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New issue my volt meter starts at 14 volts but.....

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briang0

Regular Contributor
The volt gauge on my 1983 18' CC will start at 13.5 to 14 volts after I start the engine which is a 305 Mercruiser. As I bring the RPMs up past 1500 the volts on the gauge will fall off to 12.5v. If I bring the RPMs back down to idle the gauge goes back up to 13.5 to 14. I checked and tighten the alternator belt but that did nothing. I put a DVM on the battery and it reads 14.2 volts while the engine is running. It doesn't matter what the RPMs are. It appears the battery is charging. Any ideas on whats up with my volt gauge? I checked the main plug on the engine and the contacts are clean. I would like to put some dielectric grease on them but I'm not sure if that is OK to do.
 
you have a loose winding in the Mando alt. put the meter on the output post of the alt and retest it.If it drops off suspect the alt.
 
Check your ground wires. Follow the grounds from the battery make sure all connections are solid with no corrosion. The dielectric grease is a good idea. Also check the grounds under the console should be a ground strip or a common ground up there.good luck
 
Grease at the harness plug is ok...I'd suspect the wiring at the instrument panel...one or more bad connections inducing a voltage drop...
 
I went down this morning and put my DVM on the main output wire on the alternator. It read 14.4 v while the engine was running no matter what RPM it was at. I get 14.2 at the battery I don't think that's not too bad of a voltage drop. I checked the connections at the switch panel only because they are easy to get at and everything was clean. I applied some dielectric grease to the main harness plug and buttoned things up for now. The battery is getting charged. When the weather cools down a little I'll pull the dash and check the connections on the gauge side. As long as the battery is getting charged I'm good but I would like to get it fixed. I like things working properly. I worry enough when I'm out there about things breaking I would like to have things working properly. I'm going to start another thread about another issue I'm having stay tuned.
 
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