[KrushR]

I was over at Monster Guts looking through the power supplies. It's time to start building a few props so I wanted to browse. Their standard power supply that they sell for props (12V DC, 5A) is listed at $20. As a "computer guy" (details later) I knew that this is ridiculously high retail for this part. Luckily they list the size of the barrel connector, so I found this:

(link to power supply on Amazon)


Which is (as far as I can tell) completely identical, and even comes with a DC Female adapter for $9. The biggest thing about this one is the inner diameter of the barrel. You find a lot at 2.5mm, but not 2.1mm. That .4mm difference can make the adapter rattle around in the device and possibly lose connection.

Just figured I'd post this. I'll probably pick up a few this weekend for a coffin banger I want to make.

 

[Scary Papa]

KrushR, thanks for the heads up on that power supply. Since I now have electric power in the Haunted Forest I have been looking for something that I could use to replace the lawnmower batteries I use to power my wiper motor props. I also did a quick check on ebay and found the one below. It appears to have the same specs but the listing doesn't specify if the adapter pin is 2.1 mm or 2.5 mm. The price is $8.95 and it includes shipping. Good buy if it will work.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/141439295190?_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT

I also found the DC female adaptors, 10 pack for $5.69 including shipping. Another good buy I think.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/281386950875?_trksid=p2060353.m2749.l2648&ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT

 

[Screaming Demons]

Yes, search for cheaper power supplies. I worked for a computer recycling company a few years back and we had cases of brand new 12-volt, 5-amp power supplies that we ended up selling on ebay three for ten dollars.

 

[Scary Papa]

I received the power supply and the connectors that I ordered. The power supply works great! I ordered several more power supplies to replace the batteries I have been using in my 12v wiper motor driven props. The price of the power supply was actually only $7.95 including shipping on ebay. The power supply I ordered and the connectors are listed in my previous post above.

 

[EviLEye]

FWIW, check to see if you have any electronics shops nearby as they often have surplus goods.

I emptied a local shop of their power supplies and 2.1mm adapters. For comparison, the adapters were like $1.29'ish and adapters varied based on the current, but they were in the $5-10 range. These were all new items, and I used them to drive my pneumatic solenoids and 4 banger controllers I'd built from Scubaspook.

 

[Figtreejohn]

These are great deals. Where can I get cheap wiper motors?

 

[Scary Papa]

Figtreejohn, I get all of my wiper motors from Monster Guts. They are reasonably priced, they are new and they work really well with very little noise. These motors cost $23.95 each, have a hi and low speed and also have the "park" feature built in. Shipping is not included so it brings the total cost a little higher. I usually order 2 at a time so with shipping I think for the last 2 I bought I paid about $59.00 total for both motors. I have looked at other options. Even going to our local salvage yard to buy used wiper motors. The cheapest they had was $25.00 and they wanted an old one or there was another $5.00 core charge. I found the same to be true at the U-Pull yard and I even had to take the old motor off myself. Many of the items Monster Guts sells are out of my budget limits but for my money I will buy the wiper motors from Monster Guts every time. By the way...I do not have any financial interest in Monster Guts. I just like their wiper motors. Hope this helps.

 

[Scary Papa]

Since we have been discussing the 12v power supply in this thread I decided to post this video of how I set up this system to use the 12v 5a power supply along with a motor controller to power a wiper motor. The motor controller I use is this one that I buy from ebay.

Here is the video of the set up working. I hope it helps.