OK, it’s been 2 weeks since the thread from the guy who hooked up the battery wires backwards, so I would appreciate some direction on a new kind of electrical buffoonery of my own (I did this in the same day as the mixed up battery cables and couldn't bare to torture you guys with two in one day, so I've been mulling this over, and I'm not so PO'd now).

While checking the alternator output, I was hooking up my tester with the car running (the buffoonery part of the post) and, you guessed it, connected the positive alternator post to the alternator chassis with the meter lead. With a fantastic spark, the engine and every electrical system in the car (except the horn) is dead. Hoping that I just fried the alternator and/or regulator, I had those checked. The battery and alternator were fine, but AutoZone didn’t have the correct connector to test the regulator (which I’ll replace anyway for $20). "Hope" is a poor substitute for knowledgeable diagnostics.

I am assuming a blew a fusible link or two. Other suggestions are welcome.

My Questions:
1) Because the horn works, I am going to assume that the orange fusible link at the horn relay is OK, Correct?
2) The first one I would check is the one at the #3 terminal at the regulator (can’t remember the color, diagram doesn’t say, not with the car)
3) From there, I’m not so sure. Would I check the brown one at the Solenoid next (?), then the orange one (on the same wire) at the firewall connector?
4) I took a peek at the fuse box and all of the fuses I could easily see looked fine, including the brake lights (which don’t work). I pulled and checked continuity on the brake light fuse (OK) but didn’t pull them all, so for now I’ll assume that my problem is in the engine bay, not interior.

After that, I’m (even more) lost.

Stupid wiring diagram question. When connectors are shown on a wiring diagram, are they mirror images? I understand AC power systems well, having rewired a house, but I guess I have been fortunate that I haven’t had to do much DC work, so I’m not as comfortable.

Any special tips/tools on replacing fusible links? Solder them? Crimp them?

Thanks,
Kevin