Anchor windlass circuit breaker sizing

There has been a lot of discussion about what size breaker, but shouldn't it really be about what size wire?

My understanding is that you size the wire to suit the load, then pick the breaker to protect the wire. The breaker is not to protect the motor, but rather to protect the wire.

C.O.

 

The breaker size is determined by the load (motor and motor current draw) which in turn combined with length of the run determines the conductor size. If one oversizes the conductor there is less chance of both the conductor and motor overheating. It's a case of 6 of one or half a dozen of another. Generally one selects the breaker to suit and protect the load, which in this case is the motor the most expensive of the circuits components.