Has anyone here ever used Anderson Power Pole connectors for anything? What exactly are they and what are they best used for? Are they of especially high quality?
Is that the same or different from a “power pole assembly” advertised on Grainger?
Used in Robotics, good for higher current power connectors that need to be plugged/ unplugged
Ah, thanks Ray.
Good for automotive use in harsh environments. They come in different sizes from 50a upwards to 300 ish.
@Paul_Shaw I don’t think I’ll need that type of current. I did get a 30 amp dryer cord to plug into the 220v outlet.
You can use the kind of connector used for LiPo batteries in RC if you need high-amp connectors.
XT60 are pretty good, if you only need two poles.
I’ve used Anderson PP for DC power connectors for many years. One of the better connectors for high current. I get them from Digikey. I even have the official Anderson crimp tool since I use so many of them.
Anderson Power Products is the company behind Anderson Power Pole; you may find the same type of connectors cheaper (50%) on eBay or sites from China, but they won’t say Anderson (for obvious reasons), but something else. They look and work the same as the original ones. I use them in Ham Radio for connecting equipment (30A+), and haven’t had any issue yet, and they did cost me half of the original APP
Not for mains voltage! @George_Allen they are pretty exposed think they are rated for 50v
Those xt60 are a lot more compact too. What are you doing with it?
@Paul_Shaw Nothing. I was just getting information. I’m not reaching those current goals. I just stumbled upon to them doing my internet research…you know, a little bit of knowledge can be a dangerous thing.
@Paul_Shaw I would have thought if they were used for robotics they would need to be a little shielded…maybe not.
@George_Allen connectors don’t typically need shielding unless they carry high voltage or are in adverse environments. Shielding in robotics/motion control is almost always to reduce stray EMF from power-carrying wires lying in close proximity and inducing unwanted current.
Look at the RJ45 connector for a STP (shielded twisted-pair) ethernet or comms cable - nothing to it. Sometimes you will specify a shielded and earthed RJ45 connector and cable for particularly difficult environments, but they are rarely needed.
I wired up a DC substation in a railyard where your hair stood on end and you needed to wear little anklets on your boots to continually earth yourself due to the huge amount of EMF floating around, and for that we needed specialised grounded and shielded cables and connectors, but outside of heavy industrial installations, its not needed.
XT60 connectors are great - tight and solid connections with heavy-duty poles for repeated connections. The housings are nylon and tough as a bear. Just don’t overheat them when soldering as they will melt.
I’ve used them a lot for heavy current with the likes of 12AWG and 8AWG cable and they have outlasted the installation.
Cheap as chips too - even genuine hexTronik ones are only a few bucks for a ten-pack.
I haven’t used these ones, but will likely order them the next time I need some - they have snap-on back covers that obviate the need for heat-shrink, but I would still heatshrink them anyway - heat shrink is the best part of my day 
http://innov8tivedesigns.com/xt60-connector-set-4-male
http://innov8tivedesigns.com/xt60-connector-set-4-female
@Mike_Thornbury Wow! That’s dangerous work. I don’t know if I could do that. I know the people working on overhead cabling get addicted to that type of work for the adrenaline rush. I guess the pay is not that bad either, but not quite enough for me.
@Mike_Thornbury useful resource. Great price. Again, I doubt I will be using that kind of current, but I guess it could be possible. And all of these connectors are for DC applications, I assume.
@Mike_Thornbury While I’m thinking about it, I want to clarify something before I injure myself or blow something:
I am having a 220v outlet installed to run my spindle for my CNC. I needed to get a cord to run the power from the mains to my VFD. I purchased a 30A dryer cord from Home Depot (HDX)-10/3 with the corresponding 3 pronged outlet for the person at my Makerspace to install. Is that appropriate/sufficient to run the power to my VFD? The VFD is only 15A capacity, but it came with fuses so that should protect it from overcurrent, I suppose. But, are the 3 wires on the cord also Load, Common and Natural Earth Ground? I think on the VFD it’s labeled R, S & T if I’m not mistaken.
@George_Allen “Wow! That’s dangerous work.” not mine - I was just doing the Ethernet and switches, etc. I’ve done comms cabling in power stations, meat works, ships, planes, trains… :)Meat works are the worst - filthy, smelly, dangerously slippery and water everywhere.
Your VFD is designed for standard UK/Euro home 220V and we use 10A fuses for those. The fuse will take more than 10A, but it’s sustained 10A that will blow it.
RST is three-phase nomenclature - same as L1, L2, L3 in the US. I don’t know how it will apply to single-phase. And UK/Euro single-phase AC is live-neutral-earth or phase-neutral-earth, depending on which school you went to.
No difference in usage of power, just a higher voltage.
Use an RCD!!! Especially around metal devices like CNC router chassis. AC220 packs a wallop. I tore my rotator cuff wiring a live socket… still paying for that stupidity.
@Mike_Thornbury OK. Will do. Thanks for the advice!
Photo of your vsd terminals?