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Alright, now im starting to get pissed...

go ahead and replace your tumbler since you know its bad, but the more I think about it th more I think the problem has to be the solenoid or fuse box since you don't have lights.
 
fuse box is ok as far as i know and i took out the solenoid and tested it with a multimeter so the only thing that is left(assuming the fuse box is ok) is the tumbler and the ignition switch at the bottom of the steering colunm... would the ignition switch at the bottom of the steering column kill ALL power?
 
The only things I can think of that would kill all power are the solenoid, fuse box, and battery, or possibly your main ground. I assume you've checked the main neg battery cable and the straps from the starter and the fuse box. Check power at the fuse to your headlight switch and if it has power turn the solenoid wheel. Check the connections at the starter very carefully all your power goes through there and even the slightest arcing can cause problems. This area is especially prone to road debris and weather deteriation. your headlights don't need the starter switch or the tumbler to operate.
 
I'm not sure if you know exactly what happened but ill explain it again...

I started my motor with a battery charger on it set on start mode and it ran for about 5 seconds then i heard a pop, saw smoke, and shut it off... the thing that makes me think its the ign is it didn't die.... i shut it off but after it was off i had abolutly no power. I found out that my positive bat cable/starter cable had melted to the header and burnt almost all the way throught the cable. I fixed the cable and have no power. It is a jimmy rigged cable but i checked it with a multimeter and its got plenty of ohms but could it be there isn't enough voltage getting through it? I am not clear on what would do this.
 
I didn't see the original thread but after hearing that i can almost guarantee it's your solenoid. Drop the starter, on the solenoid remove the nuts on the connection studs and the two screws holding it down. The cap will come off and there is a large spring. Underneath the spring there is a tannish color wheel, you should see a burned spot on it. Rotate the wheel about a quarter turn, re-attach the cap and spring. Before you re-install check the connectors on all the wires very closely for any exposed wire and replace if necessary. After re-installation you should have power. If it pops again after you turn the key you have a short. If you have nothing then it is probably a bad ground.
 
Also are you sure the battery is good? If its been dead for awhile or if the cells went dry alot of times it will not carry enough power through even with a charger or jumper cables.
 
First thing that comes to mind is a dead battery. The battery cable shorted out the battery and probably damaged some of the plates inside. You may have 12v with no load but if you put a load on it it drops. Measure the voltage while you try to start it.
So why did you need to jump start your truck again?
 
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111-1176 and 1177

Should be able to figure out where and how power comes in off of those two pages. Other pages also have the fuse panel shown, so if those two don't hold the answer, look through the other pages.
 
How much impedance do you have on the positive battery cable?? You said it has plenty of Ohms, but you never said how many...
 
dirtwarrior17 said:
i checked it with a multimeter and its got plenty of ohms but could it be there isn't enough voltage getting through it? I am not clear on what would do this.
Click to expand...

What do you mean it has plenty of Ohms. the wire should not have very much resistance. If it has a lot of resistance ("plenty of Ohms"), then that may cause a big voltage drop over the length of the wire..
 
was the smoke in the engine compartment or in the cab? I have to admit you have me somewhat stumped and I'm thinking wiring again. There is a fusible link along the firewall on a wire leading from the starter to the ignition switch. The smoke could have been the insulation burning. When mine went I found the wire hanging loose but if it didn't burn all the way through the wire will look somewhat pregnant or burnt at the problem area. Might be a good idea to check if you have power at both ends of all the wires leading from the starter.
 
the smoke, im guessing was from the pausitive battery cable when the header burnt through the insulation and i think the pop and the smoke was that cable arcing on the header.

I don't know what you mean by how many ohms did it have... when i say plenty of ohms i mean if i hold the two wires down for a second it maxes out the multimeter but every wire or fuse that i've tested does the same thing. I think cubuffsfan was right about the solenoid being burnt... I took it out and checked it for resistence and it was good but i never took the cap off.

I still need to check the ignition switch also. It just stopped raining too.
 
OK, briefly some basic electrical theory: A good wire will have next to no resistance (zero ohms, not plenty of them). If your fusible link is blown the ohm meter will read something way over 1 ohm, like 1 million or so (reading through your skin). This is most likely the problem. Shorting out the battery cable will cause the alternator to go to full charge mode (it senses a huge draw), which WILL exceed the amperage capacity of the fusible link. With the fusible link blown, you will not have power anywhere, but at the battery and starter.
 
Ok let me get this straight... If i took a clean peice of metal, set the multimeter to 1000 ohms, then touched both of the wires to it, the needle shouldn't max out? Maybe the multimeter is busted or something cause it did this on every wire i tested in my engine compart ment and i don't think that it blew up all my wires. I have a 10 ft section of automotive wire that i just got, and i tested it for ohms and it showed the needle as far as it could go... :confused:
 
I have an 89 blazer and there are no wires on my key cylinder. I am not aware of any GM vehicle having any wires attached to the key cylinder itself unless maybe some of the late model vehicles that use the key with a chip have something like that. AFAIK all the early style GM vehicles such as 1991 and earlier blazers and burbs all used the same style key cylinder and ignition switch. :dunno:
 
I couldn't tell ya if gm did but the one on my work bench did... don't know if its gm or not. I'll find out in a couple hours when my mom gets the puller and lock plate remover from autozone.
 
Rsistance is measured in ohms. A good, clean piece of metal will read very close to 0 ohms. This is also what a good wire reads. Electricians call this "continuity."

If you are reading much over 1 ohm, you've got a problem with the circuit.

I can claim over 12 years as an aircraft electrician to justify this information. Also, educated in the trade by the good ole USAF...

My bet is the fusible link...
 
screw the multimeter... tommorrow im going to buy all brand new fusible links. they're cheap, i don't care... sick of this crap. I need a truck to get a job and a job to live when i get kicked out in 2 months on my 18th birthday(which is bs but i got no choice) and im still trying to figure out what the hell i burnt up.

I think the multimeter is busted too because it didn't work at all so my bro checked it out and saw the fuse was blown... he put a paperclip in there. I don't think they work right when you do that.
 
The best way to check a multimeter is to set it to read resistance, and touch the leads together...it should read -0-. The most common way to ruin, or blow a fuse on a good multimeter, is to attempt to read resistance on a circuit that has a voltage applied to it. The better multimeters will have a fuse to protect the ohm meter.
 
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