Thanks for the heads up Jean-Luc
Didn't want to start a new thread and do the 'OMG another turn signal noob' routine. Suspect I'll have plenty of opportunity to embarass myself later.. there's a good chance I'll be here a while.
Found a pic on the site (turnsig.jpg) that looks more accurate. fuse -> switch -> flasher -> lights. The wire codes are a bit hazy but I should be able to figure it out and test the switch from the fuse/flasher panels without having to disassemble the column. Lots of good info regarding grounding and such too.
Thanks to whoever linked the jpg. I saved it couldn't find it again on the site. A new sticky maybe? It helped a lot. Chances are it's the flasher.. but this is way more fun.
ddd