Allanonjj
Cadet
- Joined
- Aug 1, 2018
- Messages
- 9
Hello all,... Although I've been a member of several different enthusiast forums over the years this is my first post on this site. I have browsed through several of the threads and gotten a "feel" for how things go in this forum and it seems to be the right fit for me and my boat. I look forward to becoming a part of this online community.
Now for the first issue (hope there aren't many lol). I just purchased this boat about 3 weeks ago. I drove almost 4 hours to test it out a week before purchase. The seller seemed to be a stand up fellow so I was more comfortable buying a 16 year old watercraft. I still believe him to be 100% honest and reputable so please don't bash the man. As I said, I went and lake tested the boat for over an hour, checking all the functionality of the craft and inspecting the common issues associated with them. The first thing that caught my eye is the condition of the boat. Inside and out, engine bay, drive, no noise, VERY minimal corrosion (never in salt,... ever) and the testing was flawless. The only issues with the boat were that the speedo didn't work (fixed that in 5 minutes in my driveway) and the blower motor didn't come on (haven't fixed that yet because of my current issue). I was needless to say very impressed with it and i feel as though I got a very fair price on it.
We took the boat to the local river the day we purchased it and had a fantastic day pulling knee boarders and wake boarders all day. The boat would crank and perform just as it should every time. It reached a max speed loaded with people and gear of around 50 mph and had no issue whatsoever pulling up two people on wake boards while loaded down (no tower,... yet). The prop was the factory one, a 21P. I plan on trying a 19P the next time we go out as long as I can get my issue resolved.
We then took the boat to the coast for short ride out to Dog Island with 7 people on board(4 miles from the bay where we loaded) and on the way out the boat did okay but not phenomenal. It was a VERY windy day so the seas were probably 5" average. It was a very interesting ride to say the least but we made it okay. On the way back in though as soon as we got to the inlet of the bay/river it started loosing power and backfiring. There was another gentleman there in another boat that is more experienced with boats than I am who suggested that it could be water in the fuel and to swap out the separator. The water temp was fine as was the oil pressure (between 40-60 depending on load). I didn't do an in depth assessment of the engine that day because what he said made sense to me. The boat was tossed around a lot in that short ride out and back so it would stand to credit that if there was some water in the fuel it would have gotten jostled around enough to cause the issue. I cleaned the boat and headed back home with no real concerns that it would be something simple. (yes, i flushed the engine/drive immediately and yes, I washed the boat inside and out to prevent salt residue)
I replaced the separator and took the boat out to another local lake we like to go to and it ran great for the first 30 or so minutes. When it started the backfiring and loosing power again it stayed pretty consistent all day. When i let it sit for 30 mins or so and then run it I'll get about 5-10 minutes of great performance and then its back to the spitting and loosing power. I can sometimes feather the throttle back and forth to get it to plane but not always. I cant "ease" into plane either with the lack of power. I took everyone out to the center of the lake to swim and when everyone was out of the boat I pulled the engine cover and inspected the engine (very vaguely). I saw a couple trickles of liquid coming down from the carb and felt/smelled it,... did NOT smell like fuel. No water in the oil, new seperator, full tank of non ethanol.
Ok, so that is where I'm at now. I work a LOT of hours and have a 1 hour commute so it's hard to get the time to go and diagnose the issue without a heads up on where to start. I'm thinking I will start with timing. If the timing seems to be fine then i will try the fuel tank and make sure its not full of water. If that's not the culprit I will see if the tank is under vacuum and not ventilated well enough (which by the way I have never done, I'm hoping that I can leave the cap loose and see if the backfire persists).
I am by no means a mechanic but have built/rebuilt several turbo cars and dirt bikes, street bikes, 350's, 302's, etc.... I have mechanical ability and am a bit of a tool nut so I should have plenty (as concerned to automotive repairs/performance at least)
I am hoping that these symptoms are a common issue and I will get the advice that I need to be able to repair the boat WITHOUT having to take it to a shop. I have nothing against marine shops, only against having to part with $ that isn't necessary when I can learn more about my boat by diagnosing/repairing it myself. Any experienced help and advice would be greatly appreciated!!
Thanks in advance and again HELLO ALL!!
Now for the first issue (hope there aren't many lol). I just purchased this boat about 3 weeks ago. I drove almost 4 hours to test it out a week before purchase. The seller seemed to be a stand up fellow so I was more comfortable buying a 16 year old watercraft. I still believe him to be 100% honest and reputable so please don't bash the man. As I said, I went and lake tested the boat for over an hour, checking all the functionality of the craft and inspecting the common issues associated with them. The first thing that caught my eye is the condition of the boat. Inside and out, engine bay, drive, no noise, VERY minimal corrosion (never in salt,... ever) and the testing was flawless. The only issues with the boat were that the speedo didn't work (fixed that in 5 minutes in my driveway) and the blower motor didn't come on (haven't fixed that yet because of my current issue). I was needless to say very impressed with it and i feel as though I got a very fair price on it.
We took the boat to the local river the day we purchased it and had a fantastic day pulling knee boarders and wake boarders all day. The boat would crank and perform just as it should every time. It reached a max speed loaded with people and gear of around 50 mph and had no issue whatsoever pulling up two people on wake boards while loaded down (no tower,... yet). The prop was the factory one, a 21P. I plan on trying a 19P the next time we go out as long as I can get my issue resolved.
We then took the boat to the coast for short ride out to Dog Island with 7 people on board(4 miles from the bay where we loaded) and on the way out the boat did okay but not phenomenal. It was a VERY windy day so the seas were probably 5" average. It was a very interesting ride to say the least but we made it okay. On the way back in though as soon as we got to the inlet of the bay/river it started loosing power and backfiring. There was another gentleman there in another boat that is more experienced with boats than I am who suggested that it could be water in the fuel and to swap out the separator. The water temp was fine as was the oil pressure (between 40-60 depending on load). I didn't do an in depth assessment of the engine that day because what he said made sense to me. The boat was tossed around a lot in that short ride out and back so it would stand to credit that if there was some water in the fuel it would have gotten jostled around enough to cause the issue. I cleaned the boat and headed back home with no real concerns that it would be something simple. (yes, i flushed the engine/drive immediately and yes, I washed the boat inside and out to prevent salt residue)
I replaced the separator and took the boat out to another local lake we like to go to and it ran great for the first 30 or so minutes. When it started the backfiring and loosing power again it stayed pretty consistent all day. When i let it sit for 30 mins or so and then run it I'll get about 5-10 minutes of great performance and then its back to the spitting and loosing power. I can sometimes feather the throttle back and forth to get it to plane but not always. I cant "ease" into plane either with the lack of power. I took everyone out to the center of the lake to swim and when everyone was out of the boat I pulled the engine cover and inspected the engine (very vaguely). I saw a couple trickles of liquid coming down from the carb and felt/smelled it,... did NOT smell like fuel. No water in the oil, new seperator, full tank of non ethanol.
Ok, so that is where I'm at now. I work a LOT of hours and have a 1 hour commute so it's hard to get the time to go and diagnose the issue without a heads up on where to start. I'm thinking I will start with timing. If the timing seems to be fine then i will try the fuel tank and make sure its not full of water. If that's not the culprit I will see if the tank is under vacuum and not ventilated well enough (which by the way I have never done, I'm hoping that I can leave the cap loose and see if the backfire persists).
I am by no means a mechanic but have built/rebuilt several turbo cars and dirt bikes, street bikes, 350's, 302's, etc.... I have mechanical ability and am a bit of a tool nut so I should have plenty (as concerned to automotive repairs/performance at least)
I am hoping that these symptoms are a common issue and I will get the advice that I need to be able to repair the boat WITHOUT having to take it to a shop. I have nothing against marine shops, only against having to part with $ that isn't necessary when I can learn more about my boat by diagnosing/repairing it myself. Any experienced help and advice would be greatly appreciated!!
Thanks in advance and again HELLO ALL!!
