UGH, need help with electrical issue

[MichellePape]

Hey all. I have an 88 Chevy Suburban 5.7 TBI. I went to start it Saturday night, it turned over three times, then the (pink) 16G fusible link that leads off the junction box into the wiring harness burned up. We replaced both the battery and the starter, made sure all the grounds were good and connected securely, then replaced the fusible link. Attempted to reconnect the battery and the link fried again as soon as the negative battery cable touched the terminal. We did find a thick red wire in the wiring harness where the insulation was all rubbed away and repaired that, but while waiting for the new fusible link to arrive at the parts store, I thought I'd check here to see if anyone has any thoughts on what else to check. A few more details, I have no lights (interior or dash) power windows and locks are inop however horn and cigarette lighter are working. Thanks in advance.

[motornut]

hi may wana check for dead shorts before with a meter
remove both the batt posts and put the meter on ohms
meter between the pos cable and the body
with everything off in the truck,pull fuses till no reading

this may help you find it

if it was a small power drain
leave the batt + on and take the - off
put a test light between the batt and the - cable end
remove fuses till light goes out

[MichellePape]

Thanks John, we're gonna try tomorrow and see what we can come up with. Just so I'm sure I got it right, when using the Ohm meter, we should have the battery disconnected and hold the Ohm meter between the positive cable and the body of the truck as we're pulling fuses until the Ohms reach zero, right. I'm unable to so much as touch the negative cable to the negative post with sparks flying, so I hope I can find the short.
Sorry it took so long to get back to you. I've been unemployed since August '10 and of course have finally had interviews scheduled all this week and my Burb decides to die :-( Thanks again.

[motornut]

if sparks are flying
disconnect battery and you wana take the harness off @ the firewall
start there,meter each to the body(yours will have more)
some will show some movement but i'd say your looking for a dead short
3/8ths bolt there
check the batt cables arn't burnt on the manifold or the big starter wire isnt twisted and touching

[MichellePape]

AH! Gotcha!! Thank you so much John, the pics are a great help! I did check the battery cables and the wiring for the starter at the exhaust. There are no wires even close to touching the exhaust anywhere, that I can see. Will let ya know what I found. Thanks again!