Replacing pigtails didn't fix it
I couldn't acquire a harness near me so I just made my own for the headlight switch, dimmer, and the connector running to the dome light (at least that's where I think it runs... [it's the orange and white connector directly to the left of the dimmer.]) It's really frustrating, but to be expected with an old vehicle. Any other suggestions? I've been slowly going through all the junky wires and connections and replacing them, still no fix. I also ran an additional ground strap to the back of the cluster, again no luck... Any other suggestions? What else should I look for? Any suggestions? Maybe a short in the rear by the tail lights? Also headlights started flickering off and on yesterday... (my understanding is that runs directly off the battery) so maybe the main harness from the battery is just boned?
Oh I also forgot to mention in the original post that when I draw power from the headlight switch (pull it out) the battery gauge drops and clicks (obviously something is causing a large amp drop). Maybe an important piece of info for someone to recognize...
I would like to avoid having to rewire the whole truck, but I'm starting to think that at this point it might just be easier. Another problem with re-wiring the truck for me is that I wanted to build a rusty rod (keep it junky and rusty looking, but decently reliable and slam it to the ground), not a restoration. If I start with the wiring I will feel inclined to start putting more and more money into it. Not really what I want to do. So any help would be greatly appreciated.
:Side:
I could be super ghetto about it and run switches for certain functions, but the amp drop thing makes me leery of doing so [don't want an "open" wire floating around underneath and catch me on fire...]
Thanks again fellas!