Dash lights as black as Keith Richard's lungs

[schwaggen]

Starting a new thread - My other one had run it's course:

Fire under dash!

I searched every thread in relation to dash lights I could find- not sure if it helped or not. The main difference I see between what I've read, and my situation, is that everything else (lights, hi/lo beams, signals) all work exactly as they should.

So where I am: Installed NEW light switch from our host.

Installed JWest headlight relay- fairly straightforward (the hardest part was running the wires through the back of the fusebox, and getting to the stupid battery terminals.)
Put everything back together, connected battery.
Started car.
Quickly realized why the "key warning plug" had been unhooked.
Unhooked annoying buzzer.

The moment of truth: Pulled the light switch.
First: Whoever said the headlights were brighter with the relay- Absolutely they are. A lot.
Second: Dash lights don't work AT ALL. The green turn signal indicators DO work, as well as the blue hi-beam indicator, even the annoying "shift" orange arrow. But the basic illumination non-existent. I don't mean dim. I mean like black-out darkness.

I checked the connections- everything SEEMS to be exactly as per the diagrams. It's a brand new switch- could it be a bad rheostat? I plan on going back through the connections tonight- But I checked it pretty thoroughly before I put it in, and givene the fact that it all works otherwise, I'm not sure this is the issue.

Ever hear of a new switch being bad?

Question for the experts- can I test the lights on the hot terminal of a 12V cordless drill battery? (trick I learned working on my boat) I'm thinking if I touched the blue/black dash light (with inline 3amp fuse) to the battery, the lights SHOULD come on?

Everything seems to work OK other than that. Suggestions? I'm really tired of tracing wire under the dash.

Another question: I found a wire running from the hot battery terminal (red/white) that has an inline fuse holder in it (with NO FUSE in it) that seems to run to the smugglers box- evap. motor? My AC doesn't work anyway, so, maybe?

[patz]

If you have a wiring diagram and a volt meter hook it to the rheostat terminal and test if by turning the knob left and right.

I assume you checked the fuse box for the dash lights.