Faulty battery, bad alternator, or both (photos)

Hey Del,
Just wanted you to know the outcome of this.
I took your advice and added the ground, was still getting crazy overcharging (14.5 jumping around to 15.2) as soon as I started my car up - and, a new problem, the headlights would get brighter every time I hit the gas.

Checked the voltage from the IGN wire at ballast + BAT Positive post and was getting a tenth of a volt. All good there.

I started reading through some other posts about bad grounds and saw someone post about their ECU mounting area being painted over.

Never thought about that one! Went out and checked mine....sure enough, nothing but a thick layer of paint underneath.

I sanded the mounting area down to bare metal, reconnected everything and boom, now a steady 14.5 volts - also, the headlight issue went away.

No more jumping around and everything seems to be charging ok.

Does this sound right? Any other connections I should check?

14.5 is on the ragged edge of "high." If it doesn't go any higher, watch the battery a few weeks for abnormal bubbling, acid, etc. If not, "call it good." I guess you've read the infamous "Mad Electrical" article. It does a good job of "why" these have problems. Whether in the bulkhead or other connectors, it really gets down to terminals and switches.