Chrome plated plug pins.
 

Hi,
Just a daft question to ponder.
Very often the pins of moulded on schuko plugs in Continental Europe have chrome plated pins. Whereas, the DIY wired on type usually have plain brass.
I'm just wondering why? Is it something to do with the moulding process?
Cheers, Pete.

Re: Chrome plated plug pins.
 

Isn't the brass pinned one a French plug rather than a Schuko one?

Re: Chrome plated plug pins.
 

There may be two separate effects at work here. I have noticed a similar effect in the UK - moulded BS1363 cordsets often have plated pins while rewireable plugs have plain brass. I think some moulded plugs do not have solid brass pins, hence need plating, while the rewireables incorporate screw terminals so need to be solid brass.

But in Europe I think there's another reason. Schuko (CEE7/4) plugs, both rewireable and moulded, are invariably plated, and in consequence so are hybrid (CEE7/7) types that fit both Schuko (CEE7/3) and French (CEE7/5) sockets. Since the majority of moulded cables come with hybrid plugs, it follows they will be chromed as per the black plug in the pic. But rewireable French plugs are often just CEE7/6 as per the white plug in the pic, not hybrid, therefore not plated.

My theory is therefore that any plug that is hybrid, moulded or both will be plated. Rewireable non hybrid CEE7/6 plugs may be plain brass or plated, the plain brass likely to be of French or French-derived manufacture and the plated more commonly generic Far Eastern.

Re: Chrome plated plug pins.
 

This plug came attached to a single trailing socket extension lead, bought new in the 1970s (probably from Woolworths) I seem to remember it was purchased for use with Christmas fairy lights.

It's the same style and shape as the popular WG plugs that Woolies used to sell, but those initials don't appear on this one. The top of the lid has a dimpled, textured surface, but the sides are smooth.

Also, it's the only rewireable plug I have ever seen with silver coloured pins!

The coating has rubbed off in places, and the brass is visible underneath, but it has always struck me as being an unusual plug.

It's approaching 43 years old now, but still in fairly regular use (not on an extension lead any more though)

Re: Chrome plated plug pins.
 

I can see that the cover is marked 3 amps while the base is marked 13 amps.
The two halves have also faded differently too.

Re: Chrome plated plug pins.
 

Yes, I know. It has always looked as though the base and the cover belong to two different plugs!

But it's all original, just as it arrived all those decades ago.

Re: Chrome plated plug pins.
 

Those crazy plastics made today discolor real easy. They claim the discolored ones are flameproof plastic, that won't support combustion. ???
Parts of the handle on my fridge discolored, while the other parts didn't.
BTW, those decorative lighting are made of such light gauge wire, they shouldn't be fused higher.

Re: Chrome plated plug pins.
 

some extension cables and reels were only rated for 3 or 5 amps, we had one, and the top of the plug was marked as such, in fact it may have come from woolworths. I wonder if the extension cable manufacturer added the seperate lid with the 3A marking to remind people not to fuse it at 13A.

Re: Chrome plated plug pins.
 

I used to have a rewireable 13A plug with plated pins like that. It was bought from Woolworths in the mid-1970's and was one of the first ones I had seen with a body of resilient plastic rather than rigid bakelite. I haven't seen another rewireable plug like it.

Re: Chrome plated plug pins.
 

Yes, this one of mine is resilient plastic, emeritus.

Did yours have the 'dimply' cover, and 'spiky' fuse-holder clips?

Re: Chrome plated plug pins.
 

I no longer seem to have the plug, which I fitted to my mother's washing machine: it is not in the drawer where I keep my collection of old plus.. Spiky fuse holder rings a bell, but I don't recall a dimpled cover. Mine was bought as a plug per se and was not fitted to the cable of something, and was rated 13A. I think it was by WG but can't be certain. I vaguely recall that the plastic casing got brittle and cracked, so it was binned a couple of years ago in a clear-out.

Re: Chrome plated plug pins.
 

And fitted with a 2A fuse. I don'r recall ever seeing one before.

Re: Chrome plated plug pins.
 

Would such plugs have been BS1363 compliant? I haven't checked, but I thought that all plugs had to be rated at 13A to comply. Obviously they could be fused down to whatever is appropriate.

Re: Chrome plated plug pins.
 

Just had another look at the plug, Paul, and it doesn't have BS1363 stamped on it at all.

As for the 2 amp fuse, Graham, it's just one that had been languishing in a drawer for decades! No idea where it came from - I've certainly never bought any.

But it seemed ideal for the very low wattage lamp that the plug is attached to (used occasionally as a nightlight, on the mid-way landing on the stairs, whenever relatives stay overnight - which isn't very often ;D)

Re: Chrome plated plug pins.
 

Plug fuses come in 1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 10, and 13 amp sizes. 1 amp are difficult to find these days.

(You can find fake 15 amp ones on eBay).

But we must remember the fuse is to protect the cable not what is on the end of it. So really only 3 and 13 amp are relevant which is why they are the only ones officially recognised.

Re: Chrome plated plug pins.
 

Turns out I do still have my plug after all. It was in a box of misc. plugs in the back of the garage.

WG brand. Must have been bought in the early 1970's, almost certainly from Woolworths, because the inside of the plug has the old conductor colour code (red, black, green) embossed adjacent the respective terminals. It still has its original self-adhesive label, although the printing has run somewhat. It says "Indestructible, Resistant to Acids, Oil, Moisture, Abrasives".

Photos attached: the 3A fuse is not original. Apart from a small area on the earth pin, the plating is in good condition.

Re: Chrome plated plug pins.
 

1a fuses are normally used in shaver adaptors.

Re: Chrome plated plug pins.
 

They are not BS1363 though, they are smaller.

Re: Chrome plated plug pins.