Im a real dummy , No Electric , WHY?

[davrober]

Ok Im a dummy. I changed out the alternator . I recharged the battery and was reinstalling it when I put the pos on the neg terminal and when I touched the neg to the pos I got a spark. Needless to say I switched it. Meter says battery is fully charged but the truck is dead electrically. I checked the fusible link on the pos cable and it was ok. No electric at all. My other question is I disconnected the batt and I also disconnected the post connection where the alternator is attached on the firewall . I wondering if I hooked it up right. Heres my question . 1. Any ideas and 2. at the post there are 2 terminals , does the alternator cable go on the upper or lower post . It seems to want to go on the lower but if thats the neg it explain no juice at all.
Hope somebody has a 99 expi with this same post terminal I have . Thanks for any help for the village idiot.

 

[ELVATO]

I'd start checking some fuses and maybe some relays, for now, till someone with a little more knowledge can better help you out.

I'm not real sure about this, but I don't think an alternator has any negative output. The car gets it negative side by being connected to ground.

 

[GRIP]

look on the batt. there should be a + stamp on it for the pos. side when you hook up the batt. you always get a spark when you connect the last term. because there r aways things pulling juice from the batt. so if you hook it up right you will still get a spark. oh and if the terminal r on the same side they r both the same on the batt.

 

[Tom Nugler]

Pulled up the diagram for mine. It shows two fuse links in the positive cable in line to the starter relay. All the main positive connections terminate at the starter solenoid relay. Any component that is normally hot all the time is feed via the starter relay connections through the battery junction box.
Break out the voltmeter and check for positive voltage at the fuses there. Try the horn. That should work all the time.
Hooking up the alternator positive to the negative shouldn’t cause loss of power to the rest of the car. The fully charged battery proves that assumption. Definitely check the connections at the starter relay. The cables on the battery are so short it seems to be pretty difficult to put them on the wrong posts.

Just guessing,
Tom.