2001 GTX Build

[garrettb]

Awesome, thanks for the info. Do you remember what you paid to get yours reconditioned? I'll give them a call tomorrow or Monday. Judging by the huge gap between my new wear ring and the impeller, it will need welding for sure. I'm so glad I went through this before reinstalling it. It would have been cavitation city!

In other news, finals are done for this semester, so I'll have all of break to work on this thing and hopefully get close to finishing it all! Tonight I got the pipe in and finished engine alignment. Next step is to put the fuel rail back in and see how she runs!

 

[mikidymac]

That's a pretty big gap.
I don't remember the cost. I want to say around $125.

 

[garrettb]

Great, that gives me something to work with. I have also been looking at doing the SBT exchange. I know their price has gone up ($70 + shipping), but people seem to like their service.

 

[garrettb]

It runs! It started up surprisingly easy. I am not used to this no choke thing. As soon as it started idling I got the maintenance light back and the beep as well. With the RAVEs disconnected, it would easily rev up when the throttle is blipped, but with all the RAVE stuff connected, it would bog out and sometimes not restart. Is that loud clicking the RAVE valves or I am going to blow myself up? It seems like it sounds differently with the system connected and with it disconnected.

Here are a couple of quick videos:

https://youtu.be/6bk8rHL_b0I

https://youtu.be/8frpIQs9bKI

 

[garrettb]

I trailered it today to take it to my fiberglass guy, and he told me that it'd be really hard and somewhat expensive to match the red gelcoat, so instead he handed me a can of similar red and told me to take a stab at it myself... for free! We will see how it goes. I might buy a few colored dyes to get it even closer, but it's definitely a good starting point. I think to fill the 1" hole made by someone installing a bilge pump, I'll just use some fiberglass and then finish it with bondo on the outside to create a smooth surface for my new sticker.

I couldn't find any reproductions for the special red Bombardier logo, and everyone here knows the black logo on the front hood is NLA, so I had my local print shop mock some new ones up for me. I ordered 7 of each, so I'll probably be posting the extras for sale. I also bought an impeller on eBay that looks to be mint, but I may still get my current one reconditioned to keep as a spare.

 

[jhjesse]

The two clicks are your rave valves cycling. This happens when you push the stop button turning off the ski.
When the stop button is depressed the ski will shut off and the rave valves will cycle two times cleaning them off.
I think you might be loosing connection there some where because when the lanyard is pulled or the engine just dies the rave valves will not cycle. Probably a bad connection somewhere.

 

[garrettb]

It sounds like you are talking about the sound it makes when the engine is shut down. I am referring to the clicking when it's actually running. It speeds up with the engine, so I don't know if it's normal or not. My 951 carb'd doesn't sound like that.

 

[mikidymac]

Are you sure the clicking isn't just the fuel injectors firing?

As far is SBT vs. Skat-Trak refurbishing there is no comparison. In my opinion if you are keeping the ski then Skat-Trak, if flipping it SBT.

 

[garrettb]

I started it again today and actually didn't hear that noise. Strange. Maybe it had something to do with the exhaust not being fully connected. I think a weak fuel pump is contributing to the bogging I am experiencing. It's much worse with the air compressor connected to the RAVE solenoid, which should't really make a difference. Maybe it has something to do with extra load on the engine? Either way, it fires right up and idles so smooth I can't believe it!

[video=youtube;4dQTxt3Jo18]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4dQTxt3Jo18[/video]

In the video, I started it, then connected the air line halfway through. There is a slight difference.

 

[garrettb]

After hours of sanding and fiberglass, I got that nasty hole all filled in. I initially was going to use Bondo to smooth the surface and fill any low spots, but after realizing I still can't stand the stuff, I ended up just adding another layer of fiberglass mat. It came out perfectly smooth, and my new decal looks great. Sanding and buffing revealed some nasty pitting in the gelcoat, which I am trying to ignore, but all in all it looks so much better than before. I know a bilge pump was probably a good idea, it's just the purist in me couldn't handle it!

To fix the issue I had with the shoe not having any threaded inserts in it, I picked up a few T nuts and bent them to match the contour of the shoe. The effect of this versus a bolt sticking out will probably be negligible, but the engineer in me is concerned with the flow of the water.

Tomorrow I'll be tackling the seat cover. I bought the HF air stapler, and have everything I need, but I am really nervous. For those that have recovered seats, any pointers?

 

[mikidymac]

What part stripped on the shoe?
If it is going into metal you can use helicoils.
Good call on the Bondo. You don't want to use it in marine applications because it absorbs water. For watercraft you want Bondo Glass. It is basically a reinforced fiberglass filler. Even Walmart sells it.

 

[garrettb]

The shoe is all plastic, except for the brass inserts that allow the grate to bolt to it. Maybe stripped was the wrong word to use. Basically, a previous owner had somehow ripped the inserts out, leaving me with just plastic. They had the grate bolted all the way through, which works, but I wanted something less obtrusive in the path of the water. If I notice any weird performance issues on the water, I'll take the ride plate off and replace the shoe, but this was much easier to try as a first step.

 

[garrettb]

Quick update for those following. I've got my new impeller, wear ring, and pump ready to go and installed. Pressure tested good, and clearance between blade and ring is around a few sheets of paper thick!

I am also having fun with gelcoat. Color matching is quite a job. My first attempt was a little pink, so I added more yellow to the red after realizing it hardens lighter than it's mixed. I've got spots taped up all over the ski. I haven't buffed anything yet, so I might as well fill them all before I go over the entire red. I may buy some black at some point and patch the "beach rash" on the keel. We'll see.



Update on the upholstery- I never EVER want to touch a piece of vinyl ever again after my terrible experience seat covering. I battled the third person seat for hours, to achieve a decent result, and when trying to do the main seat, I ran into serious issues. No amount of tinkering with staple size, air pressure, or type of staple gun allow me to achieve good results. I just ended up tearing through the vinyl with my gun, ripping out every other staple I drove, and swearing. A lot. After giving up, I took it to the best upholsterer in town. He turned it down because of running into the exact issues I have had. He doesn't do PWC seats because of this reason. I am frustrated beyond words. I really like the color scheme of the covers, but I think I have ruined the main seat in the process of installation.

 

[jhjesse]

I have had good luck using #22 staples and staple gun. Porter Cable makes an excellent #22 staple gun.

When I used T50 staples I had the same results you are having.

 

[snikwad003]

^I won't use T50s again either

 

[garrettb]

I wish they would have included that information in the instructions sent with the seat cover... Oh well. What length 22 gauge staples work best for that front portion of the driver's seat? I'll have to special order them, because they're not sold in stores near me. This is the gun I have been looking at. Thoughts? It's a little more in my price range!

https://www.amazon.com/Surebonder-9615A-Upholstery-Stapler-Carrying/dp/B000N52KSW

 

[jhjesse]

That gun should work fine. I would go with 5/16 staples.

 

[garrettb]

New staple gun and 5/16" staples have been ordered. I hope this does the trick. It seems like 22 gauge is what was used on the factory cover, so I think I'm headed in the right direction.

Now, I've got a voltage regulator question. Because failure is so common on the DI ski, what kind of symptoms would a bad unit exhibit? When I start the ski, I get a beep about once a minute, with the maintenance light on the info center. With the ski off, the battery voltage is around 12.5, but with it running, it will jump from 8 to 4 to 10 to 2. It seems random, and increasing engine speed has no effect on the voltage. Something is acting up. The dealer across the street will scan the code for $25, so long as he can figure out the connection to the DI ski. I have been looking at the Candoo, and I understand that four scans at the dealer would technically pay for one of the VIN licenses. I'm torn at what to do!

 

[glsmohio]

To me it just depends, i your keeping the ski and are going to work on it your self then yes you need it. But if your not going to work on it then no reason. I know my dealer would just re-scan it if i brought it to him and told him the code. Im about to the point where i would like to buy one. I would like to find just the tool for cheep and then buy the package to do as many as i like.

 

[Ankeneyou]

I paid around $500 for my Seadoo programmer last spring and it's been well worth it to me. The candoo would be nice but I can't justify $1700 for the unlimited version. Maybe that will change if I ever go 4 tec.

I've gotten a few skis dirt cheap with no key then for $25 for an aftermarket key both were up and running. It's nice you can still check compression without the keys.

 

[snikwad003]

I hate paying for sombody to plug in and give me a 3 word diagnosis, if I had a di or a rfi i would buy one

 

[garrettb]

I had the code read today, and lo and behold it was a low voltage code. Now that I know I need a voltage regulator/rectifier/whatever it's called, should I go with OEM, or try to connect a heavier duty 4tec version? Mine looks to be OEM from what I can tell. It looks like it was made by Tympanium.

 

[jhjesse]

I had the code read today, and lo and behold it was a low voltage code. Now that I know I need a voltage regulator/rectifier/whatever it's called, should I go with OEM, or try to connect a heavier duty 4tec version? Mine looks to be OEM from what I can tell. It looks like it was made by Tympanium.

OEM is the way to go. I have 3 skis with OEM replacements and one ski with the 4tec conversion rectifier from OSD Parts so far so good with all of them. I just like OEM better. No drilling holes to make it fit, just plug and play.

 

[garrettb]

OEM is the way to go. I have 3 skis with OEM replacements and one ski with the 4tec conversion rectifier from OSD Parts so far so good with all of them. I just like OEM better. No drilling holes to make it fit, just plug and play.

Good to know. Did you buy yours new? I see a lot of used ones from CanAm ATVs for much cheaper than a new one. Do they all die quick, or only the ones installed in PWCs?

 

[jhjesse]

To my knowledge the replacements I installed were replacing the original so they lasted about 10+ yrs.
I purchased most of mine from the local sea doo dealer. They usually have them in stock. I would not recommend purchasing a used one.
The 4tec rectifier I purchased from OSD Parts. It was an experiment that worked out pretty good.

The biggest thing with these skis is a good fully charged battery. I have battery cut off switches on two of my skis and plan to install two more this year.