My buddy Joe's Jenneau 42 has two electrical systems, the original 220VAC
from France that runs the fridge and battery charger, and a simple 115VAC
system to power some internal American outlets and the MarineAir A/C box.

I objected to the power cord that came with the boat. On the boat end is
a 30A, 220VAC FRENCH (no, don't curse) plug with 3 round holes in a
triangle we probably can't buy over here. The other end has this
HUMONGOUS 125/250VAC, 50A, $120 connector that plugs into the stupid
marina box. The cable in between them is #14 ORANGE DROPCORD waiting to
EXPLODE if anything shorts! It's a fire waiting to happen.

So, Joe sent me for the parts to put in a proper 50A service it really
doesn't need, given the very light electrical system of this boat.

My head is still reeling from seeing the prices for the simplest of
electrical parts for a damned little BOAT!

If I bought a 50' 50A 125/250 DROPCORD from Waste Marine Pirates with a
new 50A hull connector to wire the really nice French GFI to....IT WOULD
COST NEARLY $800! $660 for a DROPCORD?!! The damned thing is PLASTIC,
not armored with 22K gold plate! Is yellow plastic THAT expensive?!
Molded plastic plugs? The shiny plated boat socket is $194.99! It's not
Palladium, either!

I found the cable for around $450 on the net, through Boater's World
curiously. Even that is just AWFUL!

We gave up. Joe's chest was hurting from his heart pounding that hard.

Why should a DROPCORD cost $660?! Goddamned THEIVING *******S! You'd
think we were plugging in an AIRCRAFT CARRIER....

Larry
--
http://www.westmarine.com/webapp/wcs...oducte/10001/-
1/10001/126902/377%20710%201640/0/Electrical%20Cordsets/Primary%
20Search/mode%20matchallpartial/0/0?N=377%20710%201640&Ne=0
&Ntt=Electrical%20Cordsets&Ntx=mode%
20matchallpartial&page=CategoryDisplayLevel1&isLTo kenURL=true&storeNum=9
&subdeptNum=310&classNum=574

Yes, that's its URL, probably why the price is $660!

"Larry" wrote:

snip most of the venting of the spleen

Why should a DROPCORD cost $660?! Goddamned THEIVING *******S! You'd
think we were plugging in an AIRCRAFT CARRIER....

Strip out the 250V European stuff and the problem goes away.

Lew

"Lew Hodgett" wrote in message
...

"Larry" wrote:

snip most of the venting of the spleen

Why should a DROPCORD cost $660?! Goddamned THEIVING *******S! You'd
think we were plugging in an AIRCRAFT CARRIER....

Strip out the 250V European stuff and the problem goes away.

Lew


Can you make your own cord-using components from a US electrical supplier?
Your electrical supplier will be able to outline the proper US standard and
code. Look around, maybe you have a member at you club that is an
electrical contractor and can held you?

wrote in
:

Can you make your own cord-using components from a US electrical
supplier? Your electrical supplier will be able to outline the proper
US standard and code. Look around, maybe you have a member at you
club that is an electrical contractor and can held you?




That's the curious part. Yachts don't use a standardized connector the
rest of the electrical industry uses. There seems to be only a handful
of suppliers (Hubbell, Charles, Marinco, etc.), specialty companies who
can demand these rediculous prices, maybe in collusion with each other
and the stores.

We could use:
http://www.electricgeneratorsdirect....duct_info.php?
products_id=288
at $275.
or buy the connectors:
http://www.electricgeneratorsdirect....duct_info.php?
products_id=276
at $36
http://www.electricgeneratorsdirect....duct_info.php?
products_id=277
at $44

But, are these the same size? Boat plugs don't have that center guide
pin, so I'd think they were "different". I don't think these will
fit....at 1/3 the awful price of boat connectors.

Why can't we wire marinas with NEMA 14-50R sockets?
http://www.onestopbuy.com/279-8151.asp
$9.39 ($7.88 if you buy 10 of them)
Like EVERY electric stove in America uses....making them CHEAP!
http://www.onestopbuy.com/275-T-6585.asp
The plug is $25.

I can hear it, "But they don't lock in place!". Waitaminit! What
happened the last time someone's $800 twist-locked drop cord got pulled
on on the dock? IT RIPPED APART! It's only plastic, you know. It
doesn't need to lock onto the plug. The cord is usually wrapped around
the post and puts NO STRAIN AT ALL on the plug!

There ARE outside weatherproof covers for these cheap connectors! Do we
need them? NO WE DON'T! The outlet on the dock is INSIDE a weatherproof
box. Look at yours. The inlet on your boat could just as well be, as
this French boat is, INSIDE a locker with a notch to put the cord in to
close the locker. If it were INSIDE a locker, everyone walking down the
little decks wouldn't be STEPPING ON THE PROTRUDING PLUG. We could
eliminate the whole boat inlet nonsense and hard wire the boat's power
cord to a NEMA box INSIDE THE LOCKER with a WINDER ON IT! Oh, what? The
damned boat power cord always in the way at sea might WIND ITSELF UP
INSIDE THE BOAT? How silly....it HAS to plug into the $150 inlet RIGHT
WHERE YOU WALK IN AND OUT, doesn't it? Yes, because "we've always done
it that way".

Nonsense....The shore power cable is NOT USED AT SEA. It doesn't HAVE
to, and if you look down the dock never is, all sealed up. These drop
cords on all our docks is plugged in and left open. Those black sealing
rings lay all over the place...(c;


Larry
--
$800 for a dropcord.....is just STUPID!
Hell, we could reduce dock rent if we didn't need $200 connectors!

"Larry" wrote in message
...
wrote in
:

Can you make your own cord-using components from a US electrical
supplier? Your electrical supplier will be able to outline the proper
US standard and code. Look around, maybe you have a member at you
club that is an electrical contractor and can held you?




That's the curious part. Yachts don't use a standardized connector the
rest of the electrical industry uses. There seems to be only a handful
of suppliers (Hubbell, Charles, Marinco, etc.), specialty companies who
can demand these rediculous prices, maybe in collusion with each other
and the stores.

I like your feedback. Last spring we at our club upgraded the electrical
panels on the docks.
A member contractor build all the panels as per the codes and standars with
components purchased from wholesale electrical suppliers.

We could use:
http://www.electricgeneratorsdirect....duct_info.php?
products_id=288
at $275.
or buy the connectors:
http://www.electricgeneratorsdirect....duct_info.php?
products_id=276
at $36
http://www.electricgeneratorsdirect....duct_info.php?
products_id=277
at $44

But, are these the same size? Boat plugs don't have that center guide
pin, so I'd think they were "different". I don't think these will
fit....at 1/3 the awful price of boat connectors.

Why can't we wire marinas with NEMA 14-50R sockets?
http://www.onestopbuy.com/279-8151.asp
$9.39 ($7.88 if you buy 10 of them)
Like EVERY electric stove in America uses....making them CHEAP!
http://www.onestopbuy.com/275-T-6585.asp
The plug is $25.

I can hear it, "But they don't lock in place!". Waitaminit! What
happened the last time someone's $800 twist-locked drop cord got pulled
on on the dock? IT RIPPED APART! It's only plastic, you know. It
doesn't need to lock onto the plug. The cord is usually wrapped around
the post and puts NO STRAIN AT ALL on the plug!

There ARE outside weatherproof covers for these cheap connectors! Do we
need them? NO WE DON'T! The outlet on the dock is INSIDE a weatherproof
box. Look at yours. The inlet on your boat could just as well be, as
this French boat is, INSIDE a locker with a notch to put the cord in to
close the locker. If it were INSIDE a locker, everyone walking down the
little decks wouldn't be STEPPING ON THE PROTRUDING PLUG. We could
eliminate the whole boat inlet nonsense and hard wire the boat's power
cord to a NEMA box INSIDE THE LOCKER with a WINDER ON IT! Oh, what? The
damned boat power cord always in the way at sea might WIND ITSELF UP
INSIDE THE BOAT? How silly....it HAS to plug into the $150 inlet RIGHT
WHERE YOU WALK IN AND OUT, doesn't it? Yes, because "we've always done
it that way".

Nonsense....The shore power cable is NOT USED AT SEA. It doesn't HAVE
to, and if you look down the dock never is, all sealed up. These drop
cords on all our docks is plugged in and left open. Those black sealing
rings lay all over the place...(c;


Larry
--
$800 for a dropcord.....is just STUPID!
Hell, we could reduce dock rent if we didn't need $200 connectors!

On Tue, 04 Sep 2007 05:40:09 +0000, Larry wrote:

If I bought a 50' 50A 125/250 DROPCORD from Waste Marine Pirates with a
new 50A hull connector to wire the really nice French GFI to....IT WOULD
COST NEARLY $800!

You might do better if you buy the wire at Home Despot or Lowes and
put on your own connectors. I know that HD used to sell yellow, heavy
duty multi-conductor cable. If not you should be able to order it
from any good electrical supplier.

Wayne.B wrote in
:

On Tue, 04 Sep 2007 05:40:09 +0000, Larry wrote:

If I bought a 50' 50A 125/250 DROPCORD from Waste Marine Pirates with a
new 50A hull connector to wire the really nice French GFI to....IT
WOULD
COST NEARLY $800!

You might do better if you buy the wire at Home Despot or Lowes and
put on your own connectors. I know that HD used to sell yellow, heavy
duty multi-conductor cable. If not you should be able to order it
from any good electrical supplier.

I think the answer is to hang a dual 15A breaker box, out from the 50A
plug on the dock, then I can use a STANDARD #14 drop cord, safely, and
have plenty of 240VAC power for the French stuff in the boat. 15A =
3.6KVA at that voltage, more than enough to power everything in the boat!

It's really stupid marinas put megadock power systems on 35' finger piers
that need 20A of 115/230VAC for sailboats.

Larry
--
Search youtube for "Depleted Uranium"
The ultimate dirty bomb......

"Wayne.B" wrote:

You might do better if you buy the wire at Home Despot or Lowes and
put on your own connectors. I know that HD used to sell yellow, heavy
duty multi-conductor cable. If not you should be able to order it
from any good electrical supplier.

Problem is that is not marine grade hardware is not found at your local DIY
or dood industrial electrical distributer.

Marine grade electrical is strictly a speciality business.

Marine graide uses fully tinned cable and the connector devices are also
receive special plating.

Lack of volume drives up the cost, not greed as you might expect.

Want some bedtime horror stories?

Chase down the history of problems attempting to use welding cable for
onboard applications.

Hint: Welding cable is not tinned.


Lew

On Tue, 04 Sep 2007 22:45:47 +0000, Larry wrote:

It's really stupid marinas put megadock power systems on 35' finger piers
that need 20A of 115/230VAC for sailboats.

Most docks in the north east have outlets for both 30 amp cables (120
volt) or 50 amp (240 volts split). Smaller boats without shore power
connectors usually carry an adapter which converts a 30 amp twist lock
plug into a conventional 15 amp socket. You could do the same thing
with a 50 amp plug just using one leg of the 240.

On Tue, 4 Sep 2007 16:18:59 -0700, "Lew Hodgett"
wrote:

Chase down the history of problems attempting to use welding cable for
onboard applications.

Hint: Welding cable is not tinned.

If you tin it yourself with a soldering iron when it is still new and
shinny you shouldn't have too many problems. Once it goes to green
grunge however, fuhgetabahdit.