turn signal/fuse panel gremlin

[drumyn61]

I have a good ground from the cab to the frame and the frame to the engine block.

Everything works great OTHER than the turn signals.

I unbolted the fuse panel from the firewall and put a test light on the pink going into the flasher, it has 12volts consistently. I put the test light on the yellow wire and it flashes consistently at a fast tempo, ALWAYS.

At the turn signal switch I have the same flashing from the yellow at the switch and no other power on any other terminals except the white one when I press the brakes.

[jtrichard]

sounds like its time for a new switch... OR yours is a 61? (guessing by your name tag) is the switch linkage moving the switch (again assuming its 61) switch on lower column ?

[drumyn61]

Originally Posted by jtrichard

sounds like its time for a new switch... OR yours is a 61? (guessing by your name tag) is the switch linkage moving the switch (again assuming its 61) switch on lower column ?

It's actually a 62.

I disconnected it from the switch and put a test light to it and nothing changes. It's something happening before the switch, I think.

[jtrichard]

try a different flasher.... put a jumper wire in place of the flasher and see what voltage is at switch then see if you can get the turn lights to come on as you activate the switch from L to R (they just WONT flash)

[par4tom]

If you have steady voltage prior to the flasher and alternate voltage after the flasher, then you can eliminate that part of the problem.

The problem lies someplace post flasher.

The next step is to look at the switch. If you have the same type of switch in your 62 that I had in my 61, you may need to change that switch for a new one. Be patient if you change the switch, it will take a bit of time to get the cable in the proper location on the switch itself.

Also, with the new switch, make sure that it slides up and down easily without getting hung up on itself. I had bought a new one and honestly, the quality was not great. I ended up taking the thing apart and filing down a couple of the contact points.

With the new switch in, check to see that the yellow wire (that is the wire that you said was flashing) is still flashing. If it is, then move on down the chain to the wires between the switch and the tail lights.

For the sake of brevity, I am going to assume that you have continuity from the switch to the back of the truck on both tail lights.

Be sure and ground the tailight buckets to the bed and then ground the bed to the frame. I ran wires from the bucket to the frame of the bed, and then ran a ground from the bed to the frame.

After doing all of that, I thought for sure my tail lights and flashers would work perfectly as the wiring was all perfect. Haha...they didn't.

I discovered that the bulb in the socket, has to sit PERFECTLY in the socket and on the two contact points in the socket. After I found this problem, I jiggled the bulb until it started flashing the way it was supposed to.

In hindsight, I realize the complexity of trying to fix the tail lights lies in the simplicity of the design.

Bottom line - check your wiring from the switch to the tail light harness and make sure it is correct. Then, check your ground from both tail light buckets to the bed and then to the frame. Finally, make sure the bulbs are positioned in the sockets correctly.

Tom

[60ShortStepGMC]

I had weak and intermittent function of the front turn signals while all the under-dash wiring/signal was good - seems similar to your issue. Turns out the fix for me was to ensure the bulb sockets were not corroded and contacted bare metal. 'Course, I've got a 60, your mileage may vary.

[drumyn61]

I took a break and got my mind a little clear and I think it may be the ground for the bed to the chassis. I don't know if it's a good or bad idea but I sprayed a bit of wd-40 in the turn switch.

Tomorrow I'm going to ground the bed and I'll keep you posted.

[Texas1963]

Originally Posted by drumyn61

I took a break and got my mind a little clear and I think it may be the ground for the bed to the chassis. I don't know if it's a good or bad idea but I sprayed a bit of wd-40 in the turn switch.

Tomorrow I'm going to ground the bed and I'll keep you posted.

My bed was not properly grounded. Made a ground wire and my signal problems were solved.

[drumyn61]

YEP!

It was the ground for the bed to chassis.

Turn signals work great.