Author Topic: Strange Issue  (Read 4034 times)

Offline slammed79

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Strange Issue
« on: June 11, 2012, 11:07:04 AM »
On Friday morning I went to start up my 74, turned the key, heard something break. I later discovered this to be the gear that moves the ignition rod, so I went in search of the part and came up with a stick shift, non tilt column to swap in. The piece only set me back $5 from a guy on a local forum. I swapped the turn signal switch, key tumbler and put a new starter switch in then slid the new column in.

When I hit the key, everything moved nicely, like it should, but I have no power. Even the headlights don't come on. My fuses look okay, but the silkscreen on the fuse box is mostly gone and I'm not sure what's what.

So two things, 1, I assume that my constant hot wire isn't doing its job, and I kinda suck at reading the diagrams, does the constant hot run through the fuse box? And 2, what position on a glass fuse box is that circuit?

Any help is greatly appreciated.
74 C10 Long bed 350/SM465 Lowered on 20's

Praise the lowered

Offline bd

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Re: Strange Issue
« Reply #1 on: June 11, 2012, 12:17:41 PM »
Is the battery hooked up...?   :D

The red battery wire to the ignition switch does not run through the fuse box.  It runs from the starter, to the firewall junction block, through a fusible link to the bulkhead connector, to the ignition switch.  However, there's a splice between the bulkhead connector and the ignition switch that splits off and 'feeds' the fuse box.  If you don't have any power on the red wires at the ignition switch, check your fusible link and connections at the firewall junction block and the battery cable connection at the starter.  If you have any power at all at the fuse box, the red power wire leading into the cab from the starter is intact.

If you do have power on the ignition switch red wires, check the connections to the ignition switch.
Rich
It's difficult to know just how much you don't know until you know it.
In other words... if people learn by making mistakes, by now I should know just about everything!!!
87 R10 Silverado Fleetside 355 MPFI 700R4 3.42 Locker (aka Rusty, aka Mater)

Offline slammed79

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Re: Strange Issue
« Reply #2 on: June 11, 2012, 12:55:38 PM »
Thanks Rich! I just gotta wait for my buddy to get off work and get over to my tool box to grab my test light. I keep a small amount of hand tools in the truck, but no electrical tools.

Visually everything seems cool, just gotta go beyond visual now.
74 C10 Long bed 350/SM465 Lowered on 20's

Praise the lowered

Offline slammed79

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Re: Strange Issue
« Reply #3 on: June 12, 2012, 03:34:04 PM »
Bad fusable link was the culprit.
74 C10 Long bed 350/SM465 Lowered on 20's

Praise the lowered

Offline bd

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Re: Strange Issue
« Reply #4 on: June 12, 2012, 05:11:41 PM »
Happy you got it.
Rich
It's difficult to know just how much you don't know until you know it.
In other words... if people learn by making mistakes, by now I should know just about everything!!!
87 R10 Silverado Fleetside 355 MPFI 700R4 3.42 Locker (aka Rusty, aka Mater)

Offline bake74

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Re: Strange Issue
« Reply #5 on: June 13, 2012, 07:19:17 AM »
     Just saw this post, got a curiosity question just for myself.  Did you disconnect the battery before swapping steering column's ?  Just wondering how the fuse-able link shorted.
#1: The easiest and most obvious solution to any problem is 99% of the time correct.
#2: There is no such thing as impossible, it just takes longer.
  74 k10, 77k10    Tom

Offline slammed79

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Re: Strange Issue
« Reply #6 on: June 13, 2012, 10:17:58 AM »
I found a couple of my ground wires came apart during the swap, I'd imagine that caused the fusable link to burn out when I put power back to the system. I found those on Sunday before I spotted the fusable link.
74 C10 Long bed 350/SM465 Lowered on 20's

Praise the lowered