Holy Grail Labs - Blade Fuse Upgrade Kits

[virginpilot]

Wow! That is fantastic! I don’t suppose it would work with an e12 by any chance?

[virginpilot]

Wow! That is fantastic! I don’t suppose it would work with an e12 by any chance?

[Galahad]

𝙶𝚛𝚎𝚎𝚝𝚒𝚗𝚐𝚜, 𝙽𝚎𝚠 𝚝𝚘 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚏𝚘𝚛𝚞𝚖 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚗𝚎𝚠 𝚝𝚘 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚎𝟸𝟾 𝚌𝚑𝚊𝚜𝚒𝚜 (𝚎𝟹𝟶 𝚋𝚘𝚢 𝚕𝚘𝚕). 𝙸 𝚌𝚊𝚖𝚎 𝚊𝚌𝚛𝚘𝚜𝚜 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚝𝚛𝚢𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚝𝚘 𝚛𝚎𝚌𝚝𝚒𝚏𝚢 𝚜𝚘𝚖𝚎 𝚎𝚕𝚎𝚌𝚝𝚛𝚒𝚌𝚊𝚕 𝚒𝚜𝚜𝚞𝚎𝚜 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚖𝚒𝚗𝚎. 𝙾𝚞𝚝 𝚘𝚏 𝚌𝚞𝚛𝚒𝚘𝚜𝚒𝚝𝚢 𝚠𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎 𝚋𝚎 𝚊𝚗𝚢𝚘𝚗𝚎 𝚠𝚑𝚘 𝚌𝚊𝚗 𝚒𝚗𝚜𝚝𝚊𝚕𝚕 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚏𝚘𝚛 𝚖𝚎 𝚒𝚗 𝙽𝚘𝚛𝙲𝚊𝚕? 𝚆𝚒𝚛𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚒𝚜 𝚗𝚘𝚝 𝚖𝚢 𝚜𝚝𝚛𝚘𝚗𝚐𝚜𝚞𝚒𝚝 𝚘𝚗 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚍𝚎𝚏 𝚗𝚘𝚝 𝚜𝚘𝚖𝚎𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚊𝚜 𝚖𝚊𝚓𝚘𝚛 𝚊𝚜 𝚊 𝚏𝚞𝚜𝚎𝚋𝚘𝚡 𝚕𝚘𝚕.

𝙰𝚕𝚜𝚘 𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚕𝚕𝚢 𝚌𝚘𝚘𝚕 𝚙𝚛𝚘𝚍𝚞𝚌𝚝 𝚍𝚞𝚍𝚎 𝚞𝚙𝚍𝚊𝚝𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚊𝚗𝚢𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚘𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚜𝚎 𝚌𝚕𝚊𝚜𝚜𝚒𝚌𝚜 𝚍𝚎𝚜𝚎𝚛𝚟𝚎𝚜 𝚊𝚕𝚕 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚙𝚛𝚊𝚒𝚜𝚎.

Thanks! I don't know of anybody in NorCal, that's all the way on the other side of the country from me.

Wow! That is fantastic! I don’t suppose it would work with an e12 by any chance?

Could you email the HGL support account? It should work in an e12 but nobody has tested it yet so far as I know.

[tig]

For the Caleb and Jade lovers out there: Holy Grail Labs is pleased to announce the availability of our second product:

BMW E21 Blade Fuse Box Upgrade Kit
Upgrade your flakey, melty, and unreliable E21 fuse box.
Address one of the biggest causes of electrical problems in your classic BMW—the ancient and unreliable torpedo fuses. Our kit upgrades your E21 to modern, reliable blade-style fuses.

• Compatible with standard / mini / low-profile blade fuses
• Lower total resistance and won't lose spring pressure over time
• LEDs show green for any circuit with power; red if the fuse is missing or blown
• LEDs can be disabled via a switch
• Includes sockets for four spare fuses
• Fits under the stock fuse box cover
• Includes a full set of blade-style fuses

Purchase here: BMW E21 Blade Fuse Box Upgrade Kit

[tig]

Oh, and we'd LOVE more pics of your E28 with our kit installed that we can share on our Instagram (https://instagram.com/holygraillabs_llc).

Email to support@holygraillabs.com por-favor.

[tig]

WIth Galahad's help, I just did a write-up on the technology of torpedo (bullet) vs. blade fuses. Hope y'all enjoy it:

https://ceklog.kindel.com/2022/06/21/to ... tomobiles/

[virginpilot]

That’s a fantastic write up, thank you for posting it! I can’t wait until the e12 retro kit is available, I’ll get one straight away for my 528i

[tig]

That’s a fantastic write up, thank you for posting it! I can’t wait until the e12 retro kit is available, I’ll get one straight away for my 528i

The E28 kit works with the E12. The fuse box and wiring are the same.

[virginpilot]

Hi Cek, thanks for that! Galahad told me that there is an actual e12 one in development? Is that correct?
Thanks Scott

[Galahad]

There's no separate e12 board, we recently confirmed the e28 panel works in e12 based cars as well.

[virginpilot]

Thank you Galahad! I will go ahead and order one. I am a little nervous about fitting it, is it relatively straightforward?
It will be awesome to get rid of those horrible bullet fuses and I’m sure it will make things a bit safer too!

[Galahad]

I'd say it's straightforward, most people seem to install them without issue. It usually takes a couple hours, make sure you read through the instructions and take your time.

[jimoreno]

And pictures, lots of pictures!

[virginpilot]

Thank you everyone for your advice! I’ll definitely do that. My e12 is garaged and only goes out in fine weather and at the moment it’s cold and wet here in Melbourne, Australia so I definitely won’t be rushing it! I’ll order one later today. I don’t suppose there are any discount codes? I’m just being cheeky
Cheers Scott.

[tig]

Thank you everyone for your advice! I’ll definitely do that. My e12 is garaged and only goes out in fine weather and at the moment it’s cold and wet here in Melbourne, Australia so I definitely won’t be rushing it! I’ll order one later today. I don’t suppose there are any discount codes? I’m just being cheeky
Cheers Scott.

Sadly, we will be raising prices soon given the significant increase in component costs driven by supply-chain issues, fuel price increases, and the chaotic global situation. Just say'n.

[1st 5er]

Damn Russians.

[virginpilot]

I feel for you, everything is going up except wages. I’ll get my order is tonight before you raise your prices. Thank you for developing this great upgrade for our classic BMWs

[TheYoungSir]

I just installed mine - this is an amazing piece of kit. I 100% recommend this to anyone who wants to eliminate a major source of gremlins, glitchy high-current circuits, and any of the other known issues with the torpedo-fuses (everyone).

I always think that there's never enough written down on a topic, so here are my detailed comments on the kit and the installation.

Comments (not complaints, just observations):

1. There are more pins underneath the conversion kit than there are on the original setup (at least on my car).
   Make sure to put holes in the plastic fusebox itself and the cardboard guide for these additional pins.
   It's worth noting which pins were the new ones, since they will be unused after reinstallation.
2. ATC fuses don't really seem to offer an 8A fuse, so this kit is populated with 7.5A fuses.
   My high-beams blew the 7.5A fuses shortly after installation, so those have now been changed to 10A fuses. (Possibly related to running to Euro low-beams?)
3. The Rearwindow defroster/sunroof fuse provided is 16A instead of 25A
   I am unsure why this is the case, but I will go back to 25A if(/when) the 16A fuse blows
4. To avoid degrading my fusebox grommets any more when passing through the grounding wire for the LEDs, I cut the cable, passed the wire through the lower (front of car) harness, then soldered it back together.
   I ended up using the fender grounding point for this cable; the bolt fits the ring terminal perfectly.
5. At the end of the day, installation is even more straightforwards than it seems.

For the lazy installation method, there is enough slack in the two main wiring bundles connected to the fusebox to avoid disconnecting anything.
I un-ziptied the harnesses and moved the cruise control module which gave enough room to rotate the upper-fuse box 90 degrees side to side.
If you're dextrous and take enough photographs, it's possible to re-wire the box in that state and avoid disconnecting anything else (C101, other relays, etc.).
Not sure I'd recommend it, but it went very well for me.

Additionally, my photo-taking strategy was as follows: Take picture of 2-3 connectors showing fusebox underside and wire colors. Disconnect the depicted connectors and loosely ziptie them together. Repeat until all connectors are removed.
Reinstallation is as simple as looking at the last photo, finding the bundle for that picture, connecting those, going to the next photo, then repeating the process until everything is connected.

[Galahad]

I just installed mine - this is an amazing piece of kit. I 100% recommend this to anyone who wants to eliminate a major source of gremlins, glitchy high-current circuits, and any of the other known issues with the torpedo-fuses (everyone).

I always think that there's never enough written down on a topic, so here are my detailed comments on the kit and the installation.

Comments (not complaints, just observations):

1. There are more pins underneath the conversion kit than there are on the original setup (at least on my car).
   Make sure to put holes in the plastic fusebox itself and the cardboard guide for these additional pins.
   It's worth noting which pins were the new ones, since they will be unused after reinstallation.
2. ATC fuses don't really seem to offer an 8A fuse, so this kit is populated with 7.5A fuses.
   My high-beams blew the 7.5A fuses shortly after installation, so those have now been changed to 10A fuses. (Possibly related to running to Euro low-beams?)
3. The Rearwindow defroster/sunroof fuse provided is 16A instead of 25A
   I am unsure why this is the case, but I will go back to 25A if(/when) the 16A fuse blows
4. To avoid degrading my fusebox grommets any more when passing through the grounding wire for the LEDs, I cut the cable, passed the wire through the lower (front of car) harness, then soldered it back together.
   I ended up using the fender grounding point for this cable; the bolt fits the ring terminal perfectly.
5. At the end of the day, installation is even more straightforwards than it seems.

For the lazy installation method, there is enough slack in the two main wiring bundles connected to the fusebox to avoid disconnecting anything.
I un-ziptied the harnesses and moved the cruise control module which gave enough room to rotate the upper-fuse box 90 degrees side to side.
If you're dextrous and take enough photographs, it's possible to re-wire the box in that state and avoid disconnecting anything else (C101, other relays, etc.).
Not sure I'd recommend it, but it went very well for me.

Additionally, my photo-taking strategy was as follows: Take picture of 2-3 connectors showing fusebox underside and wire colors. Disconnect the depicted connectors and loosely ziptie them together. Repeat until all connectors are removed.
Reinstallation is as simple as looking at the last photo, finding the bundle for that picture, connecting those, going to the next photo, then repeating the process until everything is connected.

Thank you so much for the review!

Comments (just so everyone knows why I decided the way I did):

1. I included a blade pin wherever there was a hole just in case there are slight harness differences between cars. I know the mid-frame casting never changed so this was the safest bet. The plastic shouldn't need holes cut, but the paper likely will.
2. At least one other person running euro lights in a US car has blown the 7.5A fuse, putting a 10A in is fine. (see this discussion about Fuse #5 and this general blog post for more details on why uprating is ok)
3. Some cars had 25A for fuse 13, some had 16A; I decided to spec conservatively. I haven't heard of anyone that has blown that fuse. If it lets go throw a 25A at it. Good catch, nobody else has commented on that.
4. The ground cable is designed to go to the fender ground, not the battery - not entirely sure if that's obvious in the instructions. I've gotten lazy and drilled a hole in the side of the fuse box before, passing it through the grommet is recommended for looks but doesn't matter for functionality.

I've gotten away with loosening both upper and lower harnesses, moving the cruise actuator and flipping the box over too. You want to be careful you don't pull too much on the wires.

Good tips for the photos.

[TheYoungSir]

Galahad - glad the review was encouraging! Always happy to support people producing quality kit.

<snip>

• I included a blade pin wherever there was a hole just in case there are slight harness differences between cars. I know the mid-frame casting never changed so this was the safest bet. The plastic shouldn't need holes cut, but the paper likely will.

<snip>

I only had to cut open one slot for the installation - see the line indicated in red.
To describe it - there are four slots on the bottom left, (left-to-right) 1234. On the second row from the bottom, my mid-frame has slots for spaces 2 and 3, while the retrofit has blades for spaces 2 and 4.
Here is the image showing the interference. I used some pliers to rip away and file down the offending area for the installation.
The physical difference didn't affect the electrical operation, of course, and my headlights are correctly powered.



More images of the mid-frame and install here.

[Galahad]

God damn it. That's supposed to be on the other side of the fuse. Thanks for pointing it out, I'll include something in the rest of the relevant shipments to make it clear.

I just double checked the pcb layout history, that pin moved when I updated from kicad 5 to kicad 6 (I had to basically redo the whole layout because reasons). This will only be an issue on the -11 boards, I had changes I wanted to make anyway. Sigh.

Your fuses 13/14 were seriously melted, geez.

[Galahad]

Just to keep everyone in the loop:
I've contacted everyone with boards that have the misplaced blade issue to let them know about it and offered to exchange them when the updated ones are ready.
I also did a full installation walkthrough video on one of my cars since people had been requesting one, I'm currently still editing it. That should be available in a few days.
Here's a link to an excerpted section specific to handling cutting the additional hole: https://youtu.be/iHnT49actrw
I'll post a link to the full installation video when it's all done.

[tig]

Thank you everyone for your advice! I’ll definitely do that. My e12 is garaged and only goes out in fine weather and at the moment it’s cold and wet here in Melbourne, Australia so I definitely won’t be rushing it! I’ll order one later today. I don’t suppose there are any discount codes? I’m just being cheeky
Cheers Scott.

Sadly, we will be raising prices soon given the significant increase in component costs driven by supply-chain issues, fuel price increases, and the chaotic global situation. Just say'n.

https://www.holygraillabs.com/

[virginpilot]

I just ordered mine tonight before I actually saw this so good timing!
I’m looking forward to getting this for my e12

[Galahad]

I finished editing the full install video instructions, view them here: E28 Blade Fuse Retrofit Kit Install Walkthrough

[BRRV]

I'm waiting for mine, ordered a while ago, but before the price increase.. and will install it in a NOS fuse box assembly that I've had for decades in the spares. I'm hoping this will cure some interesting voltage issues with instruments and so on. I'm going to add another ground off the alternator at the same time, back to earth. I keep chasing gremlins!

[Galahad]

I'm waiting for mine, ordered a while ago, but before the price increase.. and will install it in a NOS fuse box assembly that I've had for decades in the spares. I'm hoping this will cure some interesting voltage issues with instruments and so on. I'm going to add another ground off the alternator at the same time, back to earth. I keep chasing gremlins!

Shipments should pick up again soon, waiting on a couple parts still.

Alternator grounding: I'd be more inclined to redo the alternator to block line, then make a line from the driver's motor mount to the battery instead of from the alternator to the battery directly. This significantly shortens the current path to the battery for both the starter and the alternator and you avoid any chance of starter current going through the alternator-specific ground.

[BRRV]

Alternator grounding: I'd be more inclined to redo the alternator to block line, then make a line from the driver's motor mount to the battery instead of from the alternator to the battery directly. This significantly shortens the current path to the battery for both the starter and the alternator and you avoid any chance of starter current going through the alternator-specific ground.

Okay, that's what I'll do. The alternator to block line is original, and likely a little cooked anyway. Thanks for the tip. And for the update

[Galahad]

Parts arrived and I confirmed the design is fixed. I should be able to get existing orders out by the end of the month - the garage is extremely hot at the moment (just like everywhere else) which is slowing me down a bit

[tig]