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Hi, just got my mk1 escort back on the road. When I wired up the headlights I decided to use a fused relay. It worked fine and then one day (after putting full beam on for a minute to go through a stretch of road with no streetlights) the fuse blew in the relay and I had no headlights (sidelights still worked tho). put another fuse in after a while it blew again. The flasher still works and I can hear the relay clicking (I didnt think that would be possible if the relay's fuse has blown???) before it blew the second time the lights were flashing on and off when I was going over bumps and when I wiggled the stalk it seemed to keep them on, after a few minutes they wouldnt come on even when I wiggled the stalk. I assumed it was the stalk so took it apart and cleaned the contacts etc, put a new fuse in the relay and it wont work at all now, I turn the lights on and off a couple of times and the only the sidelights come on even thought the fuse is not blown. Then after a couple more times flicking the switch the fuse blows. IM COMPLETEY LOST
what are the possible causes of this?????? I dont understand how the relay is clicking and the full beam still works if the fuse in the relay is blown??? I thought I may have wired the relay up wrong but surely that would have caused the lights to not work in the first place??? Im thinking its probably the stalk but Iv checked it over and all the contacts touch each other as they should and they are clean. my earths in the engine bay are good. Should I just use a relay without a fuse??? (dont see how this would solve it because if there is no problem the fuse shouldnt blow in the first place). Am I simply using a fuse that is to weak??? (if so the lights would have blown straight away, I started using a 3 amp fuse which lasted a while, now if I put a 7.5 amp fuse in it doesnt work at all????) I know this is probably something silly that I have overlooked and I know someone on here with a bigger brain than me will have the answer. ANY HELP REALLY APPRECIATED! Thanx. Justin

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sorted. for some reason the current was able to flow along the contact on the stalk but the disk shaped part of the contact that touches the other contact wasnt getting any current. I bridged a bit of solder across it and now it works.