ssVEC Relay/Fuse Boxes

[kramttocs]

These boxes are an option for adding relays/fuses to our trucks. There are many, many other options out there so best to do some research and see what fits your needs best.

Here are the current offerings.
I am using both the 000 and the 004. I would consider the 004 to be a great all-in-one solution.

31S-000.pdf

31S-001.pdf

31S-002.pdf

31S-004.pdf

32S-300.pdf

Two suppliers are Connector Concepts Inc and Waytek Wire.

[kramttocs]

Rusty_S85 wrote

Those are the ones with the weather lock connectors that plug in right?  I saw those and passed over them as I wasnt sure about the whole plug idea.  I was looking for something I could have my wrapped wires go into the box and make their connections directly to the fuses and relays.

Plus what ever I do end up going with it has to be more than 6 fuses and more than 6 relays as thats what I currently have and with my EFI now I wont have any relays left over to add more auxiliary lighting or adding any auxiliary circuits down the road.

These use the Metri-pack 280 connectors that you will need to buy the mate for and terminate your wires in with female terminals. They do have weather seals on the connector and terminals.

So with that your wires won't enter the box like you are wanting. I see your point and for looks it annoyed me a bit at first since in one harness you may have to split wires to different connectors. After using it, I prefer the plugs now myself. Makes it easier to add  circuits to without having to pull the whole box. I know some users are using the boxes that have standoffs where you snap the wires/terminals directly in the bottom and those are the same terminals the fuses and relays plug into. Similar to the Ford pdb.

Regarding future expansion, these can't really chain together so you are left with multiple boxes or the 32S big one.
Problem I see with that one is that it's a bit too much of a tradeoff for convenience over customization. With that many relays I'd want to be able to cascade some and with the shared hot and ground buss you can't.

Littlefuse makes some interlocking cases for megafuses but not sure about any that work with relays. Will do some looking.

The Ford unit Gary is using may be a good fit for you?

[Rusty_S85]

kramttocs wrote

Rusty_S85 wrote

Those are the ones with the weather lock connectors that plug in right?  I saw those and passed over them as I wasnt sure about the whole plug idea.  I was looking for something I could have my wrapped wires go into the box and make their connections directly to the fuses and relays.

Plus what ever I do end up going with it has to be more than 6 fuses and more than 6 relays as thats what I currently have and with my EFI now I wont have any relays left over to add more auxiliary lighting or adding any auxiliary circuits down the road.

These use the Metri-pack 280 connectors that you will need to buy the mate for and terminate your wires in with female terminals. They do have weather seals on the connector and terminals.

So with that your wires won't enter the box like you are wanting. I see your point and for looks it annoyed me a bit at first since in one harness you may have to split wires to different connectors. After using it, I prefer the plugs now myself. Makes it easier to add  circuits to without having to pull the whole box. I know some users are using the boxes that have standoffs where you snap the wires/terminals directly in the bottom and those are the same terminals the fuses and relays plug into. Similar to the Ford pdb.

Regarding future expansion, these can't really chain together so you are left with multiple boxes or the 32S big one.
Problem I see with that one is that it's a bit too much of a tradeoff for convenience over customization. With that many relays I'd want to be able to cascade some and with the shared hot and ground buss you can't.

Littlefuse makes some interlocking cases for megafuses but not sure about any that work with relays. Will do some looking.

The Ford unit Gary is using may be a good fit for you?

For me I am trying to find a way to use it without doing too much changing.  The one below that I keep looking at I could in theory make a plexiglass backer bolt it through existing holes in my plastic fender on the passenger side then have stand offs that I can screw into to attach this box and mount it.  Only problem is I dont know if these three fuses on the sides are capable of handling an alternator charging circuit.



My idea was to run all my wires inside and make my attachments including with the charge wire from the alternator, the brass terminals goes through and through so I can bolt the fuse on the top down and on the under side bolt the charge wire to one brass terminal then bolt the other end of the charge wire to the other side that will go to my battery side of the solenoid.

Currently I have 6 relays and 6 fuses in this box that I bought that I havent assembled yet.


Which in my original layout I had two spare relays which would allow me expansion for adding two pairs of auxiliary lights to a roll bar if I decide to make that upgrade.  But then I decided to go Holley Sniper EFI and I want to run all my wires to this box as well so with new plans I repurposed the small five pin relay from a choke relay to a fuel pump relay, then the other two relays that were empty are now slated to be for my AC step up and AC cut out relays so I can have my sniper idle up when the AC is turned on and have the AC shut down when I go full throttle.  Now my 6 fuse/6 relay box is full and I have no room for future light expansion.  Tried to find like a 8 relay but couldnt find anything I liked this 10 relay/15 fuse that I posted first is the first one I like but I am afraid when I go to wash under my hood like I do once a year that I am going to have corrosion and shorts with the circuits in the box.  I figure I could take and seal the box up but I would have to make sure I make the wires for my auxiliary circuits since I wont be able to take the box apart again, but then that will force me to make a splice connection which I wanted to avoid solider/splice joints in my auxiliary wiring.

[kramttocs]

I haven't seen that first one before but like the layout.
Not sure you're exact concern with the 3 fuses but they look like MIDI's so unless you are going really big on your alt, you're good there. I have my 155amp alt running through a midi. As for the unit itself, it would be nice to see a max amp rating but with the direct contact via the bolt I don't see why it would have problems. Depending on the wire gauge you use for that circuit, may have to be careful to avoid flexing or stressing the plastic around the brass.

Shame the Amazon reviews it has aren't great. Depending upon how you seal it up though, the looseness could possibly be taken care of. I also get your avoidance of splices (right there with you) but what about having the currently unused relays/fuses all wired into weatherpack/metripack/etc connectors? Would make swapping accessories later on really easy. Your harnesses wouldn't be quite as clean but if you planned them out well or did one accessory to one connector, it wouldn't be bad.

I know suggesting a plastic bag over it during the yearly wash isn't likely what you're wanting but if it fits the bill for everything else besides that, then maybe?

[Rusty_S85]

kramttocs wrote

I haven't seen that first one before but like the layout.
Not sure you're exact concern with the 3 fuses but they look like MIDI's so unless you are going really big on your alt, you're good there. I have my 155amp alt running through a midi. As for the unit itself, it would be nice to see a max amp rating but with the direct contact via the bolt I don't see why it would have problems. Depending on the wire gauge you use for that circuit, may have to be careful to avoid flexing or stressing the plastic around the brass.

Shame the Amazon reviews it has aren't great. Depending upon how you seal it up though, the looseness could possibly be taken care of. I also get your avoidance of splices (right there with you) but what about having the currently unused relays/fuses all wired into weatherpack/metripack/etc connectors? Would make swapping accessories later on really easy. Your harnesses wouldn't be quite as clean but if you planned them out well or did one accessory to one connector, it wouldn't be bad.

I know suggesting a plastic bag over it during the yearly wash isn't likely what you're wanting but if it fits the bill for everything else besides that, then maybe?

I like the layout as well.  Only thing Id be concerned about is the amperage going through the metal connectors could heat up the plastic potentially melting it.  The alternator I am looking at is a stock large case 3G alternator but I was thinking of using a smaller fuse as I am maintaining a V belt and its doubtful I could ever blow a fuse as my V belt would slip before I could ever max out the 3G large case.

I thought of that on the connectors.  Could use one opening for an inlet for hard wires into the case and use a second opening for an outlet for accessories that way I can keep systems that wont change such as my Fuel Injection, AC wires, and charge wires in one position and others such as my lights, cb, cb amp and any add on features could be gone through with a plug.  Only thing I am not too crazy about is running my AC wire from driver side across the engine to passenger side for the box then running it back to driverside to the compressor.  Then the more I think about this, I wonder if I should just have connectors at least that would make it easier to move wiring harnesses out of the way in the future for engine removal since I do plan blending my auxiliary circuits in with my OE circuits through split woven looms for a clean look.

I also came across this photo for a company that builds custom fuse/relay boxes and it looks like they just used a simply plastic project box and made their attachments.  I could in theory do this as well and then could source some military style through connectors to maintain a sealed enviroment for the fuses and relays only problem is with a screwed on case if I am broken down on the side of the road it would be a pita at night time trying to unscrew the lid.

[Rusty_S85]

Im currently looking at theses.

https://www.littelfuse.com/products/fuse-blocks-fuseholders-and-fuse-accessories/powr-blok-modular-power-distribution.aspx

Its a modular set that you can slip together and they sell locking tabs to lock the pieces together.  Doesnt appear to be a case for them but does have snap on legs so you can mount.  Im thinking about seeing if I can piece a unit together if its not too much get some measurements and then see if I can find a plastic project box with a seal that I can bolt it all in.  The project boxes are for electrical projects so they have stand offs in the bottom to screw circuit boards and such into.  Maybe I can get one that fits fairly close that I can screw down then all I would have to do is make a filler plate to fit around the gaps to clean it all up.

[kramttocs]

As long as you have correctly sized wiring and good contact, heat shouldn't be an issue.
The more wiring I do on my truck the more I like the connector approach. Contemplating swapping out the passenger side 000 ssvec box with an 004 like on the driver side and really nice to know it's just a matter of pulling the connectors and snapping them back in. Same with something like that custom made box you showed above.

Those powr-bloks are a neat idea. The flex series is the one I had looked at but it's not as compact or well.. flexible.
Looks like 80A is the largest premade fuse option although I wonder if you could make something work with the 2/4 stud assembly module to handle midis

If I am reading it correctly for 03540551Z (2-POSITION 280 MICRO RELAY + 2 POSITION MINI® STYLE FUSE) you get 40 of them for $11.21. Doesn't seem like a terrible price but you'll just end up with a bunch of extras.

[Rusty_S85]

Of course, wire would be sized as close to what it should be as possible.  Some terminals wont be able to accept the wire size that is needed.

I settled on the following Powr-Bloks for my setup.

03540503Z : 7 terminal ATO Fuse module x1
03540536Z : 2 position ISO Mini Relay Module x4
03540512Z : Power Tap module - 1/4-20 thread unsure about
03540521Z : Storage - Body unsure about
03540514Z : Mounting Module x4
03540517Z : Mounting Standoffs - 1 1/4" x4
03540538Z : 4 stud Assembly Module x1

What I am looking at would be a 6" x 6" square foot print or I could rearrange into a 4 1/2" x 9".  I could also shrink it down by not using the mounting modules and get it down to 4 1/2" x 7 1/2"

My idea was the 4 stud assembly module would have one terminal connected straight to the battery positive the other straight to the battery negative.  That way all ground legs of the trigger circuits of the relays would be attached on the under side to the negative stud.  The positive stud would bring power into the underside which will allow me to cut a notch and make it easier to remove the box vs having to pull the wire out of the loom and out of the case.  I would have a double space open if I didnt use the 4 stud assembly module, but with it I have one spot open next to it and I could install the 03540549Z 2 terminal Maxi Fuse module.  If I do this then I could run the power wire on the under side from the positive 4 stud module one maxi fuse then the other end to the bussed fuse strip.  The other maxi I could throw in a 100w Maxi fuse and hook my 3G alternator charge wire to that and then bring it out to the box to the battery side of the solenoid.  Then I could relocate the old charge wire to the same terminal after the fuse for protection.  Or I could run it through the maxi fuse to the positive stud inside the box and then run the oe alternator charge wire to that terminal as well, wouldnt have to really run another wire as that terminal would be hooked directly to the battery in the first place.

But my problem is the boxes, I would need interior dimensions to be 6" x 6" and closest I was able to find was a 1554SGY and 1590ZGRP161 that are both in 6.3" x 6.3" dimensions on the outside.  The other size the one I am leaning towards is the 1555WAGY that is 7.1" x 7.1" square.  But in the end I am leaning back towards the one I posted above that isnt water proof nor dust proof.  At least with that one it looks a bit more legit than what mine would which is simply a square plastic box with a lid that screws down with 4 screws.

[kramttocs]

I know you said you're leaning towards the 10 relay but just wanted to point out that the powr-blok maxi fuse module is only rated for 80A, unfortunately.

[Rusty_S85]

kramttocs wrote

I know you said you're leaning towards the 10 relay but just wanted to point out that the powr-blok maxi fuse module is only rated for 80A, unfortunately.

Well thats fine I am not sure I would want the high current flowing through the box anyways considering that it might introduce RFI into my sniper wiring which would be in the box.

For me I could free up one relay in the box I currently have that has 6 relays by reducing my headlight relays from 2 to 1 and just use the center pin for my low beams and have my high beam circuit trigger the relay for high beam and I can jumper the high beam trigger to my driving light relay.  This would have me using 5 relays out of 6 but if I want to add four more lights on a roll bar in the bed of my truck I would need two relays for them as well as I doubt I could get all four lights to run off one relay when the total would be 400 watts of light.  At battery voltage of 12.8V, 400 watts would be 31A of current which would be too much for a standard mini relay rated at 30A.  With engine running at 14.3V the current would drop to 28A which still would be border line for a 30A relay so I would need two relays for pairs of lights.

I could get LED but the KC Daylighters with LED upgrades just dont seem to put out as much light as a Hallogen, reviews claims they do but they are narrower than other LED lights and I suspect narrower than the Hallogen bulbs as well.  Plus my goal if I do add a roll bar and extra lights is two flood lights and two spot lights.  KC doesnt have a Daylighter with LED in anything but a spotlight from what I saw.

[Rusty_S85]

Well I did some browsing today on AliExpress at work out of sheer boredom waiting to leave.

Found a similar fuse box to the one I found initially that has 10 relays and 15 fuses.  Difference is this one is smaller at 9 relays and 9 fuses.





I think this would be easier to mount being smaller in size, I could in theory mount it where my fuse block is on the core support where the driverside snorkel attachment would go.  Could take a plate of plexiglass and attach it to the core support through two of the holes that already exist then could screw this box into the plexiglass and it would be hidden out of view, then I can run a mega fuse mount on the passengerside inner fender.  Would put this box closer to my AC compressor and sniper as well as the wire routing for my CB and CB amplifier that runs through the firewall on the driverside.  All I would have to do is just run a dedicated power and ground wire to the battery and find a better way of doing it.  Maybe route it along the OE wires over the top of the engine to the passenger side but then that would require something like a 6ga wire for the distance to be able to handle the amps I would pull through this box max.

[kramttocs]

The smaller footprint would be nice. I am on the fence about mounting it on the core support though. If me, I would instead opt for either side inner fender.

Aside from directly mounting it to the fender using a custom standoff/platform you could, on either side, get one of the diesel platforms (from passenger side) and repurpose it. On the pass side you could mount the relay box, vacuum can/ball, and mega fuse. On the driver side, the relay box, duraspark unit, and mega fuse. Just an idea.

As for running the wiring - going over the radiator in that channel works well. I've got, iirc, (2) 1/0 cables, (2) 2awg, a 4awg, and a handful of smaller going over there. Add some clamps to the shroud bolts and they will stay put.

Not against mounting things on those core suppose uprights (I have my onboard battery tender mounted there), just not sure I'd want it as a central hub location for wiring.

[Rusty_S85]

kramttocs wrote

The smaller footprint would be nice. I am on the fence about mounting it on the core support though. If me, I would instead opt for either side inner fender.

Aside from directly mounting it to the fender using a custom standoff/platform you could, on either side, get one of the diesel platforms (from passenger side) and repurpose it. On the pass side you could mount the relay box, vacuum can/ball, and mega fuse. On the driver side, the relay box, duraspark unit, and mega fuse. Just an idea.

As for running the wiring - going over the radiator in that channel works well. I've got, iirc, (2) 1/0 cables, (2) 2awg, a 4awg, and a handful of smaller going over there. Add some clamps to the shroud bolts and they will stay put.

Not against mounting things on those core suppose uprights (I have my onboard battery tender mounted there), just not sure I'd want it as a central hub location for wiring.

My issue is I want the wiring so if I have to pull the core support I dont have to cut wiring.  I got one idea for using mounts to the core support itself along the top that I may try.  As far as the box goes, below is how I currently have my wiring done, but I have my headlight relays mounted below my power/ground junction and then the relay for my driving lights is mounted on the fender itself as I found existing holes to mount my items so I could revert if I ever wanted to without having extra holes.  So now I am redesigning my layout to be more centralized so its not so bad.  Thats why I was thinking on the inner fenders but then with this smaller box I could in theory still mount it where I currently have my box now but instead of having all these extra stand alone items they would be contained in one box.  Personally I would like to mount it on the fender where the vacuum ball would go.  I dont have one on my truck as my truck is dealer AC not factory so I could use those holes to mount this box but I would have to figure out a way with a thick piece of plexiglass or some other kind of plastic so I can mount it in the middle to the fender through existing holes and then be thick enough to use a thin short screw to screw the box to the backer without drilling holes in my plastic fender.  I thought about doing it on the driver side but the more distance I have to run it the larger gauge wire I would have to run as the main power wire.  Its why part of me really wants to go with it on the passenger side but the draw back is I will still have to run wires to the driver side either across the core support or across the engine itself.  If I did it across the engine itself I could have a main plug coming out of the box so I can unplug it and drape the wiring to the driver side allowing for ease of engine removal.



But my mega fuse would be still mounted on the passenger side fender no matter where I mount this box.  The up side is if I mount it on the passenger side it would reduce the length of main power wire which means I can move more amperage through a smaller gauge wire.

Cause doing the math using fuse size for what would be in the fuse box would be 125A worth of fused protection.  Actual draw is not that much though, for example my Silver Star Ultras in my ECE composite housings are 8.59A low beam and 9.38A high beam at nominal batter voltage for both headlight bulbs, the fuse is 15A for that circuit.  My two 100w KC driving lights at nominal battery voltage is 15.63A and I have a 20A fuse for those two lights.  If I add two sets of 100W spot lights and flood lights to a roll bar the pair of spots and pair of floods would have independent relays and fuses which would be 15.63A per pair which is another two 20A fuses.  My CB is a 5A fuse but is lucky to pull 0.40A since it is regulated to 5w max by the feds but I have mine tuned down to 2w so it doesnt over drive my amplifier which is 0.16A.  My Amplifier is only pulling 10A at most at peak output.  Sniper is fused at 30A but the main draw is the fuel pump which a quality Walbro fuel pump in the tank is only pulling 5A to 6A normally.

So for me I would need a 6ga wire to be able to power everything without having my main power wire undersized.  If I can keep the wire short I might be able to get away with a 10ga power wire which is about the largest I would be able to fit into a crimp fitting for these boxes that are sold.  12ga is what they are typically designed for at the most.  Realistically I probably would be ok with a 12ga or even a 14ga considering even if I turn every circuit on and use the nominal battery voltage amperage pull with giving 10A for the sniper to be generous for the fuel pump as well as the power to power up the sniper itself I come up with some 76.42A of power and at 13.8V I come up with 72.34A of power and using my favorite site for wire gauge sizing which is Wirebarn it tells me that at 13.8V with 72.34 Amp max with a 2% drop I can use a 14Ga wire for up to 1.51ft length, 12Ga for 2.40ft length, 10Ga for 3.82ft length, or 8Ga for 6.07ft length.

So realistically if I mount the box on my passenger side inner fender I could in theory run 12Ga as I dont believe the wire from my positive battery terminal to the box mounted roughly where the vacuum ball would be mounted is more than 2.40ft of wire.  I might even be able to get away with 14Ga at 1.51ft length.

https://www.wirebarn.com/Wire-Calculator-_ep_41.html

This is how I pick what size wire I would need for different circuits and I can also go to a dual wire setup for when two wires are being used.  I have to redo my figuring for my headlight wires cause I used paired amperage for both bulbs when each wire will be branched out of the same relay to each bulb which each bulb is operating a less amperage than the total of both.  I also need to go back and figure up for my sniper cause I never figured that up but they use a 10ga wire that is supplied with the kit to be your fuel pump power wire and I will be using that, only thing I will do differently is I will run a ground wire from the battery along with this blue wire in a woven loom to the fuel gauge so the fuel pump on my setup would have power and ground directly from the battery and the power will be controlled by the Sniper itself.  Only ground at the back I will use is for the OE sending unit which I am going to break up a cheap OE 82 sending unit to get the sending unit plug out of the sending unit so I can attach a wire to it making the new 85-86 gauge assembly plug and play with my OE sender wire so if I ever decide to do a OE factory restoration down the road on my truck I can revert back.

[kramttocs]

No need to cut anything. I am saying go over the radiator (not in it). If you needed to remove the core support it would just be a matter of unclamping it and draping it over or under the engine.

Wirebarn's calculator is very handy. Was on there a lot today actually. I don't doubt your numbers at all but when feeding a fuse/relay box, personally, I would go much larger even if you don't need it now. Purely for example if 10 is good for all collectively, I'd go with a 6 or even 4 just because it's still pretty easy to work with. Then from the mega I'd take the 6/4 into the box and once inside branch it into a bunch of smaller gauge wires going to each fuse. When making branch offs like this, I try to start with as close of a gauge as possible to the physical size of the bundled smaller wires.
 But that's just my approach and not trying to push it on anyone. You know your numbers and distances and sounds like you have solid plans for each location

[Rusty_S85]

kramttocs wrote

No need to cut anything. I am saying go over the radiator (not in it). If you needed to remove the core support it would just be a matter of unclamping it and draping it over or under the engine.

Wirebarn's calculator is very handy. Was on there a lot today actually. I don't doubt your numbers at all but when feeding a fuse/relay box, personally, I would go much larger even if you don't need it now. Purely for example if 10 is good for all collectively, I'd go with a 6 or even 4 just because it's still pretty easy to work with. Then from the mega I'd take the 6/4 into the box and once inside branch it into a bunch of smaller gauge wires going to each fuse. When making branch offs like this, I try to start with as close of a gauge as possible to the physical size of the bundled smaller wires.
 But that's just my approach and not trying to push it on anyone. You know your numbers and distances and sounds like you have solid plans for each location

So basically how I have it now, I have the wire going along the core support not in the core support.  I tried in the core support but it looked weird.

It is handy, it allowed me to piece together what wires I would need so I could start ordering the SLX Crosslink wire and what gauge I needed.  On the gauge of the main power wire I would be limited on that unless I could find a small enough eyelet to screw the heavy gauge wire to the brass threaded insert where the Mini ANL fuse goes which I finally found out what fuses goes there.  The Mini ANL fuse apparently is big in stereo so I can get the Mini ANL in 100A, 125A, 150A, 175A, 200A.  So in theory I could throw a 10ga wire on for example and throw a 100A or 125A ANL fuse and have it provide power to the fuse box internally with smaller gauge wire since the distance from the ANL fuse to the fuses themselves would be less than 6 inches.  Or I could go 50A and split the circuits up leaving headlights, driving lights, auxiliary lights, Fuel Injection on one Mini ANL fuse and then have other circuits such as my CB Radio and my CB Amp on another but then that would negate the purpose as I would be running a second Mini ANL fuse just for two circuits as the primary circuits I would want isolated from the rest of the box are my lights and FI which is pretty much what the majorty of my box is all covering.  I guess I could add a fuse for my AC Clutch wire since I will be running it through the 87A pin on a relay for an AC cut out for my sniper to control.  I dont currently have a fuse for this wire from when the dealer unit was installed.  But still the power is coming from inside the truck not outside so it wouldnt go through the Mini ANL fuse, it would just go into the fuse box through a fuse before going to the power supply side of the relay and then through the 87A pin back to the AC compressor.

Another option would be to run two power wires at 12ga or 14 ga which would be 9ga or 11ga combined and have them run to just one Mini ANL fuse or I could run them to two separate mini ANL fuses and then split up the circuits have the fuel injection and headlights on one circuit and have auxiliary lights, cb, cb amp on another circuit.

There are a few ways to organize this setup but I am trying to limit the wire size and with a 9 relay 9 fuse box I am pretty much limiting myself on expansion in the future.  Currently I need 6 relays to do what I am doing and they are as follows

Relay 1 : Low Beam Headlight
Relay 2 : High Beam Headlight
Relay 3 : Apollo 6" Driving Light
Relay 4 : A/C Cutout
Relay 5 : A/C Step Up (idles engine up when AC switched on)
Relay 6 : Fuel Pump Relay

For fuses they are as follows

Fuse 1 : Headlight 15A
Fuse 2 : Driving Lights 25A
Fuse 3 : CB Radio 5A
Fuse 4 : CB Amp 15A
Fuse 5 : Fuel Pump 30A
Fuse 6 : AC clutch 30A ?

I threw 6 in there as I dont have a plan for that, I am looking at 5 fuses and 6 relays.  If I get the Go Rhino roll bars and throw on a pair of KC Daylighter spot lights and a pair of KC Daylighter flood lights that would require two more relays and two more fuses bringing my required to 8 relays and 7 or 8 fuses.  This would pretty much on the small 9 relay and 9 fuse box allow me for expansion of one or two more fuses and one more relay.

I could go with the bigger box but that will only give me 2 spare relays with the roll bar upgrade and give me 7 or 8 fuses left over.  I just dont know if I could add that many more circuits to my truck.

If Dakota Digital comes out with a RTX retro gauge cluster for our trucks then I would run a battery hot through this box through a fuse to provide battery power so that would take up the last fuse on the smaller box or leave me with 1 fuse.

I thought about adding some of those LED rock lights that KC sells that you mount under your truck to illuminate the ground around your truck but if I did this all I would need is just a fuse but I dont know if I will do that.  I also thought about adding some kind of aftermarket under hood light but I could always use the OE connector for power there.

Just a balancing act to see what would be better for me.  I dont believe I would need more than 9 relays but I could always use more fuses though.  But can I justify the larger size box though.  The 10 relay/15 fuse box is 8" x 5" where as the 9 relay/9 fuse box is 6 1/2" x 4 1/2" which means it would fit a lot nicer on the plastic fender where the vacuum ball would have gone if I had one.

[kramttocs]

I thought you said you were using an external mega fuse? Because of that I assumed you were bypassing the brass inserts in the box. Maybe that is for a different purpose?

[Rusty_S85]

kramttocs wrote

I thought you said you were using an external mega fuse? Because of that I assumed you were bypassing the brass inserts in the box. Maybe that is for a different purpose?

Correct, the Mega fuse will be the fuse for my 3G alternator upgrade, the Mini ANL fuse is going to be the main fuse to protect the box and prevent all my circuits from drawing more amperage than the wire I have powering the box can safely handle.  Like if I go with a 10ga wire and I have less than 3 feet of it to the Mini ANL fuse I could fuse it at 100A and that would blow before the 10ga wire would burn down.

Then for the Mega fuse, that will probably be a 100A fuse as well for the 130A 3G I will be running.  With a V Belt I do not believe I would ever be able to generate the 150A that a normal 130A 3G alternator is fused to.  I also doubt I would be able to generate more than 95A without slipping the belt but if I for some reason am able to produce more than 100A without belt slippage then I would consider upping the fuse then.