Amp meter install shunt size

[Dave Erickson]

I'm surprised that no-one has mentioned that there are ammeters which work inductively and do not require any wiring connections, shunts, long cables, etc. Many years ago I had one of those installed in a below-dash mount, and all it required was routing the current carrying wire through a clip on the backside of the gauge. I keep a couple of inductive ammeters in my toolbox for various tasks. Usually the need for an ammeter is related to diagnosing a problem. It isn't a very useful instrument to keep your eye on all of the time.

[Al Zim]

Dave: what wire under the dash were you thinking of clipping your ammeter over? If you are planning on routing a wire from where to where does it go and what wire would you be using? al

[Dave Erickson]

Al, I had it on a 6V VW bus. The wiring was almost the same as a 356, so I think the use case was similar. I had it on the wire that went from the ignition switch to the fuse box.

Dave

[Al Zim]

Dave all you are looking at is what is carried through the ignition switch. The lights, and the charging system for the battery did not up on your amp meter. You will need to have a wire that will carry 55 amps, which would make should be larger than the wire from the generator to the regulator.