I have a 76 F100 with an aftermarket lighter/12v powerpoint socket. Most any load I put on it blows the 15A fuse in the fuse box. I read in the forums where all the lighter sockets from 56-80 have a fuse on the back (FEW-14429-A). Are they available NOS? Haven't been able to find one so far. Also, what is this fuse rated for? I can wire in a fuse in the interim until I can find the right part or salvage a lighter socket from the boneyard.

 

Ok...got the problem solved. The aftermarket lighter socket metal pieces that grip the lighter element were being pushed into the collar of the socket, causing a dead short. I solved the problem by rolling up a business card and slipping it into the collar to form a liner, then installed the collar over the lighter socket. That way, the socket and collar cannot make contact even if an accessory socket is a bit of a tight fit. Works lika a champ.

 

Thanks for the follow-up; was curious about that one.

 

It just about drove me nuts until I noticed a tiny blued burned spot on the socket "spring." Maybe a moderator can change the thread title to something more helpful for folks searching for a similar problem.