Is it safe to cut power cords and solder them back to length

[xzyryabx]

No idea about he technicalities, but I personally wouldn't try to solder a power cable...

 

[kiff]

I bought a few off this guy for my rack a while back. got a cpl of each: 1' , 1-1/2' , 2' It's nice and tidy:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/220554897735?ss ... 1439.l2649

If you really want to use the ones you have you might want to just get the male ends at a hardware store, but that's probably going to cost almost as much as buying the ones I did. There's nothing "wrong" with chopping them and soldering them, from a conductivity standpoint, but just make sure you're really clean and thorough about it. The problem is, is that area's usually a weak point and doesn't bend the same as the rest of the cord, which can wear out the shield/shrink tape and cause a short. Really, it's probably not going to be a problem if it's in a rack and not getting moved around, but it would make me a little nervous. That said, I've done worse things

 

[Shark Diver]

I cut them all the time. I just buy the ends at Home Depot. They screw, no solder. You can even go 90 degrees and change the angles. Never had a problem doing this in 20+ years.

 

[laneychris]

I've done several times worked for me

 

[IndyWS6]

I cut them all the time. I just buy the ends at Home Depot. They screw, no solder. You can even go 90 degrees and change the angles. Never had a problem doing this in 20+ years.

^ This...

Cut the cord to the length you need by removing the end with the plug and then put on a new one. You can buy them at Lowe's or Home Depot or any number of electronics retailers. I've done this literally 100's of times for personal and work-related needs (network and computer racks...). Piece of cake...

 

[Heritage Softail]

As long as it is unplugged



I know, don't quit my day job.

Read up on how to solder. Learn how to flow the solder on the wire. Heat the wire, not the solder. Every guy should know how solder. Quite easy.

But for cords, buy screw down plugs. Solder tone pots etc.

 

[AndyK]

Hey Chad!
There is a difference between cutting a power cord to be shorter, or cutting and soldering on additional pieces to make them longer.

Even if you can solder them perfectly, the shrink wrap is not as strong as the harder plastic covering on most cables. I would be very careful to make sure the connections are still solid after you move the cables around, etc.

Not worth the risk of fire, shock, etc, IMHO.

 

[Code001]

It's perfectly fine to cut power cords. Rack builders do this on a daily basis. I also recommend just buying the screw-on ends and not even bothering with soldering. If you have a removable IEC cable, just buy a shorter replacement one from Monoprice.

 

[IndyWS6]

The plug that you found isn't necessarily the best choice if you are going to plug your cords into a rackmount power strip (Furman, etc.). Those plugs are big enough that they will either interfere with with each other or be difficult to plug in/remove if plugged into adjacent sockets. I used the ones shown in the attached photo and they work well. Since there is no external strain-relief feature, I used a small zip-tie inside the plug to ensure that the wires could not easily be pulled loose.

 

[VC4Ever]

 

[IndyWS6]

Those are ok, I appreciate it. I would rather not spend $4 a pop on them since I need 16 of them right now. Does anyone know where to get some black stlye Leviton 3 wire grounding plugs in bulk pricing? Ill take your suggestion IndyWS6 about a small zip tie inside... that should work out pretty good!

Other than that, I need to find out where to buy those stress relief jackets... Im OCD and would really like to have a nice neat looking professional job done in and out on the rack. Anyone know where to look for those? Ive searched high and low for those things... they should fit inside the Levitons and stick out just like the common ones we all use.

You may be able to find them (or an alternative) cheaper than $4/each. It seems like I paid about $3/each when I got mine at Lowe's. An electronics supply store would probably be your best bet. As far as being OCD, I've been accused of that more than once . I used the suggested plugs in my rack build and it turned out well. You can see from the photos (shots taken during the build...) what I was saying about clearance between the outlets. The rackmount multiple outlet strips essentially use the same outlets you would find in a home, they are just turned sideways. You should make sure that you will be able to use whatever plug you decide on in adjacent outlets. If memory serves, I tried the round plugs that you posted and they interfered with each other slightly when using adjacent outlets. I've slept - and had a beer or three since then - so my memory could be skewed.