This ground switching can be very confusing, IT JUST AIN'T NORMAL!!!

No ground switching here - we're not dealing with the headlights.

Turns out that didn't work. The ground was the ground and I've got two hots but when I switch the hots they don't work

Take a look at this diagram:

http://www.acksfaq.com/diagram_color_86-88_sam_no-hitachi.htm

I shows the lamp wiring complete with the color codes indicated.

I hope that this helps!

That's like a feed back problem on a house, the neutral or ground wire
can show voltage, even bite you but if you ground it, it will show dead

This stuff can be a pain with the false readings

Wild

US code requires the neutral to be grounded at the building entrance, and the ground, well that should be grounded, shouldn't it?

For vehicle electrical "diagnostics", start by making sure you have a known good reference - use chassis ground or battery negative and you can't go wrong - the other thing is to have an idea as to what voltage you should be looking for at a particular location, and that is where most folks seem to get things screwed.

In this case I would use chassis ground as reference, and start with the tail lights only on, and probe the wiring at the socket - there should be +12V on only one of the three wires - anything else indicates a miswire or an open ground.

You are correct, but when there is a problem, a feed back can be the result
and a white or neutral wire can show voltage if the hot side is switched on

In this case I would use chassis ground as reference, and start with the tail lights only on, and probe the wiring at the socket - there should be +12V on only one of the three wires - anything else indicates a miswire or an open ground.

You are correct, but when there is a problem, a feed back can be the result
and a white or neutral wire can show voltage if the hot side is switched on

Both saying same thing, which is what I was going to say.

Working to solve others problem before 8am, means you have not been using your rigs enough to break them (requiring your time and thoughts).  I at least waited until almost 9am to speak up (on this subject).

Working to solve others problem before 8am, means you have not been using your rigs enough to break them (requiring your time and thoughts).  I at least waited until almost 9am to speak up (on this subject).

I'm about 3500 miles from home - so web wheeling is the best I can do right now - I go home tomorrow, roughly fourteen hours travel from the time I hit the road, starting with a two hour drive to the airport - it's going to be a looooooooong day.

Don't forget some of the lights use the body for the ground.  I have had turn signals stop working due to the front ground being dirty.

A bad or open ground on the tail light cluster will usually manifest itself as the tail lights coming on and then going out when the brakes are depressed, along with flashing "out of sync" with the turn signals

You get current flowing from the tail light circuit, through the tail light filiament, and instead of going directly to ground, through the rear turn signal filaments through the front turn signal filiaments to the front ground - of course - if you're not using the factory tail light clusters and factory wiring, these symptoms may change.