[sniksnackZAP]

Lights are wired as seen below, they work but this got a little confusing.
at the bottom of the diagram is the last fixture where the constant hot comes in. for some reason there are two lines that are controlled by the switch only in this fixture. here the confusing part, i used the white switch lead to wire the light it works fine as do the others. When using the black switched lead only this light works, when hooking both switched leads to the light nothing works.

my question is where does this other white(hot) come from and how come it is operated by the switch but not in continuity with the black switched wire? also why do i have the condition as stated above?

i can see the white from the switch going to the red it ends there? so wth?

and yes this is crappy wiring, im working behind someone else.

 

[sniksnackZAP]

 

[Nealtw]

You have something like this At the second switch the white is not neutral, it should go to the common screw.

 

[sniksnackZAP]

This is not a 3 way system just a simple single pole switch the only reason for the red wire is to id the HOt lead that had to be carried from the last fixture, since this where they grabbed the hot, down to the switch. i have no idea how one of the whites becomes a switch 120v source when its not tied to the singe pole switch in anyway (that i know of, no continuity but i have to use it or i get the condition above.) the other white is a neutral and is used as such. the other two fixtures have two white wires but that is jump the neutral to the next fixture down the line. the rest are just a simple hot and neutral and you can see the red jumper for the switch.

 

[sniksnackZAP]

updated diagram a little less confusing

 

[joed]

I can not make heads or tails of your diagram.
Are the orange circles lights?
What's the big purple circle?

 

[RAL238]

A suggestion: redraw your diagram with a box that represents each junction box for the lights, plus the switch. Draw lines for the wires that connect from box to box so we can tell where each wire comes from and goes to. Right now, we have no idea where the wires in your purple circle are coming from or going to.

 

[sniksnackZAP]

my bad, yes the orange circles are the lights. the purple circle at the bottom is to show the wires that are coming out of the last lights box one is a neutral the another is the constant hot lead that is fed to the switch at the opposite end via the red wire, then two wires that have 120v on them when the switch is on yet not in continuity with each other somehow depending on which wire i use for the hot lead that powers the light i get the conditions explained above. if i try to use both in a pigtail fashion (just so i dont have to have a random wire-nutted wire by itself in the box) i get nothing, zip no power to any lights???? wth. right now the lights work the way i have them wired in the diagram. im just curious why this random white wire is switched yet not in continuity with the black also switch wire, this just a simple switch.

 

[sniksnackZAP]

this all i know without going into the attic, i just dont understand how i could be getting the conditions stated above.

 

[RAL238]

Is that random white wire part of a cable that also contains a black and ground wire? Or is this perhaps knob and tube wiring, or wires run in conduit?

Is that black wire that comes from the middle light connected to nothing in the last junction box? I'm thinking that perhaps there is another junction box somewhere in between the middle and last box, where the switched hot black wire is connected to the random white wire. Perhaps the switched hot black wire leaving the middle box was damaged somehow, so the substitution was made with the white wire.

 

[sniksnackZAP]

yes the black is connected to nothing ( it should be my switch but it only operates the light in that box and kills the rest) now that i think about it the neutral may be grabbed from a whole diff rent wire at the first box. like this, sorry its been a long day.