ADDING ANDERSON POWERPOLES TO A MANSON SPA-8230 SMPS

By Peter, VK3QI

Many amateurs have the Manson SPA-8230 or similar switchmode power supplies to power their transceivers.  These power supplies usually have banana style connectors or large spade style terminals to supply the necessary 13 volts @ 20 amps or so.

Given that many prefer to use the Anderson Powerpoles for easy and non-confusing connections, it is convenient to have Powerpoles installed on the power supply.

Getting suitable Powerpole chassis mount connectors has always been problematical, but recently the use of 3D printing has enabled easy mount shells of varying number of poles to be obtained.

One such supplier is Anderson Connect in Carrum Downs https://www.andersonconnect.com.au/store/,  who manufacture a variety of such shells that fit the 15/30/45 amp style connectors.

ADDING ANDERSON POWERPOLES TO A MANSON SPA-8230 SMPS VK3QI

The VK3ER/p tent now uses IC9700 transceivers for 2 and 70 and having recently purchased a Manson powersupply to power it, I thought it convenient to provide us with a number of powerpole connections.

The Manson supply has space on the front panel (no metering) so with a bit of care with a drill and nibbling tool, I was able to create a suitable opening for the 3 pole chassis connector to fit.   

(Excuse the rough nibbling – you can’t see it in the finished product!)

2. ADDING ANDERSON POWERPOLES TO A MANSON SPA-8230 SMPS VK3QI

3. ADDING ANDERSON POWERPOLES TO A MANSON SPA-8230 SMPS VK3QI

Bundled wires for each pole are solder joined and then insulated with heatshrink and connected back to the main rear terminals where they are soldered in place.   Clip on type 31 ferrites are added just to ensure that additional RF filtering is provided, in case the additional wiring produces additional switching noise by coupling to the circuit board components.

4. ADDING ANDERSON POWERPOLES TO A MANSON SPA-8230 SMPS VK3QI

5. ADDING ANDERSON POWERPOLES TO A MANSON SPA-8230 SMPS VK3QI

The finished product looks quite neat and convenient.

A word of warning – care should be taken in making sure that the Powerpoles are connected the same way as the plugs which will plug in.   It is possible to reverse the connectors by 180 degrees.  If that occurs, it is easy to knock out the connectors from the 3D printed shell using a piece of suitably sized wood and the outer shell resting on a vice.

If you are contemplating using Anderson plugs for your projects, the EMDRC through Layton our components man, has a good supply of plugs and terminals, together with the correct crimping tool.

Cheers

Peter  VK3QI / VJ3P

_______________________

Thanks Peter, good job as usual hihi, Regards Ed.