451 blows fuse

[purplewg]

I have a 451 that recently started blowing the dash fuse (5A)which operates the tack and guages. I replaced it and usually within a few minutes it blows again. I have looked for chaffed wires and see nothing. I was baling hay last week and the fuse was alreay blown but I am going across the field the tach starts bouncing and particially working, the fuel gauge came on the 4 LED indicators were flashing. I have no idea what is going on. After a while they quit flashing but every now and then they would start again.

The fuse seems to blow with the tractor just sitting there for a period not even moving just idling.

 

[MrSteve]

Why it's blowing hard to say, I wire chase (as you have done), then right into the dash is next. I can almost say 100% that the reason things were working on and off after the fuse blew was because the fuse filament must have been bouncing around and making some contact until it burnt out completely and then all stopped working again.

 

[purplewg]

I found it. To make a long story short, I found a twisty tie on the motor hoist bracket that had a tag affixed to it at one time. This twisty tie was touching the water temp sender and was shorted on the hoist bracket.

 

[purplewg]

One more note. I pulled the fuse and put a digital volt meter on amp scale across the fuse socket and was seeing 11.4 amps across where a 5 amp fuse goes. After I removed the short I was seeing 1.3 amps.