electrical question

[offrdyj87]

i dont need a relay when i wire up my 13.8V cb radio, right? also, i know im going to need an inline fuse. how many amps should it be? im not sure how to calculate this so if anyone could explain it would be appreciated

[OWEN]

i dont need a relay when i wire up my 13.8V cb radio, right? also, i know im going to need an inline fuse. how many amps should it be? im not sure how to calculate this so if anyone could explain it would be appreciated

Nope, relays are for higher amp draw circuits, most running voltages are around 14. I think for my CB I used the inline fuse that came with it, which was 2.5, 3, or 5 amps. It should say what the max draw is on the CB. If not, you can go by the wire size and look up the max amp draw for the wire size.

[clean4drxj]

what Owen says... just keep an inline fuse and you could hardwire it or get a cigarett plug from radio shack and go that route.

[offrdyj87]

thanks for the help. its an old cb i got from my grandfather. its from the 80s or something. it has a cigarette lighter plug but im looking to hardwire it because i heard you get less static and you dont have to tune it everytime

[customcreationsllc]

the cigarette lighter plug should have a fuse inside it take it out and look at the amperage draw.
It should also say some wheres on the radio if you can find watts you can use it to find amperage watt=voltsXamps

[offrdyj87]

i looked all over the radio but could only find volts. i took the plug apart and it had an old glass fuse in it. it said "BUSS AGC 3" on one side and "250V" on the other. so i'm guessing that means 3 amps?
here's a pic of the radio for reference:


i told you it was old still works when i plug it in though. and it has a built in swr meter

[OWEN]

Yea 3 amps. The three letters ACG have to do with how the fuse "blows", I forget exactly, I am sure it can be found online. A 3 amp automotive fuse is good.

[offrdyj87]

awesome. thanks for the help