Why Didn't I Pull The Fuse???

[28HopUp]

Well, today's post is to give everyone a chance to learn from my mistake. Yesterday I experienced a small mishap with my CHP Mustang.

It is important to note that I have my CHP spotlights and emergency rear deck lights wired to a fuse block I installed in the driver's side kick panel. Placement there was decided so that I could remove the fuses easily to make the lights inoperable while driving on the street. In addition, I cover the lights with soft KC covers. That includes the Ruby Red spotlight on the driver's side. With my spotlights, I keep them facing down on top of the fenders.

So yesterday, I was grilling on the back deck (it was so nice out) and saw our 12yo son in the driveway playing with the driver's side Ruby Red spotlight. I told him not to mess with it, so he reached in through the open window and used the handle to turn the spotlight back as he had found it. I pulled the sausages off the grill and we ate. Right after dinner, I had to run an errand, and went out to take Debbie's vert which was blocking in my SSP. Jack (our 14yo) looks over and quickly asks "Why is the spotlight smoking?"

I knew immediately what had happened - Ray bumped the switch on the handle when he moved it, and the light turned on with the soft leather KC cover on the head of the spotlight. It had been on for about 25 minutes. I reached in and turned it off, and then lifted the spotlight head off the top of the fender. The leather material from the cover was boiling! Here's what the cover looks like -




I'm not concerned about the cover - I have a spare one. The spotlight should be fine once I use a single-edge razor blade to clean it off. But the paint on the top of the fender is scorched (look in the lower left corner - forgive the dirty car) -




I haven't tried to buff it out yet. Any suggestions on how I should handle the paint? I don't want it to blister from the heat.

So today's lesson-learned: pull out the fuses for the emergency lights until I am ready to use them.