Topic: Fuse Box Cover

[rotortiller]

I needed a cover for my 45+ year old fuse box which still works fine, it's been missing for over a decade . I found a complete reproduction replacement for 30 dollars CND. It even came with spare fuses in a rubber pocket inside the cover. It is so close to the original product that the plastic cover fits both well except for tab catch wear on the original. It looks clean and professional and is hard wired so I do not have that octopus, Radio Shack, home brew look, which actually crossed my mind for a brief second until I gave my head a shake. Had the cover fit the original fuse box tightly I would likely left OEM box in place.  It is nice to see acceptable replica parts available for that professional OEM look. I thought about modifying an OEM box to blade fuses with hidden soldered connections on the back side (like Honda). That method may or may not last longer but I know I have less  in years of riding left in me so I deep six'd than urge. LOL.  Got the unit at PartsnMore.

[evinrude7]

Looks great.

Sent from my moto g(7) using Tapatalk

[HondaMan]

I might suggest cleaning up the end caps on the old fuses and using them in the new fuse holder. Reason: the OEM fuses for these bikes (and fuseblocks) were called the "SFE" type, made to withstand vibration while also carrying current. Those types of fuses have not been made since the 1990s, and the world's supply of them ran out around 2005-6 or so. The AGC or AGX type found in your new fuseblock will not withstand vibration while carrying current, which makes them break while carrying that current. Then they flare as they fail, making it look like they "blew" big time. The SFE fuses won't do that, if you are fortunate enough to still have them.

You can identify the SFE type fuse by looking at its element: they are well-supported physically inside. The AGC/AGX type just look like a little ribbon (or thread) running between the caps on the ends. The 15A SFE type looks like a wide band with a narrow wasp-waist in the center of it, where it will blow if needed.

I'm thinking of making this into a file on my own computers so I can copy/send it verbatim to all the inquiries I keep getting about: "I replaced my OEM fuseblock with a new one, and now my fuses blow when I am riding"... ;(

[newday777]

I might suggest cleaning up the end caps on the old fuses and using them in the new fuse holder. Reason: the OEM fuses for these bikes (and fuseblocks) were called the "SFE" type, made to withstand vibration while also carrying current. Those types of fuses have not been made since the 1990s, and the world's supply of them ran out around 2005-6 or so. The AGC or AGX type found in your new fuseblock will not withstand vibration while carrying current, which makes them break while carrying that current. Then they flare as they fail, making it look like they "blew" big time. The SFE fuses won't do that, if you are fortunate enough to still have them.

You can identify the SFE type fuse by looking at its element: they are well-supported physically inside. The AGC/AGX type just look like a little ribbon (or thread) running between the caps on the ends. The 15A SFE type looks like a wide band with a narrow wasp-waist in the center of it, where it will blow if needed.

I'm thinking of making this into a file on my own computers so I can copy/send it verbatim to all the inquiries I keep getting about: "I replaced my OEM fuseblock with a new one, and now my fuses blow when I am riding"... ;(

So the replacement fuses Honda is selling now not are not SFE fuses?

[Deltarider]

What bike, Rotortiller?

[Oddjob]

Must still be some around Mark, your comments made me wonder. I intended to refit my old fuse box on the 500K, I never liked the single fuse on the 500 so I replaced the loom with a 550F one which as you know has 3 fuses, the fuse box is still in really good condition and as an added bonus the 500 has a spare fuse holder in the tooltray, so I can carry quite a few spares, just in case. With this in mind I bought a few bags of fuses a few years ago, your comments on how the SFE fuses made me wonder excatly what I'd bought so I went to check. 2 bags were the AGC/AGX type, really thin wire running between the end caps, however 2 bags were exactly like you describe the SFE fuses, rather thick strip at the end caps narrowing to a much thinner strip in the middle, a strip not a wire. Bought mine off Ebay so might have just been lucky or there may still be some around if you look hard enough.

The 2 bags I bought were 15a and 7.5a BTW.

As it turns out I bought the blade type fuse box off you Mark, so these are surplus at the moment, not 100% sure which way I'll go yet TBH.

[Tracksnblades1]

Must still be some around Mark, your comments made me wonder. I intended to refit my old fuse box on the 500K, I never liked the single fuse on the 500 so I replaced the loom with a 550F one which as you know has 3 fuses, the fuse box is still in really good condition and as an added bonus the 500 has a spare fuse holder in the tooltray, so I can carry quite a few spares, just in case. With this in mind I bought a few bags of fuses a few years ago, your comments on how the SFE fuses made me wonder excatly what I'd bought so I went to check. 2 bags were the AGC/AGX type, really thin wire running between the end caps, however 2 bags were exactly like you describe the SFE fuses, rather thick strip at the end caps narrowing to a much thinner strip in the middle, a strip not a wire. Bought mine off Ebay so might have just been lucky or there may still be some around if you look hard enough.

The 2 bags I bought were 15a and 7.5a BTW.

As it turns out I bought the blade type fuse box off you Mark, so these are surplus at the moment, not 100% sure which way I'll go yet TBH.

You do know SFE are automotive fuses with a voltage rating to 32volts..and are idiot proof by varying dimensions by amperage.

AGC, common use.. AGX fast acting…both have voltage ratings up to 250volts AC in some amperages.. both have fixed dimensions allowing a 30 amp fuse to be placed in a 5amp position.  1 and 1/4” long AGC… 1 inch long AGX….both by 1/4”””.

Looks like someone is still making them. They’re available at AutoZone today…

https://www.eaton.com/content/dam/eaton/products/electronic-components/resources/data-sheet/eaton-sfe-fuse-data-sheet.pdf

[rotortiller]

What bike,

750K7.

All I use is AG (auto glass) fuses and have never had an internal vibration failure, it's all BS. Sized as intended they will blow before the wire melts so they are doing the job. These things are installed all over the place in helicopters and airplanes, some of which will loosen your fillings lol. The 1" fuse kits I mentioned in another post are 32V AG type. Last  year when the roads were washed out we decided on a detour with our CBs, I should have taken my YZ or Beta even though it worked out lol. Just because someone opinions something does not make it fact. Speaking of loose fillings, nothing vibrates more than a Kawasaki H2 triple (my brother and I have 3, one is kept for a spare), guess what fuses I use in them . The H2 single bullet fuse holder which carries all the bikes DC will however wear its contacts down over time and eventually need repair.   

[HondaMan]

Must still be some around Mark, your comments made me wonder. I intended to refit my old fuse box on the 500K, I never liked the single fuse on the 500 so I replaced the loom with a 550F one which as you know has 3 fuses, the fuse box is still in really good condition and as an added bonus the 500 has a spare fuse holder in the tooltray, so I can carry quite a few spares, just in case. With this in mind I bought a few bags of fuses a few years ago, your comments on how the SFE fuses made me wonder excatly what I'd bought so I went to check. 2 bags were the AGC/AGX type, really thin wire running between the end caps, however 2 bags were exactly like you describe the SFE fuses, rather thick strip at the end caps narrowing to a much thinner strip in the middle, a strip not a wire. Bought mine off Ebay so might have just been lucky or there may still be some around if you look hard enough.

The 2 bags I bought were 15a and 7.5a BTW.

As it turns out I bought the blade type fuse box off you Mark, so these are surplus at the moment, not 100% sure which way I'll go yet TBH.

There might still be a few 'stragglers' out there of the SFE fuses, as they were made for over 40 years. Those are the ones to look for now, but not easy to find (especially if you're on the road!). Once Bussman stopped making them for Detroit, the other fusemakers followed suit. A couple of big warehouses (one in NJ, and I don't know where the other one was located) bought up all the SFE type inventories in the early 1990s when the announcement was made, and the prices tripled overnight by 1998. They used to be $2-$3 for a box of 5, then they became $10, just like that(!). I went looking into this to find out 'why' back then, and found out about Bussman's action. There were other fusemakers knocking them off in Japan and Malaysia for a few years, but once the US Gov't introduced the infamous 'cash for clunkers' $$ giveaway they bailed out, too. By 1992 all the carmakers worldwide were using the ATC/ATO types instead.

Today Bussman is just another fusemaker: the Chinkos are underselling all the others, so many of them have bailed entirely on the small-fuse market.

[Tracksnblades1]

One more time…

https://www.eaton.com/content/dam/eaton/products/electronic-components/resources/data-sheet/eaton-sfe-fuse-data-sheet.pdf

SFE Bussman/Eaton fuses are still available today…

You can pick them up at AutoZone or others tomorrow….

AG* fuses have copper fuse links vs SFE fuses that use iron alloy fuse links…both are available from Eaton…

[rotortiller]

One more time…

This is why lol!