Light Bar wiring plug

No if it's 1 x 20 protecting the lot it might blow, and if its 2 x 20 the fuse exceeds the rating of the cable

The weakest link should always be the fuse not the wire

And I'm not certain but I'm sure there are issues with bunching of wires and where they pass through grommets etc where their current carrying capacity is reduced

I can highly recommend (as already mentioned) anderson powerpole connectors. they can be clipped together to make up connector blocks and you can't physically connect them wrongly once you make a matched set.
order in UK from Anderson Power Products Distributor, Battery, High Current Connectors, Golf Battery, Electric Golf Trolley, Wheelchair Battery | Torberry Connectors UK
Us radio hams use them for all our high-current needs!

The best part is that if you follow the convention that we all use, different bits of 12 v kit can be plugged together because any pair can connect to any other pair as long the red-black are the right way around.
- so you could e.g. temporarily unplug your lightbar and plug in a trailing lamp, for example, or power your lights from a 12v PSU...

RED / BLACK is the colour code for 12v in Powerpoles. EACH connector can be either 15, 30 or 45A -you need to specify what you want when you order.


more info here Anderson Power Pole Connectors
and here Powerpole Connectors

Good luck! Show us pics when you are done!

//Clive
aka g1wzm def 110

OK thanks, and re the fuses each relay has its own separate 20 amp fuse. So should I use a 15 (which is less than the max draw??)

Don't forget to buy a fire extinguisher.

satchmolips said:

OK thanks, and re the fuses each relay has its own separate 20 amp fuse. So should I use a 15 (which is less than the max draw??)

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nope you should uprate the wire so its rated higher than the load

It is 17 amp rating and the draw will be 16.6. Is that not enough leeway??

satchmolips said:

It is 17 amp rating and the draw will be 16.6. Is that not enough leeway??

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Not really.
When I said talk to MadHatMan it wasn't just because he's a pretty face. I think that you might find that this sort of thing is his business but he's very careful not to spam so I'll do it for him.

Don't forget that what ever earth method you choose it needs to have good continuity path back to the battery. Not sure if you are just planning to clamp the light bar on somehow but you still have 34 (ish) amps that need to get to ground / chassis. If you have less than perfect continuity you could end up with dim lights or cause 'hotspots' that may damage paintwork. Its all fine looking into how to get the power to the light but you still need to consider the same problems for the earthing aspect.

why not keep it simple? One live feed for each lamp with a 10amp spade fuse in an inline connector. Use a female spade connector and heatshrink to connect to the bulb. Earth each lamp via it's mounting bolt to the bar. Run an earf wire from one of the Lightbar's mounting bolts to a suitable earf point on the landies body or chassis. Wire each pair to a 30amp relay and install a 20amp fuse. between battery and relay.

redhand said:

why not keep it simple? One live feed for each lamp with a 10amp spade fuse in an inline connector. Use a female spade connector and heatshrink to connect to the bulb. Earth each lamp via it's mounting bolt to the bar. Run an earf wire from one of the Lightbar's mounting bolts to a suitable earf point on the landies body or chassis. Wire each pair to a 30amp relay and install a 20amp fuse. between battery and relay.

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Thanks Redhan but I thought I was! So..I do have each pair wired to a 30 amp relay, I do have a 20 amp fuse between battery and relay (but someone earlier said that was too high rating!). Then the point of dispute is I have from each relay one 17 amp wire to power two spotlights. This means I only then have two wires to route all the way up there. Are you saying take four wires all the way up? Or get some bloody great 20 amp rating wire?

satchmolips said:

Thanks Redhan but I thought I was! So..I do have each pair wired to a 30 amp relay, I do have a 20 amp fuse between battery and relay (but someone earlier said that was too high rating!). Then the point of dispute is I have from each relay one 17 amp wire to power two spotlights. This means I only then have two wires to route all the way up there. Are you saying take four wires all the way up? Or get some bloody great 20 amp rating wire?

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Get thinwall wiring, and run 4 up inside a length of heatshrink tubing It's what I've done and it's a neat job. Don't forget to run an earth wire in there, before ya shrink the tubing.

This way you only lose 1 lamp if a fuse blows. 2 x 30amp relays, 4 x 10amp inline spade fuses, 1 x 20amp fuse

this is the type of wire I used

Auto Electrical Thin Wall Automotive Cable 1mm² Blue 16.5 Amp Current Rating | eBay

Ok thanks. Am running up the inside of the cab behind the trim section to left of windscreen. (No snorkel) so will need to get it thin!

satchmolips said:

It is 17 amp rating and the draw will be 16.6. Is that not enough leeway??

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17amp wire... 20amp fuse, the wire can have 20amps in it 3amps more than its rated for

redhand said:

this is the type of wire I used

Auto Electrical Thin Wall Automotive Cable 1mm² Blue 16.5 Amp Current Rating | eBay

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looks at the price looks how many meters its for looks at the price :jaw: comes back to this page

SteNova said:

looks at the price looks how many meters its for looks at the price :jaw: comes back to this page

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I get mine from AutoVehicle wiring products usually. never looked at the price was just to show OP what he needs to buy. Who buys from Tweeks anyway Apart from dickhead chavs using mummies credit card to pay for it..

41p metre for thin wall 25 amp from these very helpful Guys!

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