bert

Rob Morley wrote:

I have a vintage sewing machine that I was happily using with live
shorted to the metal body, until one day I happened to ground myself
against something and felt a tingle. As long as you don't use
something like that while soaking wet and holding onto a water pipe
you'll probably be fine. So my choice would be to keep it original,
but other people may be more sensitive to/about mains voltage.

I once hired a carpet cleaner which was double insulated, but had
a metal outer case, presumably for durability. Unfortunately,
the cable had slipped through the grip, whilst still functioning,
and the live conductor had made contact with the casing. I only
realised there was a problem when it sparked to a radiator.

Luckily no harm done, and hire fee waived, but it could so easily
have been much more serious.

Chris
--
Chris J Dixon Nottingham UK


Plant amazing Acers.

On Mon, 06 Nov 2017 08:49:46 +0000
Chris J Dixon wrote:

Rob Morley wrote:

I have a vintage sewing machine that I was happily using with live
shorted to the metal body, until one day I happened to ground myself
against something and felt a tingle. As long as you don't use
something like that while soaking wet and holding onto a water pipe
you'll probably be fine. So my choice would be to keep it original,
but other people may be more sensitive to/about mains voltage.

I once hired a carpet cleaner which was double insulated, but had
a metal outer case, presumably for durability. Unfortunately,
the cable had slipped through the grip, whilst still functioning,
and the live conductor had made contact with the casing. I only
realised there was a problem when it sparked to a radiator.

I wonder if an RCD would have reacted, before contact was made with a
good ground.

Luckily no harm done, and hire fee waived, but it could so easily
have been much more serious.

I tried to find figures for domestic electrocution accidents in the UK,
but it seems they don't justify a separate category so must be pretty
uncommon. I suspect that there are many "could have been much more
serious" incidents and very few "was actually rather serious" ones.

In a lifetime of messing around with electricity I've made a few things
go bang, and had a few jolts that "could have been much more serious"
(if they'd made me fall off a ladder, perhaps) but I've only had two
jolts that I wouldn't want to repeat, from a car ignition system and a
valve amp output transformer, both across the chest to a good ground
(obviously I was careless and broke the "keep one hand in your pocket"
rule). I was young and fit at the time, I wouldn't want to bet that I'm
still as resilient.

"Rob Morley" wrote in message
news:20171106155437.58ec7364@Mars...
In a lifetime of messing around with electricity I've made a few things
go bang, and had a few jolts that "could have been much more serious"
(if they'd made me fall off a ladder, perhaps) but I've only had two
jolts that I wouldn't want to repeat, from a car ignition system and a
valve amp output transformer, both across the chest to a good ground
(obviously I was careless and broke the "keep one hand in your pocket"
rule). I was young and fit at the time, I wouldn't want to bet that I'm
still as resilient.

I've only had two bad shocks. One was on a knuckle when my finger touched
the live and neutral contacts of the main switch on an appliance, and the
other was from a valve amp anode transformer which I later measured at about
400V AC (it was before any rectification/smoothing circuitry).

I take extra care now, after having a heart attack (not caused by an
electric shock!), in case my heart is more prone to across-the-chest shocks.

I had a hefty tingle when I unplugged the aerial feed from the DVB-T tuner
in my PC. I eventually traced it to my TV which was connected via the aerial
screen on another leg of the aerial. It normally floated at about 150 V via
a high resistance, but with a 300 kilohm resistor in place of a British
Standard Human, the voltage was still about 70 V - enough to be very
noticeable. I was holding the metal aerial plug in one hand and the earthed
PC case in the other hand: fine until the cable was unplugged when the
screen of the plug was no longer connected to earth.

This was a TV from about 2000, so not exactly an ancient live-chassis
device. I worked out afterwards that the PC was the only earthed device in
the circuit. The TV was two-wire double-insulated, as was the VCR and the
hifi (connected to the TV by SCART lead and audio lead respectively). The PC
was the only thing (normally) keeping the ground of everything earthed.

On Wednesday, November 1, 2017 at 7:58:03 PM UTC, D.M. Procida wrote:
I'm going to rewire an old, old 35mm projector, a Picturol Model Q - one
of these:
https://img0.etsystatic.com/054/0/7703457/il_570xN.744183042_m3td.jpg.

It was wired with a two-core flex, but since the body is metal I wonder
whether it would be better to rewire it with three, earthing the metal
body.

The flex connects directly to the terminals of the lamp socket; if the
live connection were to work loose I could imagine it making contact
with the body of the projector.

Daniele

The wires don't even need to work loose. Any leakage on a bayonet bulb base insulation will do the trick if the holder is metal. The black stuff they used to use can get leaky when hot. Though most projector bulbs seem to be glass insulated.

On Monday, 6 November 2017 15:54:42 UTC, Rob Morley wrote:

I tried to find figures for domestic electrocution accidents in the UK,

20 something a year, mostly from people being stupid


NT

On 2017-11-02, NY wrote:

I once borrowed my grandpa's electric mower to cut our grass. It had a long
lead, plugged into a short lead that was hard-wired to the mower, using a
flat three-pins-in-line connector like this
http://uk.rs-online.com/web/p/products/0531431

When the cable got tangled, I unplugged this inline connector and found that
it had been wired back-to-front - with the exposed pins on the live end that
was connected to the wall plug, rather then being attached to the mower
(with the socket part attached to the live cable).

I'm not sure whether it had been supplied that way or whether my grandpa had
wired it that way round, so I rewired it the correct way round and said
nothing, so as not to embarrass grandpa - with the plug and socket fastened
together, you wouldn't know that I'd modified it.

It was a bit hair-raising to realise how close I came to touching the
exposed pins by accident...

I was expecting a punchline where he complained about not being able
to plug another garden tool into the extension lead after you'd
fixed it.