Dieselman 63
Forklift Certified
- Messages
- 5,641
- Location
- Wellington, New Zealand
About a month ago I decided that enough was enough regarding the mix of NZ and British plugs I have in my workshop and that I would go to the NZ type, bought a 220v 1ph multisocket and wired all the leads up with new ends. I thought that would be that, but it's been a right pain and I'm thinking of going back to British with new gear because this Kiwi stuff is utter crap.
My Fobco drill needs a fatter plug end because the wire is thicker stuff than on a masonry drill or something hand held, so at first I thought it was a bit stiff going into the multisocket but now I find that the earth pin is in fact thicker and not designed to go in. I ended up using a hammer to get it in which has worked, but then I thought I might take the back off to have a look (once disconnected obvs). The screws for the multisocket are all those type that screw in but not out though, with the little ramps so the driver can't bite. I drilled them out. There's no fuse in the multisocket and there's no fuse in any of the plugs. Now that's got me a bit worried as I like the fuses for fire protection.
The other rubbish thing with NZ plugs is that they're like American ones, too thin and pull out, bend etc. The sockets are also not 'gated' in the way they are in Britain where the earth opens the pos neg holes, so we often get blue flashes when you plug something in. I miss the security of having three big lumps of brass which never come out of the wall on their own.
So now I'm thinking I might probably actually re-re-wire all the tools that don't leave the workshop back to British. The fuses are the deal breaker for me. It's a better system in my opinion. I need some advice from you though as to where I can get good electrical kit from in the UK and if they ship to NZ.
My Fobco drill needs a fatter plug end because the wire is thicker stuff than on a masonry drill or something hand held, so at first I thought it was a bit stiff going into the multisocket but now I find that the earth pin is in fact thicker and not designed to go in. I ended up using a hammer to get it in which has worked, but then I thought I might take the back off to have a look (once disconnected obvs). The screws for the multisocket are all those type that screw in but not out though, with the little ramps so the driver can't bite. I drilled them out. There's no fuse in the multisocket and there's no fuse in any of the plugs. Now that's got me a bit worried as I like the fuses for fire protection.
The other rubbish thing with NZ plugs is that they're like American ones, too thin and pull out, bend etc. The sockets are also not 'gated' in the way they are in Britain where the earth opens the pos neg holes, so we often get blue flashes when you plug something in. I miss the security of having three big lumps of brass which never come out of the wall on their own.
So now I'm thinking I might probably actually re-re-wire all the tools that don't leave the workshop back to British. The fuses are the deal breaker for me. It's a better system in my opinion. I need some advice from you though as to where I can get good electrical kit from in the UK and if they ship to NZ.