The electric aspect, how to protect?

[mwgrient]

Hi there,
I saw on a picture someone working on a Bottlehead Crack, he was wearing blue gloves. I was wondering if he understood more dan I how dangerous it can be to work on a (live) system.
So to you... I was wondering if more people wearing (special?) gloves during a build and the measurements? And if so, what are the reasons for or against it?
Regards!

[Paul Birkeland]

Some people might wear blue gloves during the build because they have concerns about the lead in the solder.  You can also address this by just washing your hands whenever you finish soldering.

Since you don't build the kit with the power cord plugged into the wall, there isn't any additional protection from shock afforded by wearing rubber gloves.

You could certainly do this while measuring, but having the ground probe clip leaded to the amp would be my first safety recommendation long, long before wearing a glove.

[Tom-s]

Follow the safety guidance as per manual for electrical safety.

When soldering, wear safety glasses.

Solder in a well ventilated room/area.

[Doc B.]

As PB said you certainly don't need to worry about a shock when assembling and soldering the gear as long as it is unplugged from AC power. You can be shocked by a piece of gear if it is or has been powered up and you don't follow the guidelines in the manuals. Most likely it would not be enough to cause harm, but enough to make you swear a bit. We do not specifically recommend wearing gloves and I cannot say what gloves might be the best insulators and/or which ones might actually create enough of an impediment to make things less safe. I do strongly recommend wearing rubber soled shoes, particularly if you are working on a concrete floor.

The best way to be safe is to think about being safe, that is, practice thoughtful handling of the gear. Don't pick gear up if it is plugged in. Unplug the unit and wait a minute or two for the capacitors to discharge through the bleeder resistors before you take resistance measurements. When you measure voltages on a live amp, don't touch the amp. Make sure the chassis is in a stable position. Use a clip lead to attach the black probe of your meter to a ground point and keep your free hand in your pocket when testing things with the red probe so that you don't inadvertently grab anything that is hot. If you are trying to touch the red probe to a point that is in close proximity to other parts try wrapping some tape or put some heat shrink tube on the exposed metal of the probe so that only the very tip is exposed.

These few things will go a long way toward your never getting that wake up tingle or hearing the dreaded pop from shorting live terminals together.

[mwgrient]

Thanks all!