So, I got the Sportster 4-TEC, 155 hp!!! Had the family out yesterday on the lake--seemed like one mishap after the other!!!
First, ski rope got sucked into the whatever, had to be towed back to shore, trailered boat, cut ski line to bits, went back out--son-in-law said looked like a "screen" might have been damaged. We went back out.
Went way back up into the lake, ran into some major debris piles floating in the lake, went in reverse turned around, but boat wouldn't go over 15-17 mph all the way back (otherwise, it wouldn't go a lot faster and rpm's were going out of site). Got back to dock (3 people in front of boat helped it plane out so we picked up speed to almost 20).
Dark when we got back. Pulled it out, took boat home. Son-in-law (who is a flight mechanic for Southwest), has the boat at his house.
So, my question is: is this kind of stuff (other than the stupid ski rope trick!!), going to happen on a regualr basis? Is there any precaution I should take in using the boat? Any suggestions for resolving current problem or anything I need to be aware of?
Thanks mucho for any assistance/ideas/help. Steve S. in Phoenix, AZ!!!
4 replies to this topic
#2
gofast
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Posted 18 September 2005 - 10:59 PM
I have the scic 05 model . I have driven mine down the runs of several fresh water springs in my state. They are very thick with eel grass and other growth. I have found that if you keep the rpms low when going thru heavy areas it limits the sucking in. If you feel a load on motor, a brief run in reverse , coast in neutral , then a brief hole shot seems to work. Being in the sunshine state has allowed me to snorkle under the boat and see for myself . With eng off i have been able to manualy clear intake. Have not HAD to resort to this , but it was good practice. All in all , jet boats have their querks , try to avoid floating debris if poss. The good out weighs the bad . IMOP 
#3
Serbmarine
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Posted 20 September 2005 - 04:46 PM
Well I just wrote up this for another thread :
"It definitely sounds like you sucked something up. This can be a scary thing for a first time doo’er, especially if your dealer has not explained this process. If this happens again try to doo’ing this: Shut down the engine and let everything sit for 30 seconds or so (as long as the debris is not to large sometimes, if you are lucky, it will simply float out of the pump), If this does not work start the boat up and put it in reverse, once you are moving shut the boat off and immediately put the boat in forward (again if you are lucky sometimes this will wash the debris out). If you start the boat up and still have a vibration you will have to head to the trailer. Try to run the boat at a low enough speed that you don’t have any heavy vibrations. Once you have her on the trailer put the boat in forward and take a look into the pump. Look for any foreign object, sometimes it will just be laying in the pump, other times it will be lodged between the impeller and the pump. Look from both the rear of the boat and up through the intake grate. You should be able to see the culprit. Once you have spotted it try to remove it. A lot of times a long flat head screw driver is the trick. Whatever you do please don’t try to take the intake grates off unless you know for sure how to do it. Replacing the sheared off bolts is no fun at all."
If you do get something in the pump, try to get it out as soon as you can, if you continue using the boat with the debris lodged in the pump you can do some damage. If the debris is abrasive or hard (a rock for example) you will end up damaging your wear ring. Just keep a sharp eye on the water and try to avoid areas with large amounts of debris.......if the wear ring or impeller is damaged you will find that you cavitate when accelerating (engine will rev but you wont go anywhere fast, like you have the clutched pushed in on your car) and your top speed will drop. Hope this helps……try to have some fun, just watch what you are doo’ing
"It definitely sounds like you sucked something up. This can be a scary thing for a first time doo’er, especially if your dealer has not explained this process. If this happens again try to doo’ing this: Shut down the engine and let everything sit for 30 seconds or so (as long as the debris is not to large sometimes, if you are lucky, it will simply float out of the pump), If this does not work start the boat up and put it in reverse, once you are moving shut the boat off and immediately put the boat in forward (again if you are lucky sometimes this will wash the debris out). If you start the boat up and still have a vibration you will have to head to the trailer. Try to run the boat at a low enough speed that you don’t have any heavy vibrations. Once you have her on the trailer put the boat in forward and take a look into the pump. Look for any foreign object, sometimes it will just be laying in the pump, other times it will be lodged between the impeller and the pump. Look from both the rear of the boat and up through the intake grate. You should be able to see the culprit. Once you have spotted it try to remove it. A lot of times a long flat head screw driver is the trick. Whatever you do please don’t try to take the intake grates off unless you know for sure how to do it. Replacing the sheared off bolts is no fun at all."
If you do get something in the pump, try to get it out as soon as you can, if you continue using the boat with the debris lodged in the pump you can do some damage. If the debris is abrasive or hard (a rock for example) you will end up damaging your wear ring. Just keep a sharp eye on the water and try to avoid areas with large amounts of debris.......if the wear ring or impeller is damaged you will find that you cavitate when accelerating (engine will rev but you wont go anywhere fast, like you have the clutched pushed in on your car) and your top speed will drop. Hope this helps……try to have some fun, just watch what you are doo’ing
#4
hagan73
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Posted 22 September 2005 - 02:22 PM
When we got our boat our dealer told us to shake the boat firast like really shake it (jsut stand up and move it around) then if that hasent done it just get on plane then cut the engine and i work every time (wlel we havent sucked up anyhing to bad so we've been lucku
#5
thumper
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Posted 27 September 2005 - 05:22 AM
as for ski rope trick - switch off engine when picking up downed skiers - without exception, this was the first lesson i learnt with a jet boat 
The boat that just passed you was a seadoooooooooooo.
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