[Land-speed] Inertia Switch Specs...

[James Tone]

Neal and all. I've been and still am an electrician in a power plant 40 years and have been in the industrial electrical field for 42 years. I know the importance of relays and how they work. I built my first Bonneville car in 1975 and to this day have never used a relay. Granted the loads I've used are not that high and keeping with a one wire altenator has been a great help. 

I purchase only high current toggle switches and have always used knife disconnects and spark plug wire for magnetos as I don't trust any toggle for that job. I have used toggle switches on fuel pumps, water pumps, air blowers, ignitions, nitrous systems, starters, etc and as I have said never a problem. I used terminal boards for a common connection point and make a drawing (print) for different applications and separate wire looms when changing engines. I check all connections every year for corsion and tightness. Everyone should do this. 

At this time I am looking for the load capacity of these inertia switches and for many if it can carry the load of the fuel pump putting it in series with the pump should be sufficient. I personally don't want to add more wiring to my car than is absolutly necessary. 

Wiring fails especially in the enviornment we put it in. You see it every year on the salt where people do not service what they have. Discussion here is good because most take electrical stuff for granted and see it as a "black science". I feel blessed to be working safely all these years with voltages from 125 to 500,000 AC and DC from 24 to 375.

My motto has always been to keep it as simple a possible and if I could run a mechanical pump easily with my carburated engine I would. Like I said I keep it simple.............JD


>Jim;
>
>Be really careful with placing loads on switches unless you know for
>absolutely certain that they are rated for the load current. If the contacts
>are overloaded it is not uncommon for the contacts to weld themselves
>together-- then the switch won't open when it should!
>
>Regards, Neil   Tucson, AZ