UHF antenna shorted out.......

[camo.b]

Cuttsy87 i think we need a few more photos of your led earth point and your uhf mounting...and how long have you had the worklights installed for

 

[Navmania]

unless the fuse is behind the dash and not near the battery

A fuse anywhere in the power line should have blown unless the antenna became the fuse due to it being a smaller wire than the power feed. Did the coax melt also or only the antenna.

 

[Cuttsy87]

Whole lot got hot. The coax melted and the antenna got hot as well. I'm in bed now. Just staring at the ceiling wondering what it could be. I'll get it looked at. Easiest way to sort it out. Expensive. But peace of mind as well.

 

[camo.b]

Cuttsy87 i think we need a few more photos of your led earth point and your uhf mounting...and how long have you had the worklights installed for

Just worked out that the lights were in first....do give us a update when its sorted tho

 

[Navmania]

UHF and HF are the same size core I think. If they are different it's not seen to the eye. Stickos a HAM I think. He would know. I'm an illegal HAM from way back. Didn't have the licence but had all the gear.

 

[Cuttsy87]

Would've thought if it had become a fuse somehow it would've stayed hot though. It cooled down as soon as I disconnected the power supply. Ah well I'm off to the land of nod. Thanks guys.

 

[Navmania]

Your lucky you didn't burn the Nav to the ground. Electrical fires are hard to stop. I hope you have it all disconnected.

 

[Navmania]

Would've thought if it had become a fuse somehow it would've stayed hot though. It cooled down as soon as I disconnected the power supply. Ah well I'm off to the land of nod. Thanks guys.

It just would of acted like a hot plate element. Take away the power and it stops, and because it's so thin it would cool fast.

 

[camo.b]

What did you do first...disconnect the power to the uhf or turn off the lights?

 

[Navmania]

What did you do first...disconnect the power to the uhf or turn off the lights?

That's a handy question to know. At least it will narrow it down to where the problem is.

 

[camo.b]

I surprise myself sometimes.

 

[Cuttsy87]

Turned the lights off. Then within the panic I ripped the UHF out and disconnected it as well.

 

[Cuttsy87]

Alright. So have figured it out.... What happened is when my mate has piggy backed the power from my work light switch. He has had a brain fart moment and put the earth from the UHF to the power out on the work light switch. So when I turned the lights on, it has turned the negative circuit for the UHF to a positive circuit and the aerial has acted as the earth. Lil bit scary. But at least it is a simple fix. Thanks for your input and help though guys. Much appreciated. My baby is at the doctors getting fixed now!! Now to save some coin and get myself se new accessories!! May be up for a new uhf. Might have to get some light bars too as my halogen spotties are starting to annoy me a bit with constant adjustment needed from the corrugations moving them.

 

[Navmania]

Glad you found the problem. I would be questioning why a fuse didn't blow though. It was a dead short.

 

[Cuttsy87]

Had a 10 amp fuse for the lights. Uhf fuse was.being bypassed obviously. Ah well sorted now