Re: volts gauge ??
All the accessories should NOT have a wire to the volts gauge. The volt meter measures electrical system voltage. It has nothing to do with the accessories or how much they are using. It is essentially telling you that the charging system is working or not. With the engine running at about 1500 rpm or more, the voltmeter should show 13.2 - 14.6 volts or thereabouts. But the actual reading will depend on whether or not the engine has a voltage regulator or not. Some older engines did not have them so voltage could spike up into the 16 - 17 volt range. The static voltage of a 12 volt battery is 12.6. So if the engine is running and the voltmeter reads less than 12.6 volts the charging system is not working or is unable to keep up with the electrical demand. If it measures in the range above the charging system is working. If you have a bunch of high current draw items like a killer stereo amp, flood lights, etc., it is possible the voltmeter will show less than 12.6 but gradually go back up if you turn these items off. That simply means the charging system is not capable of keep up with demand but that it is working.
