For the cost of a manufactured power supply you are playing around with resistors and car brake lights, risking damaging your expensive chargers, and the very real risk of electrocuting yourself? you guys must be crazy, i bet all of you spend more money on the latest aluminium part for the car instead of spending it on something safe such as a manufactured power supply.

i agree with vercoe on this one... i have a couple of computer ps that ive converted and that are in no way as good at the ps i purcahsed out of the jacar cattledog (not even close!)

i do use the computer units as a back up plan but thats it and i believe you wont be able to use them in victoria

to get the voltage out of the 12v rail you have to have a load on the 5v rail and making the conversion neat is a mine field... i got a kick from a cap and the unit was not even plugged in and on top of that 2 ps have packed it in i dont think its a real good idea to convert them and in some ways its false economy

be careful:eek:

as long as ur careful they work great at a tiny fraction of the cost

Is it too late to change my view?????:D :D

I know that at our club they are illegal, and I haven't seen any at TFTR so I'd presume the same is true there too.

If you are so tight that $130 for a proper power supply is too much, or you value your life at less than this, you deserve to die.

i've succesfully built a computer power supply and am happy to build them for anyone else at a fee. I'm having all mine checked by an electriction and then tagged which will allow me to use it at any club

The Risk...
 

I remember an issue going around a while ago about the risk associate with racers using modified computer power supplies for purposes outside of what they are designed for.

The main point was If someone gets hurt/killed from one of these modified computer power supplies, is the club liable to pay up via their insurance policy?

Having them tagged by an electrian certainly would help go towards minimizing the risk and certainly making them illegal and banning them will be better but how far do you go?

I , just like a lot of other racers certianly don't let the general public touch our stuff around my pit table so the only one who can get hurt is ourselves (and I believe the insurance doesn't cover the racers/drivers)

No one is advocating that everyone try this - if you are not sure you can do it or think that it is unsafe then by all means DO NOT MAKE ONE - but for those that have the ability the results are certainly worth it.

How many store bought power supplies can run 2 chargers, run in a motor at 3v and power your comm lathe all at the same time, and for under $50????

Built correctly, the unit is no more unsafe than any other power supply - and if you're going to start banning them then what next? - ban tyre truers because someone stuck their fingers in one :rolleyes:

Atomix your comment was the worst - you must have so much money that you are willing to throw it away - why pay more for a product that isn't as good? - would you pay $90k for a Barina if you could by a Porsche for $30k:rolleyes:

I'd like to know why some people on these forums seem to have nothing better to do than come on every thread and make unproductive and abusive posts for seemingly no other reason than to validate their own egotistical opinions. :mad:

An electrician could not certify this type of unit to be used out side of its original case this type certificate is suplied by local power authority so be very careful with people making false clams of it being safe. try to get it passes by your local electrical authority first if you got a couple of thousand to through at it.

i went through some official channels, and was told as long as a qualified electrician checks the unit for any possible faults and it meets whatever standards, he can tag it as beeing properly made or watever, I may be wrong, but that was what I was told that I needed? might be getting a little off topic here so pm if you have more info

team much more power supplies are 130 delivered from hongy kongy.

you can also get the uncased jobbers from hong kong which pump out like 25 and 30 amps for i think $30, to 50$. but you need to add case costs and connector costs to this.

if you are a beginner i would recommend getting a proper power supply. although i don't support the above line of thinking taken from the "phillip ruddock handbook of logical thinking":lol: ;) , i would agree that it isn't worth the risk. if you are a electrician and you know what you are doing well....go for it??:weird:

These types of power supply's should be banned by all clubs. There are too many legal issues with them. Public liability insurance would never cover a claim if it involved those power supply's.

I actually did see one at TFTR a few weeks ago and stepped back.

I will not save a few bucks on a legal power supply. it is my life. and i may save a few bucks on battery. and lose the race.. at the end. i am still alive.

BRCCC banned computer ps already. i think it is really good.

here we are talking 240V.. ... or just use a car battery with a 20 bucks charger.. then it is perfectly safe.. and u can charge ur packs any where.. when there is no 240 avaliable.

I just came across these 'uncased' power supplies selling at Rcmart or Dinball, Venom Order was refering to. I might go that way. Beside that which 'cased' ready to go power supplies would you guys recomend? I only intent using it to power my charger (a duratrax Ice), no lathe or whatnots. So 10 amps should be adequate. Price IS a factor (sorry if that offends anyone:)) but we're talking about an item that merely make life easier in the pursuit of an indulgence- racing model cars.