I took a great photo of the ammeter gauge in the panel after I took the gauge panel out of the dash. I do not know how to put photos on an outside host yet, so if you are interested in seeing the damage PM me.
I am going to re-examine the layout this morning and try and see if I can determine a cause and effect. As the gauge only passes current, I really can't believe it failed on it's own. I NEVER saw the gauge indicate charging when the truck was running but it dropped down each time I pulled the lights on. Otherwise it stayed right in the middle.
It is very clear to me that the four terminal (two each side of gauge) gauge was grounded on the DISCHARGE side as the badly discolored case and terminal are limited to that side. It is really torched and you can see the other terminl side is still new in appearance.
If that run of black wire was shorted anywhere back towards the footstomp starter, would the damage be so evident right at the gauge or is that damage just indicative of the biggest metal to metal terminal next in the run?
The wire was REALLY cooked at the footstomp and just fell apart there but I have no real discloration of the switch. I have to think that somehow I got grounded in that wire run to the discharge side of the gauge. But I wonder how that terminal reacts if the black wire was grounded, say, half way under the dash or back towards the stomp?? The path of current stuff always makes me scratch my head. Ralph
Last edited by rasman57; 10/03/2008 5:14 PM.
