Charging Sys. Test/temp?

[Dewey]

Hi guys,
How do I test to see if my charging system is working? I am told the 2.5 260s have a 16 amp system and that it doesn't charge very well. I ran the boat for about 2 hours tsting props last week and the voltage dropped about 1 1/2 volts even with the engine running in the upper rpm range most of the time. My old 2.4 was the same and I didn't have any problems with it dropping the voltage. Also what temp should I be seeing on the water temp. gauge? Its a Gaffrig gauge with the sending unit on the port side head. It was reading between 130 & 140.

Bill

[Techno]

Some one or the manual stated this is about the amount needed to run the engine.
I'm going to add up my loads to find out what all the extras take. So I have something solid to go by. I haven't quite figured out how to add them since not everthing is on a fuse.
Your problem might be that your consuming 17 amps at full power.
If you have a volt meter you can hook it up to the rectifier to check voltage output. You could run some temporary wires up to the dash for this too.
I think you could come off the battery too, it should read the same since it's in the circuit. If correct then you can come off the wires under your dash for + and - for reading like a voltage gauge.