Basically this is whats going on. Previous owner tired to be an electrician and failed. So there are things direct wired to the fuse block, other things wired to the head lights. and some things that just plain dont work. Also i have found that the entire left side of the fuse block is dead. Any help would be great.

 

year: 1990 engine 302

 

Yikes... remove anything that is not part of the OEM electrical system to begin with. Hard-wiring to the fuse block has most likely overloaded the existing circuits. This is where the wiring diagrams in a Haynes manual will serve you well. You can cross-reference the wiring that is supposed to be there against any additional that has been installed. If there is ANY additional load on the headlamp circuit itself, remove it immediately! The circuit protection for the headlamps is designed to handle the load of the headlamps ONLY and it is not a conventional fuse like the other circuits in the truck.

As to the fuse block being partially "dead", make certain all of the fuses that are in the block are good once you have gotten rid of the extraneous wiring the PO added. If they are good and you still have no power to portions of the block, you may have to troubleshoot the block itself by removing the fuses and checking voltage at the "line" side of the fuses.

Basically, with the key on (engine need not be running) and the fuse(s) that are questionable removed and the black lead of the meter attached to a good negative source (truck frame or known negative terminal), probe each terminal of the empty fuse block. One (1) terminal in EVERY fuse receptacle should show battery voltage. If not, the power feed TO that fuse (or fuses) has been damaged.

 

I have pulled the "extra" wiring,have replaced every fuse good or bad. Still nothing on the left side of the fuse block is dead. I know that there is no voltage to the "dead" side, I have jumped a wire from the good side to the dead side and my dash lights work. How hard would it be to drop the block down and wire trace to see if i have blown fused links? Other than that I'm not sure how else to get power to the essentials, i.e. Fuel pump, tail lights, turn signals, dash lights and as you know basically every thing else.

 

OK, after messing with it a little more. i have found that it is fuse 4,5 and 10 that are dead. now with NUMBER 4 it is hot on both sides. And the tan/wht wire that comes from the lights switch is shorting out and smoking. also on number 4 i had to use a 30amp fuse to keep it from popping. (i pulled the fuse to avoid fire). any Suggestions?

 

If you have a fuse receptacle that is "hot" on both sides, that circuit is back-feeding from some other source. You will need to trace the wire that is supposed to feed from the fuse to the device on that circuit. Somewhere along the line, you are getting battery voltage back through the wrong side of the circuit. This will pop that fuse every time. If you have to, drop the fuse block to inspect the wire feeding those fuses. Disconnect the battery first.

 

It must be a loose wire somewhere. As i had all of the fuses working and all lights and what not operating correctly. then i was driving and pop it went out again. i even left the truck idle for 10-15mins before driving it and it was working fine. after it popped i checked the tan/white wire on the light switch and it was hot and smoking. I have already replaced the switch so unless i have two faulty switches thats been tested. Is there any "usual" places that would cause this?

 

If you have the haynes manual handy it is on section 12 page 47 bottom right hand corner is the lights switch. it is the tan\wht wire. I traced it along the line and im not sure what to look for honestly. I have the red cover book.

 

I still dont have this figured out. If any one can help i will answer all questions i can

 

I have tried everything i can think of to resolve this problem. But to no avail, I am still stumped. If ANYONE can give me some kind of help it would be much appreciated.