How do I Bench test 73 Swinger gauge cluster

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Dart swinger 73

Dart swinger 73

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HI it's been awhile. I'm still working on my Dart. I getting my a$$ kicked with the electrical. Does anyone out there know how to bench test my dash gauge cluster. It was working for awhile then it stopped. I just need the lights. I have after market gauges in the consol. I did rewire the complete car. I got the Ron Francis Bear Bones kit. This harness has 16 wires. Marrying the stock 7 wires to witch of the 16 RF wires. I have 9 wires coming out of the dash cluster. The blue*white Is power. Tried power to it and grounding the back side of the cluster. nothing happened. Once I get dash lights working. I can drive her.. after I put the front seat in.

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I really shouldn't even try where theres a aftermarket harness but anyway...
First off, majority of it wont work without chassis ground. That blue with white is hot at switch on to power the limiter which in turn powers the thermal gauges ( you don't seem to be concerned with ). In this case the sender wires, grey, solid dk. blue, and purple/violet, not concerned with.
So lights... the illumination bulbs get their power from a orange wire that comes from the headlight switch and park lamp circuit. If illumination is all you desire, 12 volts to the one orange wire connection and a chassis ground should do it.
For the other lights, High beam indicator gets its power from the headlight switch also.
Each turn indicator has a separate wire. Brake indicator requires 2 wires. One is hot at switch on ( I forget where from in 73. That blue with white was the source in some models ). Other wire supplies a ground path through either of 2 remote switches. One switch on the park brake mechanism, another on the proportion valve.
This may or may not help but should explain why there are so many wires attached.
 
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I would start at the cluster and work my way back. So find the pin on the back of the cluster that feeds the lights (there are only 3 illumination lights on the cluster) , it should be the fourth pin from the gap starting at the bottom. Ground your dash and put 12V on that pin and see if you have light. If you do then there is nothing wrong with your cluster (as far as lighting up goes). The next step would be to check all the connections going through your switch. I don't have the steps for that but it should be fairly easy with a voltmeter.
 
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