I've been wondering what the electrical gear in the former communist states look like. I've managed to find a few manufacturers websites. A Polish manufacturer with sales in the whole eastern Europe is found on www.polo.com.pl

It looks just like the stuff used in the west. A closer check shows that it's even made to the same standard.

I also found a Russian manufacturer, www.dek.ru Since the site is very slow and in Russian, I picked two ads from the site and put on my.

Ad for sockets and switches

Ad for circuit breakers

Again, it looks just like the gear used in the west.

[This message has been edited by C-H (edited 08-11-2003).]

C-H, I've got 4 Polish and a former Yugoslav site for you ~ you may have to re-type the addresses, as I'm not sure if these will link off this page. Anyway, have fun with these! www.elda.com.pl www.eltra.pl www.ospel.com.pl www.taaj.com.pl www.fks.co.yu




[This message has been edited by Plugman (edited 08-11-2003).]

[This message has been edited by Plugman (edited 08-11-2003).]

You're living up to your handle (login name), Plugman. Thanks for the links!

From www.ospel.com.pl



Do you think this is polarised or do you think it the polarity depends on which socket you use? (They have the same model with the pins on the same side, and some comment about model for Slovakia. I think. I don't know Polish.)

This site, I think it is Croatian :-
www.commel.hr

Yikes!

What's this mean looking thing used for?? Heavy duty three-phase machinery? The website says something about trofazna -- 16-amp at 380 volts



Here is the mating wall socket:



[This message has been edited by SvenNYC (edited 08-11-2003).]

The polish one wouln't meet french standards.

It's doesn't look sufficiently recessed although a lot neater looking than a typical french outlet

It's also looks unshuttered. As far as I know shuttering's required on new french and schuko outlets?

Italian?
Swiss?
Danish?

C-H:

Relative to the Ad for sockets and switches, here is a rough translation:

[Edit: The Cyrillic type doesn't come through, so here's just the English...]

[Title] Sockets and switches

Solo

Randysh [?]

Violet

Fanmaziya [?]

Image

Heather

At the bottom:

Harmony of the form Accessible quality

[There is a 3 year guarantee mentioned, in yellow, bottom right.]

[This message has been edited by ThinkGood (edited 08-11-2003).]

.hr is a domain of Croatia

Sven,
That 3-phase monster plug looks like the one from this thread .

If the duplex looks the same as our duplexes inside it's not polarised, since there's only one set of phase and neutral conductors each, with one screw on each side.
Whether shuttering is required or not depends on where you live. Only IP44 and higher outlets are shuttered here in Austria, as well as imported power strips. Italian receptacles are always shuttered, Swiss hardly ever or never are.
Eek! That's definitely the ugly stone-age 3phase plug we were talking about some time ago. I had no idea these beasts were still used anywhere. I was told these plugs caused a lot of electrocutions due to the scraping ground loosing contact.

Like Ragnar said, shuttering seems to be country specific. In Sweden, all socket have shutters except IP44 and higher outlets and imported power strips. Modern Danish sockets have shutters.

(I think all sockets should have shutters. But that is another topic.)

One type of socket that puzzels me is the IP 44 ungrounded.



I have seen a number of manufacturers with similar products.

Which country is still using that?

I would have thought that CEE 17 is the only type manufactured thesedays.

I came across a really weird blade plug on a heater in Spain. From what I remember it was 1 phase just 3 horizontal blades

like

_
_
_


Anyone know what it was?

Djk,
do you mean this plug and socket?





25A 250V. Used for cookers. (In Sweden too)

That's the one, the only difference was that the outlet was mounted vertically and the plug was configured so that the cord came out the bottom when inserted vertically.

Not a bad design at all for a pan-european model either.

You could have a 16A and 25A version where the 16 fits the 25 but not visa versa.

I don't think fusing plugs down to suit an applience is a bad idea either. Although I hate the British approach which is both bulky and bypassable (fusing 13 amps on things that should use 3amps etc)

I'd suggest a small slot in keyed cartridge fuse.
Small plugs for small loads would only need tiny 3 amp fuses anyway, something along the lines of those used in cars.

Larger appliences could have physically bigger plugs that carrier larger (potentially hotter) fuse cartridges.
These should be non-interchangable making it impossible to over-fuse an applience.

Just make sure it's incompatable with NEMA

Use the keying on the socket to ensure polarity that way you don't comprimise the pins strength/capacity to carry current by making one larger than the other etc.

That looks a very similar arrangement of pins to the proposed European standard 16A plug of the 1970s that I mentioned in another thread.

The one there, however, had polarization by having the ground pin slightly offset to one side (or upward in the case of the photo of the socket above).

Paul:

They're actually in line from what i remember of the Spanish version but there are keyways on the top of the plug making it impossible to insert it the wrong way around.

By chance I discovered that one of the large D-I-Y chains have begun selling Elda's sockets and switches.

Of course I bought a socket and took it apart. It's the shucko version, but it should be very similar to the Polish/French version.

The quality is clearly better than that of the Swedish-made low cost sockets with which it competes. (Many of those are broken already on the shelf.) Not as good as the quality sockets, but it only costs half as much. More importantly, although this chain only carries the sockets and switches, ELDA manufactures the full range with dimmers, switches, computer sockets, combination frames and so on.

By the way, does anyone see something strange with this socket?

[This message has been edited by djk (edited 08-29-2003).]

French sockets don't have those schuko style grooves on the side, otherwise i donno!

djk,
exactly! Now look at the reflection in the lid...

Oh my. Looks like somebody doctored a photo a little.