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Can I send 5V power through a serial cable pins ..... (not wires)

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unclet:
If have some of the metal serial cable pin adapters with no wires attached to them yet.  I would like to use them as a quick disconnect for some wiring I am doing.  Can I can attach the 5V power RED wire from my power supply to one of the pins in the adpater without melting the pin?

I know I can not use the thin serial cable wire to transfer 5V power ....... so I am not doing this .... I just want to know whether I can attach the 5V power wire directly to the metal pin without causing fire hazards.   

Of course I would protect it with heat shrink tubing....

DaOld Man:
You can run 5 volts through the pin. probably a lot more than that.
What is important is the amount of current you are going to pass through the pin.
I dont know how much current a serial connector pin can handle, but I would guess no more than a couple of amps.
What are you going to be supplying with this connection?
Also, you can supply 5 volts through the serial cable also, but the current draw will have to be very small. Supplying one or two LEDs through a serial cable should be ok. But I would not push much more current than that through a serial cable wire.
I found this on the net:
http://ewcap.uscarteams.org/ConnectorCatalog.htm#PinSizeAndCurrentCapacity

I would not go over 2 amps, just for safety reasons.. (But I tend to be a little over protective, just ask my daughter).

Kevin Mullins:

--- Quote from: DaOld Man on December 23, 2007, 11:44:45 am ---I would not go over 2 amps, just for safety reasons.. (But I tend to be a little over protective, just ask my daughter).

--- End quote ---

Kinda like saying "just ask my daughters Ex-boyfriend."  ;D

But like already mentioned, it's the current you need to be more concerned with rather than the voltage. So it boils down to what are you wanting to drive with that 5v?

unclet:
I was going to hook up the 5V line from my power supply to go through one "pin" of a serial cable adapter.    Juut to be clear .... I am "not" going to be using the thin serial cable wire at all.

I would like to solder the RED 5V wire from my power supply to one metal pin of a "male" serial cable adapter.  I would then solder a RED wire (which goes to my LEDWiz hardware) to one metal pin of a "female" serial cable adapter.    I would then put the two serial adapters together to allow the 5V power go from my power supply to my LEDWiz hardware.

Not sure whether I can do this without creating a fire hazard.....

Ed_McCarron:

--- Quote from: unclet on December 23, 2007, 05:04:00 pm ---Not sure whether I can do this without creating a fire hazard.....

--- End quote ---

As long as there are no shorts, sure.  I doubt the current the ledwiz will draw will even come close to stressing the pin.

Go ahead and power it up.  Monitor the pin.  If it gets hot, discontinue use.

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