Clever little adaptor plug

[Terry]

The Fitall was a horrible contraption ...

I beg to differ. It was an ingenious solution to the problem facing anybody with portable electrical equipment that was needed in a variety of buildings, whether it be as simple as a handyman with an electric drill or much bigger, such as a pop group.

There was a design problem, as Hamid has said, because it was possible for the loose 5A live pin to fly forward as the plug was inserted into a 13A metalclad socket and contact the earthed cladding. Later plugs had a redesigned paxolin selector plate to stop this happening but there was a simple solution for earlier plugs: place a thin piece of card, such as from a cigarette packet, over the socket and punch holes in it as the plug was inserted.

The most ingenious device I ever saw was shown to me by a puppeteer who was entertaining children at a church fete. A lot of his work was for children's parties in their homes and, in those days, it was not unusual to still find 2A sockets - which the Fitall plug didn't cater for.

He had what must have been a pre-war forerunner of the Fitall. It comprised two 2A pins in a brown Bakelite casing, held apart by an insulated spring arrangement with a button at each end. By holding it between thumb and forefinger, the pins could be squeezed together to suit the pin spacing of the socket but, of course, it wouldn't work with shuttered 3-pin sockets.

So, he had taken earth pins from a range of plugs and brazed 2A, 5A, 13A and 15A pins together at right angles and connected his earth wire to the junction. So, not only could he open the shutters by selecting the appropriate pin, he also had a good earth connection for his equipment.

... a horrible contraption, as are some of today's travel adaptors

Yes, I agree - multiple live pins that can all be exposed at the same time, no earthing or recessed sockets, etc. Lethal, many of them and yet perfectly good adaptors are available which are perfectly safe and, if you look carefully, can often be found at much lower prices!

13A to Schuko adaptors have been around for years. Initially they tended to have thin unplated pins, skimpy earthing arrangements and no hole to accept the French/Belgian earth pin but, if you look carefully, you'll find decent modern types with full size pins and full modified Schuko earthing. I've got a few of them and have never paid more than £1 for one!



They will work in the majority of European countries except Denmark, Switzerland or Italy although I have seen Schuko sockets in Switzerland. But, for low current devices not requiring an earth, the 2-pin Europlug is very handy and should work.