The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area The Electrical Bay Dash and Tailight shorts

I've recently started to blow the dash/tail light fuse in my 71 c-10 (power nothing/ bare bones) I'm thinking it's the headlight switch itself as the fuse only goes when the switch is on. I've also had a loose wire on my driver's headlight, but I've had that for 2 years and I've never blown a fuse. Now a fuse lasts a minute tops. Also I had the flashers on after the tail light fuse blew, and it surged (causing the dash lights to flicker) and then the flasher went out. So is it the headlight, light switch, or am I chasing more wires?

- C

There's something systemic going on; I would look for a bad ground to the dash panel on the lighting circuit.

I agree with the Hedge - start looking for bad grounds or worn wires that could be causing a short. The '84 S-10 Blazer that I drove when I first turned 16 (with GM's worst engine of all time, the 2.8L V6) had a transient short in the turn signals, drove me nuts until it got me rear-ended by a guy with failing brakes. After that, the POS left my possession. If it had been anything worth having around, I would have worked harder to find the problem.

Inspect the wires going from the cab , back to the tail-lights. I usually find the problem there with the dash/tail lights

Try soldering a tail lamp bulb across a blown fuse. Then wiggle the wires around under the dash and under the box etc, while watching the light for changes in brightness, more than likely someware a wire has been chafed or pinched. Found a wire pinched in the lock for the bench seat slide once.

If you still have the spare tire under the truck check the wire that runs along the frame,when I changed a tire in the 67 C-20 I had years ago the carrier bolt pinched the wires and I had the same problem as you describe

had a couple of those trucks myself when I had that prob it was the flat ribbon wire from fire wall to tail lamp plug. usually burnt on exaust pipes or rubbed on hanger.

I go for rubbing wire on frame to lights also. ON older trucks, the body mount goes bad, cab settles and rubs wire between it and frame and shorts. Had that on my 54. I usually run a trailer wiring harness back to lights and buy some of that black corrugated split harness protector to put it in. That way you can wire-tie it to frame holes and x-members and not rub wires.

Forgot to say that the fuse for dash lights used to be for tails also, so may show problem there in dash and not be the problem area at all. Don't know how long they did that or if the still do.