[TenTec] Answer to "which is faster"...fuse or breaker...

[john.brewer at us.schneider-electric.com]

Due to some creative wiring while redoing the shack, I tested (inadvertantly) the "which is
faster, fuse or breaker" question....twice.

This particular bench has a Astron 20A supply fed into a TenTec breaker (I forget the number,
but the one spec'd for an Omni VI).  On the downside of the breaker is a small terminal strip
branch, for small accessories (keyers,  LED lighting, etc.) which is fused at 3A.

I inadvertantly shorted the 3A strip (twice!) and the breaker opened twice, protecting the gear
AND the 3 amp fuse installed in the low-current 12V branch.

Those magnetic breakers are fast and reliable. They open  up fast enough to protect a 3A  3AG
fuse from the available current of a crowbarred 20A supply.

John