So I posted a previous thread on here and got great feedback, so I was able to eliminate certain suspicions and read some other threads, but still have not figured out what's going on.

Here is what's going on so far: Battery light is coming on and off. When fully charged batt is left in the vehicle it is being drained quickly and then the vehicle won't start unless i push start it. I used a tester lamp by disconnecting the ground wire from my batt and connecting the tester between the post and the wire. The light came on. I then went through my fuse panel pulling each fuse one-at-a-time, but the light stayed on. My old man busted out a multi-meter. It read 12.5v from the batt to solenoid(starter relay?) on both posts. Shouldn't there only show a power reading on one post of the solenoid(relay?). Does this mean my ignition or starter may be drawing power? Would the ignition draw power without the key in it? Can i test the starter and starter solenoid without having to lift my truck? HOw do i test the ignition for a short?

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88 Ranger, fuel injected V6, Manual, dual fuel tank, Red, but I found a bill of sale in the glovebox from 2007 that stated at the time of sale the truck was silver and automatic trans. It has 190k on the odometer. I used to own an 88 red ranger when I was 19. It was only a 4 banger and had just one fuel tank. I pretty much bought it because it was a great deal and for nostalgia.