Posted by Sherman in Idaho [72.47.153.112] on Friday, January 31, 2014 at 16:45:20 :
In Reply to: amp gauge question posted by Kaegi [98.247.164.246] on Friday, January 31, 2014 at 16:26:09 :
Of course it could. Shut type gauges seem to usually be used for 100 amps and up, but I think it would be good on any setup. The shut must be used properly and with the right gauge to be accurate, though. You can't just take a regular full-current gauge, add an external shunt somewhere, and expect it to work. The gauge that goes with a shunt is built more like a very sensitive voltmeter. Typically 50 mV is full scale, although the dial is marked in amps. One danger with shut meters is if the shut opens up, you fry the gauge. To help prevent that, and make it accurate, the meter leads are connected directly to the shut element itself, with separate screws, rather than to the same terminals that the high current goes through. That way if any screw comes loose, the gauge reads zero rather than going up in smoke.
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