I put my battery in backwards in my 1981 ford f250 400ci now no power to the dash what could it be?

So basically i'm pretty knowledgable about vehicles except of course when it comes to an electrical problem. I was cleaning my 1981 ford f250 400ci and listening to music. Battery diesd so i went to put in my dads to start it up. I put it in back wards and saw sparks and took it off. Was on there for about 10 sec before i saw it. I know i'm an idiot and should take my time. What could it be. Checked all fuses and only one was blown where else should i check?

I did this to my wife's car a few years ago. She had two fuse boxes, not just one. There was one huge master fuse that had been blown I had to replace. Once that was fixed it fired up fine.

You are that "knoweledgeable" but don't know how to install a battery properly? Check the main fuse, or the fusible link.

That truck has Wire Fusible Links on the Starter Solenoid. You'll need a Test Light to check them. You can replace them with a plug in fuse holder pigtail. Available everywhere…20A or 30A should be fine.

You probably smoked the electrical system in the car. Possible losses are the alternator, radio, if there's a computer - that's gone too. Which fuse was blown? Trace that circuit down to see if anything was smoked.

A fusible link is blown. Check all of the large fuses in the engine compartment fuse box.