harness fire...

so i got the steering column fully disassembled and installed the new switch. tahnks a ton for the insight guys, i hit the pin with a punch and it shot right out. i went to run some tests and it started doing the same thing the old switch did. would start but looses power when the key springs back to the run position??? i am baffled by this.

the ballast resistor shows no power when the key is turned on. but if i jump the ignition harness (dash side where the ignition switch plugs in), i can start it and it runs fine, power on all ballast posts... i have a short somewhere else apparently? the brown ignition 2 wire has no continuity on run, but the ignition 1 and accessory blue and black wires do. if i simply "jump" power from the red hot wire to the ignition 2 wire next to it, then temporarily jump power to the yellow starter wire and then remove it, the car will start and stay running...

i noticed that just after a minute of running the stock electronic ignition box on the driver fender wall was noticeably warm... i'm wondering if there is an issue with the ignition system to blame. the car has a really old mallory ignition coil and it feels like an old battery low on acid. when i took it of to wire the new harness i noticed i could hear fluid moving inside it when i rotated it on its side. sounded like it was half empty. is this normal or a trouble sign? i dont know these aftermarket ignition coil systems...

has anyone ever heard of a coil frying the ignition system??? i dont know where to go at this point. the wires from the ignition switch to the bulkhead are good. the wires in the engine bay are in a new harness... somehow it fried the alternator too, so something is screwy in there. i am quite confident that the dash side of the wiring is ok as it is 99% stock at this point. 100% referring to ignition(factory ignition switch in factory harness going into bulkhead).

does anyone have ANY insight or ideas? i am at a brick wall here and not sure where to turn....

thnx.