After delay on top of delay, about to take 95 XP to lake - few questions

[shattered00]

I missed every self imposed deadline this summer, but have got one out of three skis (possibly?) ready now. I almost had it ready for July 4, however, the idle was drastically off and eventually I lost all electrical activity. The 5 amp fuse blew and also the o-ring for the fuel filter was broken in two.

1) The two 96 XPs had metal fins (much heavier) on the jet pump housing whereas the 95 had plastic ones. I inadvertently switched one of the metal ones with the plastic one so one of the metal ones is now on the 95. Will this be an issue for the one 96xp since it has more HP (i.e. will the plastic jet pump hold up on the 96)?

2) I used two OEM wear rings and one WSM wear ring with lip. The WSM wear ring (on plastic pump housing) is so tight that the impeller spins a 1/4 of turn before it hits the wear ring and doesn't budge at all. There is axial play and everything appears to be installed right (new bearings etc). When I get this 96 running, will giving it throttle cut its way through so that it spins freely without ruining the wear ring or any other component?

3) The engine was newly rebuilt and I read about the 10 hour break-in period. During my trying to get it to run July 4, the idle was so off that when I would start it, the engine would reach probably max RPM. This happened five times for about 6 seconds each while I tried to adjust everything in between each start up. Do you think that I have managed to already damage my engine in terms of metal on metal where the pistons move that could cause rust? If so, is there anything I can do to maybe minimize the damage (like fog the engine to inhibit any rust that may build up in the metal scratches)?

I hope this all makes sense. Thank you for any assistance.

If anyone hears of a ski blowing up at Lake Worth in Texas, it was probably mine, but wish me luck nonetheless!

 

[Ankeneyou]

1. No issue, I have plastic pumps in my x4s. As long as the impeller is the correct one you will be fine.

2. Yes, it sounds like the WSM ring is out of round. It will cut it's way through, but just make sure you dont have a gap on one side and tight in the other.

3. You need to double check your carbs and to ensure a gasket didn't move when you installed. It sounds like a runaway condition which happens when you have an air leak somewhere. If your engine was rebuilt, it should have been pressure tested so I'd check carbs first.

 

[shattered00]

Thank you for the response. The impeller from the 95 is now on one of the 96 and vice versa. I thought they were the same, however, I now see that they have a different pitch. Should this be something I should switch out before using them or whenever I next do maintenance on the jet pumps?

 

[Ankeneyou]

Yes, you will want to switch them out. The 96 will be too tall for a 95. If a 95 is in a 96 pump you will just smack the rev limiter all the time.

 

[shattered00]

Thanks again for the info. I ended up having the correct impeller in the 95 after all. Out of the water, the ski started up fine after maybe 1-2 seconds of holding the ignition button. With the flame arrestor off so I could adjust the carbs easier if needed, I backed the ski into the water while still on the trailer. The ski had great difficulty starting. It wouldn't start with the choke held out at all and I stopped before I flooded it. I then started it without the choke but it took approximately 10-15 seconds of holding the ignition down and feathering the throttle. Once started, I could see that the oil injection lines were getting some oil but the lines were not completely filled with oil. Also, an oil line going from the tank to the side of the engine where the start is was filled with oil, however, there was a 4 inch gap of air just immediately where it drops down from the oil tank even though the oil tank was full (I overfilled it inadvertently as the oil was actually resting in the hose that leads to the cap). The ski idles at around 1200 RPM. I restarted the ski several times (on both reserve and normal fuel selection) and it took around 10 to 15 seconds each time with throttle feathering.

I decided to drive the ski and see what would happen. As best I could tell, the oil was going through the two injector lines but again it was not fully filled and there is still the air gap in the one oil line (maybe I made the line too long?). Also, there is some type of link I think as after 3 1/2 hours of riding very softly with no more than 3/4 throttle, the valley that runs down the center of the bottom of the hull was filled with water (maybe an inch deep) from front to back. I could see no signs of any air bubbles or anything while sitting with the seat off so I am not sure what is happening.

Another interesting thing that I believe is abnormal is that at about 4500 or so RPM (maybe 30 mph?) the ski will wobble from side to side slightly like when you see a motorcycle that is about to lose control and the front wheel wobbles. If I speed up or slow down it usually ceases. Is it likely that when I redid the bottom after patching the fiberglass damage referenced in one of my previous posts that the fact it is not butter smooth could cause this? There are no giant spots that protrude out, but the texture is definitely not as smooth as factory.

When I took the ski out of the water at the end of the day, I cranked it (also took around 10 seconds despite starting up immediately when out of the water the first time), and initiated the throttle to shoot out whatever water remained inside the components. Instead of water coming out, just smoke came out. I also noticed that when I got home from the hour drive and took the battery out to trickle charge it, the purple exhaust tube was hot to the touch to the point where it didn't burn me but was very uncomfortable. I had noticed that water was shooting out of the nozzle just above the tow hook on the back of the ski, so I assumed that the cooling system was working but maybe it wasn't and the temperature gauge was malfunctioning? Or maybe this is normal?

All in all, it runs and I am relieved that 1 out of 3 are working (mostly). Without this forums help, I am confident that I would have failed in this task so thank you again.