For more information on fuses than you ever wanted to know look at this
link.
http://www.littlefuse.com/PDFs/EDG_Cat/fuseology.pdf
In general, Shane is correct. There is a "however" though. Fuses come
with many other parameters in addition to the "current" capacity. Two of
these that might impact us are "blow speed"(my description) and voltage
rating. Voltage rating is leans more towards how much voltage the fuse
will "hold off" when open. To small a gap and arc over can happen. The
other is real important the fuse can be designed to blow (I'll use a 10
amp fuse as an example) under several different scenarios. For example a
fuse on the heater fan circuit (or the electric cooling upgrade for the
radiator) has to allow for current extremes on initial startup but still
protect during the lower operational period. These circuits would use a
"slow blow" fuse. My radio and other electronic equipment should be
protected so that any increase in current draw blows the fuse immediately.
The long and short of all of this be careful with what you install. On
the other hand remember Lucus probably does(did??) not build their own
fuse they bought it from someone who specializes in fuses (Cooper-Bussman,
Littlefuse, etc)
What I see as a much bigger problem that can end in "was my fuse right" is
the wiring "style". crimped connections and bullet plugs are good when
new but over time vibration gets to them. In addition plain air helps
them corrode. When the Japanese built my bike(oh so many years ago) they
use the same bullet connector but applied conductive grease to each
connection. This keeps the corrosion down, which in turn keeps the heat
down.
At any rate more ramblings from the electronics closet
Steve
-----Original Message-----
From: owner-6pack@autox.team.net [mailto:owner-6pack@autox.team.net]On
Behalf Of Shane Ingate
Sent: Monday, December 02, 2002 6:31 AM
To: SamuelsMA@aol.com
Cc: 6 Pack
Subject: Re: dash lights update
Michael Samuels wrote:
> [snip]
> A new fuse solved the problem.
>
> Anyway, a minor question: The fuse which was bad was a 2 amp fuse. The
new
> fuse selection I bought at the gas station had nothing under 5 amps, so
I
> used the 5 amp fuse instead. I have checked the shop manual and I can't
find
> a listing of the proper fuse ratings, just an explanation of how to
remove
> and insert the fuses. Is 5 amps too high, and should I get a 2 amp fuse
for
> the application? It is the 3rd fuse down from the top.
Under no circumstances should you use a non-Lucas fuse. I'm not kidding!
Lucas fuses are quite different to the BUSS fuses available everywhere.
The
Lucas fuses are rated quite differently to BUSS. I'm sure others can
explain the reason why. The problem is in finding Lucas fuses. I think
TRF
has them, but I know that the others will try to sell you BUSS fuses at
the
same price.
If your wiring system is less then perfect, and because BUSS fuses take
more
to blow, you will be adding considerably more amps that your wires will
carry, and more often than not, your wires will burn before the BUSS
fuses.
Check the archives for extensive discussions on this topic some years ago.
Your Car Owners Manual will have a listing of the correct fuses to use.
Shane Ingate in Maryland
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