91' light short

i have the most subborn problem that refuses to remain fixed for any good amount of time. and is apparently a fairly comon problem, but i have tried everything in those threads fuses #1 (back up lights/turn signals) and fuse #8 (instrument lights/tail lights/liscense lights) keep blowing fuses the second i turn them on, and now they refuse to work at all. i have: replaced turn signal relay (the clicker), dimmer switch (said it was a common cause) all the bulbs/ checked all the lines. it is shorting out somewhere but i cannot seem to find out where, the only thing that could be a cause that i have not tried yet is the multi function switch, but you have to pull the steering column out to do so. i have checked all the wiring diagrams in the haynes manual for the 87-91 civic and can still never find the cause, where should i check for wire shorts? this is really getting frustrating and i really need turn signals/tail lights, dash lights i can live without, but it is not legal on the road. this did not happen until hitting a pot hole and the fuse blew instantly leading me to believe something shorted out, but i cannot figure out where. any help would be greatly appreciated.

all you have to do to get the switch out of the column is pull the steering wheel off, there are screws and maybe a cover plate right behind it, and once that is all gone, you have access to the two or three screws that hold the multi switch on.