Fusebox meltdown

[Daddy Dom]

In tandem with the other fusebox thread, a funny thing happened a while back relating to my electric start. Working just fine, then one day after pushing the button the whole electrical system had some kind of meltdown and went all low-voltage on me for a while. After 10 minutes it just came right and then there was a bit of melting at the back of my fusebox, top right. Nothing blew, and I'm lucky it's great to kickstart. S/motor's out now, pending rebuild.

One could pay US$80 for a NOS CEV fusebox but there are lots of alternatives out there, anyway I do need to get to the root of the problem first.
Dom

[3potjohn]

I have had the starter relay stick on due to the contacts welding together.I had to dismount and kick it to stop the motor firing. I have had these relays to pieces to try and clean up the contacts and now have an impressive collection of knackered ones. Anyhow I wonder if the relay was the culprit?

[Daddy Dom]

Well, maybe it was John.
However, my asking how a dud relay would cause my fusebox's nether regions to melt and where did my electricity go for 10 minutes is as useful as my asking someone to explain the theory behind the Hadron collider.

Cheers,
Dom

[EVguru]

It sounds like you had a fault earth connection to your engine, the starter current then tried to find any other path it could to complete the circuit.

I've seen the starter relays stick on and also the coil short internally so they drain the battery.

[Daddy Dom]

Now that, I can make sense of, thanks Paul. My earth connections do look pretty solid but I will check them all properly.
DD