Most basic question ever: How to static test?

[Normallysailing]

So my girls had the '95 GTX out over the weekend, and at the end of the day reported that they knocked off when it started making "a bad screeching sound".

This, of course, strikes terror in the heart of any mechanic. Is it serious, like an engine bearing? Less serious, like an impeller bearing (I'm guessing)? But most of all, how the hell do I test it at home? When we start on the trailer just to make sure it's going to start, we keep the run time to a few seconds 'cause (obviously) there's no water moving and the overheating risk is high. But what else can you do? Seems to me I'd need at least a 1000 gallon tank, and that's not really a viable option for me. Where do I go from here?

I've seen mentions here of hooking it up to a hose, but no detail on where or how.

 

[mikidymac]

You can safely start them out of the water and run for a minute or two with no issues at all. You aren't going to hurt anything. Put your hand on the cylinder and judge the heat and when it gets too hot to hold your hand there shut it off. This should give you plenty of time to get a direction of the sound.

You can run on the hose but you have to make sure the engine is never off when the water is on or you will pump water directly into the cylinders and crankcase. This also will not cool the driveshaft seal or the pump so you are still limited to a couple minutes of run time.

It is always....
1. Engine ON.
2. Water ON
3. Water OFF.
4. Engine off Last.

 

[Normallysailing]

Okay, I follow. Where to connect the hose?

 

[mikidymac]

Honestly I wouldn't bother wit the hose.

On your ski it connects to one of the hoses going from the rear of the ski to the cylinder head. Typically there is a red cap to connect a quick connect flush adaptor.

 

[Normallysailing]

Okay, so it's time to take a run at debugging this thing. I'm handicapped here in that I'm not the one who drives it; my girls do, and it doesn't help that they apparently don't know how to describe sounds (will I catch hell for making a gender generalization here, because their mother sucks at it too?). Now that it's fired up on the trailer, I hear no "screech". I do hear a rattle that appears to come from back around the impeller housing. Plus, there's smoke, and I don't know whether it's normal or abnormal smoke. Perhaps some kind soul(s) will give this 15-second vid a watch/listen and render opinions so I can figure out where to start.

'95 GTX noise/smoke

 

[mikidymac]

Your really going to have to ride it to see for yourself.

They all smoke, it’s a 2-stroke.

Seadoos rattle at the pump out of the water, it’s just how the pump is designed.

 

[Normallysailing]

I was really hoping for a hint. The water is quite far away, making that a less than ideal approach for me. I think I can trust my girls as far as a change of sound goes; problem is that I don't have a good feel for what "normal" is. And yeah, I get that it's two-stroke, so oil's always getting burned, but I just don't have a baseline sense of this thing's behaviour, so I don't know if what I'm seeing is excessive or abnormal. This is very frustrating...

 

[POPPS]

Start it up,,,put your hand on the back of the ski,,,on the hull,,,before the hull turns the corner,,,rev it,,,see if you feel a vibration,,,of yes,,,you have a pump problem,,(bearing/s gone),,,or a bent drive shaft,,,also check that the pto carrier has not spun off,,,just take the gray pto cover off,,sometimes they seize,,the bearing seizes to the shaft and just rips the fibreglass right out...but if that had happened,,,you would gave been taking on lots of water.,,my guess is the pump,,pump bearings,,when you remove the cone,,,if water comes out,,,your bearings are toast,,,to easily test your drive shaft,,,ly underneath the ski,,,with a stong flashlight.,,have start it,,,you will be able to see if it wobbles.

 

[Normallysailing]

Hey, thanks. Can you help me out with some of the terminology, though? "hull before [it] turns the corner". You mean just kinda down around the pump/impeller and not back on the transom? By "pto" (I'm familiar with them on tractors...) I'm figuring you mean flywheel-driveshaft and its needle bearing in the carrier. I'm looking at the exploded diagram and see the impeller assembly has a couple more needle bearings and a thrust bearing. If I'm stuck on dry land, is it reasonable to just pull the whole damn thing apart and replace the entire bearing set as PM? Or am I going to get into stuff that's a big hassle and shouldn't be taken apart unless borken?

 

[Burner71]

when was the last time you greased the shaft bearings?
i have a 95 GTX and smokes and sounds exactly like yours, normal.