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Posted By: Trumpy Outback GPO!!! - 08/17/03 05:48 AM
Sorry guys, here is a series of pics that Dapo(Graham) sent me AGES ago, to be posted.
Check these pics out:

[Linked Image]


Hope these come out clear!!. [Linked Image]
{Edited to correct all sorts of problems} [Linked Image]




[This message has been edited by Trumpy (edited 08-17-2003).]
Posted By: Trumpy Re: Outback GPO!!! - 08/17/03 06:23 AM
Paul,
Sorry to spread things out like this, but the writing was really small.
Dapo gave me some really good pics, though!.
Cheers, mate!.
Graham, could you please comment on these pics?. [Linked Image]
Posted By: pauluk Re: Outback GPO!!! - 08/17/03 10:52 AM
GPO = General Purpose Outlet, right? When I saw the topic I was expecting pictures of a Post Office at first! [Linked Image]

That's certainly an ingenious way to fabricate one's own receptacle. The staples to terminate the conductors onto the Pepsi-contacts are a nice touch. [Linked Image]
Posted By: C-H Re: Outback GPO!!! - 08/17/03 02:03 PM
I'm lost for words.
Posted By: Bjarney Re: Outback GPO!!! - 08/17/03 02:31 PM
Impressive—particularly for the generous red/green contact spacing. The plug slots must have taken some patience to mill, although pullout tension must have been significantly enhanced with wooden slots...certainly the soda-can contacts were useless in that regard.

It's hard to imagine how much time was spent putting it all together.
Posted By: djk Re: Outback GPO!!! - 08/17/03 04:09 PM
I too am completely lost for words!

Creative!

I must say I love the way he/she has added an extra feature: A live terminal that's bonded to the ground cable at the socket.. how novel!

A real socket would cost what, € 4.00 ish?
Posted By: Plugman Re: Outback GPO!!! - 08/17/03 06:28 PM
Re: the incorrect polarity ~ must have been done with Argentinian plugs in mind ! [Linked Image]
Posted By: djk Re: Outback GPO!!! - 08/17/03 06:32 PM
Are they normally mounted Earth Up in the UK style?

or Earth down in the US style?

UK

I (E)

-(N) (L)-
Posted By: Plugman Re: Outback GPO!!! - 08/17/03 06:43 PM
Australian/NZ and Argentinian sockets are mounted the same way,(earth below L/N) but on Argentinian sockets, the live and neutral are reversed in respect to Aus/NZ wiring.

Also, the Argentinian sockets have provision for 2pin 4MM dia. europlug type plugs as well.

See this site, for examples :-
www.exultt.com.ar


[This message has been edited by Plugman (edited 08-17-2003).]

[This message has been edited by Plugman (edited 08-17-2003).]
Posted By: pauluk Re: Outback GPO!!! - 08/17/03 06:44 PM
Normally earth downward. (What'dya expect down under? [Linked Image])

Just how far out in the outback was this? I know supplies might be a little hard to come by if you're 300 miles from nothing, but they must get supplies in somehow from time to time. I'm sure it could have waited!
Posted By: Trumpy Re: Outback GPO!!! - 08/23/03 02:34 AM
Paul,
I have just had an email from Graham,
he said that the place where the outlet came from, is pretty isolated.
Apparently, a Chinese guy made the socket when he was living in the house and when he sold the house, the new owner wondered why it would'nt work!?. [Linked Image]
The guy also used old cable I think, that's 2.5mm Solid core w/ stranded Earth.
djk,
You're right, it would be easier to just buy a socket and in this case, safer. [Linked Image]
Judging by the size of the P-N slots, this is the 25A model. [Linked Image]
Posted By: SvenNYC Re: Outback GPO!!! - 08/26/03 02:10 PM
Reminds me of this picture of an old Edison lampholder

[Linked Image]
from this thread:
https://www.electrical-contractor.net/ubb/Forum17/HTML/000018.html

Graham, did you happen to find any of those lampholders in that house by any chance? [Linked Image]

[This message has been edited by SvenNYC (edited 08-26-2003).]
Posted By: ThinkGood Re: Outback GPO!!! - 08/26/03 03:18 PM
The person who made up that outlet must have been a real gambling man!

Looks like he wasted a staple (to the left of the red conductor).
Posted By: Dapo Re: Outback GPO!!! - 08/27/03 08:10 AM
The extra staple may have been a replacement part, like when they leave an extra lamp in a torch!
Posted By: Trumpy Re: Outback GPO!!! - 08/29/03 05:08 AM
Dapo,
Is solid core 2.5mm still used in Aus?.
That photo shows it used and also with a grey sheathing.
I've seen 1.5 2C+E sold in DSE catalouges over the years, but 2.5?. [Linked Image]
Posted By: Dapo Re: Outback GPO!!! - 08/29/03 09:56 AM
Yes solid core cables are still available.
Both in 2.5mm and 1mm.
The grey sheathed cable hasn't been available for quite a while now.
Posted By: pauluk Re: Outback GPO!!! - 08/29/03 10:15 AM
By contrast, British 2.5 "Twin & Earth" is available only in solid core! WE can still get it with either white or gray sheaths.

Single cables intended for conduit use are available in both solid and stranded in the 2.5 size.
Posted By: Texas_Ranger Re: Outback GPO!!! - 08/29/03 12:58 PM
In Austria anything up to 6mm2 is usually solid, 10mm2 and up is stranded.
Smaller stranded wire is only used for flexes. 6mm2 solid is already quite nasty to work with, but for hooking up stranded wire to Diazed fuse elements special crimp connectors are required (you can't wrap a 10mm2 stranded wire around a terminal screw, impossible) so if you don't have the crimp tool solid is your choice. There you just need solid pliers!
Posted By: Trumpy Re: Outback GPO!!! - 08/30/03 09:39 AM
Ranger,
The only cable size that is still solid here is 1mm2, but only in TPS fixed wiring grade cable.
I've only ever seen solid core as a Line Mechanic in old Mains wires, so it was used over here at some stage.
Solid Core 16mm2 and 25mm2 was used here under the 1969 Regs, but mainly all of these wires have been removed.
It's really only way out in the sticks, that you come upon this sort of wiring!.
BTW, What is this Ragnar?, I'm not looking to hassle anyone for mispelling the username of Texas-Ranger, but I feel that this name has stuck!.
How do you feel about this,mate?. [Linked Image]
Posted By: pauluk Re: Outback GPO!!! - 08/30/03 09:48 AM
Quote
In Austria anything up to 6mm2 is usually solid
[Linked Image] I wouldn't want to try fitting that into some of the switch boxes used for our electric showers. They can be a tight squeeze even with 6mm stranded!
Posted By: Texas_Ranger Re: Outback GPO!!! - 08/30/03 02:42 PM
Ragnar is simply my first name. Some bloody idiot at my school didn't know the spelling and thought it was "Ragner". Then he swapped it over to Walker Texas Ranger, and that's how I got stuck with that nickname.
I've never seen 6mm2 used for anything but meter feeders in small residential work (lower limit, will soon be changed to 10mm2).
Water heaters if electric at all are typically 100l tank units that only take 1500W and are either wired to a Schuko plug or witzh 3x 1.5mm2 cable. In Germany electric on-demand water heaters start to gain some popularity, they're usually 400V, 20A, that means fed with 4mm2 solid.
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