where to buy power adapter thingy...

[SNAAKE]

I am looking for something like this but inside/back I also need the female connector so I can plug in a surge protector. that way I can just flip a switch to turn on/off my cabinet from the outside. can someone link me to the right product? thx! 
http://www.dx.com/p/3-pin-power-adapter-socket-with-rock-switch-for-diy-project-black-red-5-piece-pack-145357#.Vv1LuHobLh4

[jdbailey1206]

Scott took from my Fix It Felix build and put a write up in the wiki here.

Below is a quote from my page...

Disclaimer:  I am not a licensed electrician.  This post is not in anyway a certified way to wire your arcade cab.  Only a suggestion.  I in no way can guarantee or warrant your application of the following how-to.     

Last Monday I had some free time at night so I decided to take some time and wire up my power supply to my rocker switch which will be on the outside of the cab to get power to all the components.  The rocker switch can be found here and the I found the power supply I used at Meijer.  For those who don't have a Meijer close by the power supply can be found here.  The Rocker Switch also requires a 10A fuse.  Those can also be found on Amazon.  The link is here.

Before the operation:


When working on this setup always remember that BLACK=LIVE, WHITE=NEUTRAL, GREEN=GROUND.  And as the following pictures show you it is easy enough to wire up. 



All wired up.


And installed.  (All be it blurry.    )


I wanted to thank PL1 for showing me how to put together this set up when I put together my weecade.  I was nervous when I put together my first one but for this build it was a whole lot easier.  More to come.

Note:  Always use spare wire from your power strip to create your jumpers.  If you use a smaller gauge wire you run the chance of creating a bottle neck for the electricity.  Someone may want you dead but its not me.   

[SNAAKE]

trying to skip all that work lol..

aren't there any plug and play solution? like female connector on the inside and outside thats it?

[vwalbridge]

trying to skip all that work lol..

aren't there any plug and play solution? like female connector on the inside and outside thats it?

I've never seen one like you are describing. I've only ever seen the method that jdbailey describes.

[jdbailey1206]

Hmmm...How can I say this...It takes Illustrator longer to open than it does to actually make one of these....

All joking aside Snaake I actually put this together during a DVRed episode of the Walking Dead.  That equals out to 45 minutes of show and I was watching the Walking Dead more than I put this together.  At most it took me 25 minutes to complete.

[Jamesbeat]

I don't think you can buy them like that, it would probably be illegal to sell them.

Might be a good idea to slap some extra insulation around those wires and put some kind of strain relief on that cable near the cut end too.

I have been trying to avoid making one of these, but I just realized that my pc psu doesn't have a monitor pass through socket, so I may have no choice.

[jdbailey1206]

If I make another one I'm going to add heat shrink tubing to the connections for extra protection.

[harveybirdman]

I got mine from Twister Quarter.

[Jamesbeat]

If I make another one I'm going to add heat shrink tubing to the connections for extra protection.

You should really add some strain relief to the cable and screw the power strip to the cabinet too - if that cable gets twisted or pulled, all of the force will be concentrated on one of those wires. It might not take much force, and if you're unlucky, it might not completely disconnect, and the first you will know about it is when your cab catches fire.

[Slippyblade]

Strain relief and such seems overkill.  This is inside the cab, it's not an outside part.  Literally the ONLY person to ever see this would be the builder or a technician.

[Jamesbeat]

Perhaps I'm being overly safety conscious, but this is not as safe as it could (or should) be.

Please don't take this as me singling you out, but I feel obligated to put this here for people who may read this thread in the future.
You clearly understand the risks, and you also seem to have done a very neat job with your wiring.

 I just want to say that this is not really the correct way to do this, (ie it does not meet electrical safety standards) and I'm saying that for the benefit of the next guy who might not have your expertise or properly understand the risks.

A better way to do it would be to use an electrical box fitted with a standard outlet, and to use solid, not stranded wire.
This would give a solid mount just like a standard wall outlet, into which a power strip could be plugged.
Total cost would be under $5. Is it worth even the slightest chance of a fire or a shock just to save $5?

Another hobby of mine is building cannons.
A group that I am a member of has very strict rules for barrel wall thickness and other aspects of cannon construction.
A lot of newcomers see these measures as overkill, often because it makes construction a lot more difficult and expensive.

It's possible to make a cannon out of a piece of plumbing pipe, and it may last ten or even a hundred shots before suddenly turning into a pipe bomb. It may never explode at all.
Thing is, when you're firing a cannon, you want to KNOW it's not going to explode.

I want to KNOW that my cab will never hurt anyone or cause a fire.

[dmckean]

Just mount the powerstrip to the inside of the cabinet for strain relief.

[jdbailey1206]

Please don't take this as me singling you out...

Another hobby of mine is building cannons...
...Thing is, when you're firing a cannon, you want to KNOW it's not going to explode.

I want to KNOW that my cab will never hurt anyone or cause a fire.

I will not feel singled out if you see the irony of referencing your other hobby as something that will not hurt anyone or cause a fire.  Thats what cannons were invented for.  Any hobby has the potential to harm you if done incorrectly.  But here, as I am sure you are in your other hobby, we do things safely and for the most part round table about our ideas before we take action.  Except for lightning wallpaper on the outside of cabs...What was everyone thinking?

As you stated I never want my cab to harm anyone or cause a fire and I stated that in the very beginning of my original post that "I am not a licensed electrician.  This post is not in anyway a certified way to wire your arcade cab.  Only a suggestion.  I in no way can guarantee or warrant your application of the following how-to."

People can use the tutorial at their own risk.  I am not a licensed electrician and I felt that if I did it with an electrical box I did not have the know how to properly wire it together.  But I knew how to properly wire this rocker switch to a power strip.  So I did it this way and it was inspected by a licensed electrician and given the green light.

[Malenko]

Ive wired cabs just like JD describes , if you crimp and connect everything properly there is practically zero chance of fire. An electrical box with an outlet is overkill.

[Jamesbeat]

Shooting cannons does not hurt people or start fires if the correct safety protocols are followed.
Cannons are metal tubes designed to launch a projectile. Where that projectile ends up is up to the human being that lights the fuse, and I don't think there was any irony in what I wrote.

I'm not necessarily saying that the setup described is extremely dangerous, just that it doesn't meet the requirements for double insulation.
Those requirements may well be overkill, but it's not up to any of us to decide for someone else whether or not they are overkill.
I just posted what I posted as a disclaimer of sorts in case anyone came along and got the impression that this was a certified way of doing it.

[Malenko]

Shooting cannons does not hurt people or start fires if the correct safety protocols are followed.
Cannons are metal tubes designed to launch a projectile. Where that projectile ends up is up to the human being that lights the fuse, and I don't think there was any irony in what I wrote.

I'm not necessarily saying that the setup described is extremely dangerous, just that it doesn't meet the requirements for double insulation.
Those requirements may well be overkill, but it's not up to any of us to decide for someone else whether or not they are overkill.
I just posted what I posted as a disclaimer of sorts in case anyone came along and got the impression that this was a certified way of doing it.

No it is overkill for the application. He isn't wiring an outlet in his house, if he were I'd be on your side. I believe the previous reply was making the connection that cannons were invented to hurt people, hence the irony. I equate your post to the ones that say removing an anode cap on a monitor is the deadliest thing in the world, its more fear mongering than anything else.

How about the irony of the OP wanting a plug and play solution and your reply is to wire up a standard outlet inside a bartop cab?

[Jamesbeat]

Whether or not it is overkill is not for you or anyone else here to decide. It is either compliant or it isn't.

An individual can choose what is overkill for themselves and I guess their loved ones, but without my added disclaimer above, someone might have read the post and come to the conclusion that this is the correct way to wire their cabinet.

No matter what you think about the electrical safety laws, the fact is that this device does not comply with them. That is all I was pointing out.

Is it safe? Probably.
Does it have the required double insulation? No.

I'm not saying that making this device it is a huge risk, nor am I saying that nobody should make one, I'm just drawing attention to the fact that it isn't as safe as the law requires, so that the next guy who reads this thread can make an informed choice.

[Malenko]

Whether or not it is overkill is not for you or anyone else here to decide. It is either compliant or it isn't.

So then you get the irony of you dictating that it isn't overkill then, correct?

As for compliance, I tried to look up the regulatory code for wiring a non-commercial bartop, but couldn't find any. Can you cite where you found your code of compliance?


Anyfart, no more replies from me, you're obviously unnecessarily steadfast in this, so you can go pound sand.  #sand

[Jamesbeat]

That would indeed be ironic if I was in fact dictating whether or not it's overkill, but I am not.
I am stating that it doesn't comply with the legal requirements.

I think it's also fair to say that once a device no longer meets electrical safety standards, it's not ok to decide for someone else without their knowledge that the device is 'safe enough'.

Without my warning, an inexperienced person might have read this thread and copied the device without realizing that it was non-compliant.
Now the information is here, so that people can make an informed choice.
They may still choose to build a non compliant device, but at least they will know that is non compliant.

I'm not surprised that you didn't find laws specifically governing bartop arcade machines, because that would be ridiculous.

Try googling IEC protection classes for electrical appliances.
This type of wiring should be double insulated (and no, that doesn't mean an extra layer of heat shrink).

The basic test is this: can a single failure result in dangerous voltage being exposed?

In this case, that single failure could be caused by damage to any of the insulation past the point where the outer sheath was cut, or by one of the spade connectors becoming even partially detached.

[Malenko]

I cant resist the bait, I need mental help 

I don't see how there is a legal requirement for this to be considered Class II electrical appliance, the fact it has an earth ground pretty much excludes this wiring from that class at all. I think the Class I certification would cover it as the pass-through is both grounded and fused ,or in some cases grounded and has a circuit breaker. Either way it has an ADS and an earth ground.


At no point did anyone in this thread, other than you, even remotely claim that the way mentioned was by any stretch of the imagination certified, it is however perfectly safe.

To note, JD clearly stated "This post is not in anyway a certified way to wire your arcade cab." so he SPECIFICALLY stated *not* certified. Also, you can clearly see both the Earth ground wire, and the fuse holder in his picture, so you cant use the excuse that you didnt know about them.   

[Jamesbeat]

Read it again - the earth wire doesn't do anything unless the chassis is metal.

[dmckean]

 

Like any of this even makes any difference when I'm going to plug it into my home outlet that uses single-insulated knob and tube wiring anyway.

[Malenko]

Read it again - the earth wire doesn't do anything unless the chassis is metal.

We're just going to have to agree to disagree.

[Jamesbeat]

Read it again - the earth wire doesn't do anything unless the chassis is metal.

We're just going to have to agree to disagree.

Fair enough, no hard feelings my end