Installing new 720 engine need help.

[Workinonjunk]

So i already have a thread started, but it seems like it went dead and i have more important questions so i can know what to order for my new engine. Heres what i need to know: what all do i need to do to ensure my new motor (717 96 SeaDoo GTI) lives a LONG happy life, what parts all do i need to replace etc. i already have a good idea but id like to make sure i know of everything. I want to replace all the oil lines, because i want to retain my oil injection system, I hate premixing while trying to fuel up at a busy boat fuel station not to mention way more oil consumption. So what sizes are all the lines? I have the small injection lines ordered with new clamps (tygon). What about the other ones and where can i even find oil rated lines that are clear and are that large because i see no tygon lines of a large size, all i see is vinyl and doubt that is safe to use.. i also dont want like 25 feet of each since its too much money and i barely need any.. another big question i have is how else can i perform an engine alignment aside from a 300$ tool, and if not that how much is a reasonable price to pay a shop to do it? Another thing is the carbs of course. I rebuilt them (also i did the fuel lines) last season, but i will go through them again and clean them, how should i go about being certain that they are operating and are adjusted correctly? Should i just make sure they are at factory setting? What are the factory settings for these? When I rebuilt them i counted the turns and just put everything the way it was back, BUT someone along the way had out a cheapo crap carb kit, and it was totally screwed when i got it which is probably why the motor didn’t survive long after.. also what oil filter is recommended the stock style white plastic ones, or are the clear ones good (i currently have one of those). Also i did not have a water separator on it which i know is bad, but i did have a metal in-line filter. Should i keep the inline one or not because i have seen conflicting opinions, and yes im adding the stock separator back to it as its been missing since i got it.. thank you for reading!

 

[Workinonjunk]

I am may be berated for this,,but before I pull a motor,,,I take a scribe,,,and scribe around the bolts on the motor mount,,, athis obviously assumes the current mounts are ideal…when I pull the motor,,,of course,..I do not touch the lower mount brackets,,,you can also take the carbon ring and bellow offf,,inset the pump and drive shaft and see how centred the shaft is,,,we purchased a Chinese metal,alignment tool and it is way out and is just a waist of money,,,so,,,if you have not touched the motor mounts,,,you can try our method,..

ok so this is potentially good news! I have yet to remove or loosen any motor mount bolts! Because this is exactly what i was hoping to attempt. But can you explain further possibly about how you scribe them? Like what do you use to scribe them with? Do you just draw with a paint marker or something like that around the washer? Do you need to trace around the bolt head onto the washer as well? I also cant really say for sure if mine are ideal but as far as i know and can tell, it looks like nobody touched them. Also i noticed i have no shims. Also do these mounts need to be replaced? And im assuming if they did, then this method would be out of the question but idk? I really want it to be done right because i dont want to destroy my motor or jet pump! Thank you so much

 

[etemplet]

I line everything up. Most are out an unbelievable amount.
This was my first alignment using the tool I purchased. I wanted to see how well it worked so I rigged the dial indicator and checked parallel and angular. I spent a good bit of time getting my wife's ski closer than Seadoo ever will. LOL You can't line the engine up spot on with the shims they use but... it's close enough for the design which is fine with me. The tool works pretty good if you understand what good feels like.I don't pull the indicators out often but if I do it's for my personal skis alone. LOL Good Luck !!

 

[mikidymac]

First you don’t need to replace any of the oil lines except the little ones from the pump to the intake manifold. And install a new oil filter.

Get rid of any aftermarket fuel filters and only run the stock strainer. Replace the fuel selector if you haven’t.

Carb settings are listed on seadoosource.

You can’t align the engine correctly without the proper tool and marking the bolts doesn’t really work because they are almost all off just from age.

 

[newtomedoo22]

Replace the fuel selector if you haven’t.

I assume they are known to go bad?
Maybe it gets gunked up with the green goo as well and can't be trusted?

 

[Workinonjunk]

I assume they are known to go bad?
Maybe it gets gunked up with the green goo as well and can't be trusted?

I replaced mine along with the fuel lines. If it has or had original grey fuel lines it NEEDS to be replaced. Mine was clogged and even if it isnt theres junk in it that will then be flushed into ur carbs and new fuel lines after u did all that work.

 

[newtomedoo22]

I replaced mine along with the fuel lines. If it has or had original grey fuel lines it NEEDS to be replaced. Mine was clogged and even if it isnt theres junk in it that will then be flushed into ur carbs and new fuel lines after u did all that work.

Of course..that makes sense

 

[mikidymac]

Yes, as workingonjunk said they go bad inside and can't be cleaned.

 

[Workinonjunk]

I line everything up. Most are out an unbelievable amount.
This was my first alignment using the tool I purchased. I wanted to see how well it worked so I rigged the dial indicator and checked parallel and angular. I spent a good bit of time getting my wife's ski closer than Seadoo ever will. LOL You can't line the engine up spot on with the shims they use but... it's close enough for the design which is fine with me. The tool works pretty good if you understand what good feels like.I don't pull the indicators out often but if I do it's for my personal skis alone. LOL Good Luck !!

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Looks like you really know what you are doing.. me, not so much when it comes to this LOL and i dont have any of those tools.. it looks like if i want to be safe i should take it in to a shop for an alignment, although the only shop that will do it that I found, i l have not used before and dont know for sure if they will do a good job, but id hope so..

 

[Workinonjunk]

@mikidymac Do you have a oil filter you recommend? Why shouldnt i run an inline filter? Doesnt that just do more filtering which should be better, or am i missing something? And yes i also read that the engine plates these things came with bend a lot since they are stamped plates, is there a better option? I have another seadoo just like the one i have and it has different motor mount brackets and that has me confused.. maybe they are from a newer gti? I will get pics soon.. thanks

 

[mikidymac]

@mikidymac Do you have a oil filter you recommend? Why shouldnt i run an inline filter? Doesnt that just do more filtering which should be better, or am i missing something? And yes i also read that the engine plates these things came with bend a lot since they are stamped plates, is there a better option? I have another seadoo just like the one i have and it has different motor mount brackets and that has me confused.. maybe they are from a newer gti? I will get pics soon.. thanks

Just the stock inline oil filter.

No, additional filters restrict the flow and can cause fuel starvation. These carbs have a low suction vacuum operated fuel pump so you do not want any restriction. Only use the OEM strainer that is also a water separator.

Never seen or heard of bending engine plates unless the driveshaft takes a dump on the 1997+ XP's and HX's.

They get out of alignment because the fiberglass hulls settle/warp/sag over 20 years.

 

[etemplet]

Looks like you really know what you are doing.. me, not so much when it comes to this LOL and i dont have any of those tools.. it looks like if i want to be safe i should take it in to a shop for an alignment, although the only shop that will do it that I found, i l have not used before and dont know for sure if they will do a good job, but id hope so..

I don't know if I'd take it to a shop. If you have to do that I'd stick with what @POPPS recommends. A scribe is a pointy too that is capable of making a mark in metal. It is a fine line so you can put the ski back in place where it was originally before you began working on it.

Sometimes people in your area may have a tool which is a great help. I worked on rotating equipment for a lot of years and did vibration analysis. Misalignment destroys equipment so I try to keep the machines happy. LOL Good Luck !!

 

[Workinonjunk]

Just the stock inline oil filter.

No, additional filters restrict the flow and can cause fuel starvation. These carbs have a low suction vacuum operated fuel pump so you do not want any restriction. Only use the OEM strainer that is also a water separator.

Never seen or heard of bending engine plates unless the driveshaft takes a dump on the 1997+ XP's and HX's.

They get out of alignment because the fiberglass hulls settle/warp/sag over 20 years.

Ok well i hope that the stock remakes from a different company are good enough since i dont see any oem ones..
Understood about the fuel filter i had no idea!
I saw a post by Bill i forget his username, but he seems like a seadoo expert, it was a 10 year old post i think but he mentioned that.. but i dont doubt the hull goes through changes over the years of abuse.

 

[Workinonjunk]

I don't know if I'd take it to a shop. If you have to do that I'd stick with what @POPPS recommends. A scribe is a pointy too that is capable of making a mark in metal. It is a fine line so you can put the ski back in place where it was originally before you began working on it.

Sometimes people in your area may have a tool which is a great help. I worked on rotating equipment for a lot of years and did vibration analysis. Misalignment destroys equipment so I try to keep the machines happy. LOL Good Luck !!

Can i ask why not? But id rather not if i dont have to of course.. i just used a white paint pen around the washers and then a 90° pick to scribe since i couldnt get anything else in there and couldnt see. It looks like it worked really good, assuming its close enough to be good but at least if all else fails i can refer back to those marks And be close.

 

[Workinonjunk]

Look at the mounts on this other gti of the same year. Whereas i have the standard black plate.

 

[mikidymac]

Aftermarket copies of the oem oil filters should be fine.

Those mounts are from the newer 720's, my 2003 GTI uses them.

No reason to change from your bedplate.

 

[etemplet]

Can i ask why not? But id rather not if i dont have to of course.. i just used a white paint pen around the washers and then a 90° pick to scribe since i couldnt get anything else in there and couldnt see. It looks like it worked really good, assuming its close enough to be good but at least if all else fails i can refer back to those marks And be close.

I'm a frugal Cajun that was raised with the attitude you don't pay people to do what you can do. and... I have trust issues when it comes to shops. What do the shops charge for something like that anyway?

 

[Workinonjunk]

I totally agree, i like to do it all myself, but this is just something im scared of getting wrong with a brand new expensive motor, my first pwc motor too.. also dont want to invest in a 300$ tool for 1 time use most likely at least for a long time hopefully.. i see some diy tools on youtube i might try. im not sure how much it is that they charge for sure but i will update when i get a estimate. I believe around 1-200$ The shop said they Charge 105$ an hour and im just guessing how long it would take..

I'm a frugal Cajun that was raised with the attitude you don't pay people to do what you can do. and... I have trust issues when it comes to shops. What do the shops charge for something like that anyway?

 

[Workinonjunk]

Aftermarket copies of the oem oil filters should be fine.

Those mounts are from the newer 720's, my 2003 GTI uses them.

No reason to change from your bedplate.

Awesome, thanks

 

[etemplet]

I totally agree, i like to do it all myself, but this is just something im scared of getting wrong with a brand new expensive motor, my first pwc motor too.. also dont want to invest in a 300$ tool for 1 time use most likely at least for a long time hopefully.. i see some diy tools on youtube i might try. im not sure how much it is that they charge for sure but i will update when i get a estimate. I believe around 1-200$ The shop said they Charge 105$ an hour and im just guessing how long it would take..

As I mentioned I use my tool quite often but you could buy one and then sell it when you are done. For me... I can't see paying a shop the same money you could dang near buy the tool for. The alignment using the tool is quite simple. I check alignments on skis when I remove the pump for my own personal interest. I'd say that 60% and more the tool won't even slide into the PTO. For your alignment, if you can get the shaft to slide into the bore... that's way better than most that are in operation. Your diligence will be a great benefit to the outcome of your project for sure. This isn't about right and wrong to me just plain old discussion. Whatever you do.. have fun with it !! Good luck !!

 

[Venturian1]

Looks like you really know what you are doing.. me, not so much when it comes to this LOL and i dont have any of those tools.. it looks like if i want to be safe i should take it in to a shop for an alignment, although the only shop that will do it that I found, i l have not used before and dont know for sure if they will do a good job, but id hope so..

If your alignment is good before you pull the motor…no vibration or very little. at idle, put your hand on the carbon ring boot or hose clamp, and feel if it’s smooth or shakey.
I think you would know if it was out just from riding it.
Don’t think you need to pull the motor, but if you must, make note of any shims that may be on top of the motor mounts, and make sure they get back where they belong, and that’s it.

I use a 13mm regular 6 point socket and a long extension for the two on port side. And dealing with that motor mount bolt close to the starter, I lost my socket once, so now I tape it onto the extension with electrical tape so I can’t get knocked off again.
I ain’t no hillbilly, but did manage to fabricate an alignment tool using a hospital IV holder, on wheels. Two telescoping stainless steel pipes, that just so happened to be perfect OD. The larger base fits through the impeller bearings snugly, and the inside tube fit into the PTO splines, but not snugly. I used brass shim stock, to snug up the telescopic tubes.
Pull out impeller, mount the pump housing, tight, grease up my tool and poke it in from the rear.
Snug fit through the mid bearings and seals too, and as long as the hose clamps were not loosened they should be centered.
Thick grease on the tip of the inner tube and if all is good, it bottoms out in the pto flange, pull it out without twisting and inspect the grease for indications of bad alignment.
Add shims to the top of the motor mounts, and always snug down all 4 bolts before checking .

 

[etemplet]

I've helped a few people in my area with alignments. It'd be nice if people knew forum members in their local area and resources available. Good Luck !!

 

[Venturian1]

I am located in Ventura CA and will loan out my alignment tool. Txt me at 8zero5 two23 zero983...Don