Build Your Own Arcade Controls Forum
Main => Main Forum => Topic started by: Capthowdy on May 29, 2006, 05:18:10 pm
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I'm trying to wire the 2 lights in the marquee to a regular outlet. I picked up a 6 foot cord from Radio shack but it's only 2 prongs with no ground.
The 2 lights in the marquee have a ground attached to them. Does this matter? where should I wire the ground to?
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v292/xjasonxisxdeadx/gameconstruction023.jpg)
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Is that a three wire harness going to the bulb sockets? (can't quite tell)
Are those single filament bulbs? (like a low wattage house bulb)
Incandescent light bulbs like those only require two wires to operate.
Your two wire cord would work. Just trace your wire harness to the sockets.
One to the metal "base" of the bulb socket.
The other to the center tap of the socket.
If it's a three wire harness:
A third wire for "ground" could be run seperate down to the "earth ground" where the power comes into the cabinet if you wanted to. Or the power block of some sort. Depending on your actual setup.
(more of a safety in case a catastrophic failure/short curcuit of one of the bulb sockets should happen)
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it is a 3 wire harness.
I'm running everything to a power strip. So if I needed to...how do I run it to an "earth ground?"
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you could buy a cheap 3 prong extension cord (it would have 2 wires and a ground) and just cut the end off it and wire that to your lights. This will allow you to plug the other end into your power strip.
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Is your power strip going to be what plugs into the wall outlet? (outside the cabinet)
Or do you have it wired into the original cabinet wiring somehow?
Either way.... in all essence all you should need are the two wires.
That two prong cord should plug right into the powerstrip just fine.
House wiring consists of three lines:
1. Hot
2. Neautral
3. Earth ground
The neautral is essentially grounded already.
The earth ground is just a direct route in case of a serious fault.
(someone correct me if I'm wrong here with my terminology please)
But to ADD that third wire you really need a three wire cord or a place in the cab to run it to. (which is why I asked what you had in the cab and what plugging into the wall outlet)
I generally salvage old extension cords, cords off old power tools, and even PC power cords for doing those that require all three wires to allow it to just "plug in" to a power strip with a ground. Snip one end off, strip the wires, and go for it.
But in your case...... look at a house lamp....... two wires.
Hope to be of some help to ya.
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everything is pretty basic. Computer, monitor, and these lights will all plug into a power strip. ...which then plugs into the wall.
these lights were part of the original cabinet and were connect to a power supply box with everything else.
I hooked it up and it seems to work with just the 2 wires. My main question was is it safe to ignore the ground wire that was hooked up originally. All it is ..is a wire soldered to the metal part of one light....chained to the other...and was then attached to the the connector to the power supply. now the ground wire is just kind of hanging...not attached to anything.
all I need now is for someone to tell me that it's safe. :)
i connected them with metal connectors from radio shack and covered them with black electrical tape.