Instrument Cluster Removal

RedFish said
No you didn't trace it back to a flasher. Explanation starting from a little deeper into wiring... All wires are hot wires. There's a positive side and negative side to a current path/circle. So the positive side of your battery and your amp gauge have a red wire. The negative side of you battery and your amp gauge have a black wire. The black wire on the amp gauge is everything on the negative side of the gauge and current path but it is just as hot as the red wire.

So if that wire is negative does it not still attach to ground at some point? Also in the attached pic I have the volt controller and condensor or what appears to be a condensor plugged back into the panel the way I found it. Someone had spliced in a red wire about 2' long with a round pin connector on the end. it's got the male end connected but no wire coming out of it. I'm guess that pulled out. I haven't spent a lot of time trying to find the wire that may have been crimped into it.
Would it be plausible to assume that this red wire was connected to complete the circuit after the strip on the board broke or fried? If so would you recommend using that setup since it's already created or one like it? I've already ordered a direct replacement but electronic controller so if this is a decent compromise I might want to go that route???
cluster and volt controller.jpg

RedFish said
This black wire goes to a weld splice hidden under tape. The branches go to headlight switch, fuse box, ignition switch, etc...
Another black wire ( hot at switch on ) leaves the ignition switch to another weld splice. These branches go to a flasher module, your inst' panel, etc...
I hope you can now read your schematic again with more understanding. If not, The 12 volts to your inst' voltage regulator came from the ign' switch on a black wire.
We all agree that these black wires should have been pink, or red with a tracer, or black with a tracer, and that is found in later models. That isn't how it was done early on. The truth is, Those who are trained in electrical don't need different wire colors at all. The different wire colors are only to dumb it down for the novice ( we all ). Mfgr's continued to dumb it down more and more over the years.