Plastic piece of oil filter cap fell into PTO

[agreatho]

Performing my season end oil change yesterday...it looks like two pieces of plastic tabs broke off my oil filter cap and fell to the bottom (see attached pic). I was able to vacuum out one of them. The other one fell inside the PTO case. :cuss: Now...there is no "easy" access into the PTO area...what to do?? I have not added any oil back to the crankcase. There are a couple of screw plugs on the side of the PTO by the oil cannister housing. One is oil pressure test port as referenced in the manual. There other is larger and I am not sure of it's purpose.

Any recommendations would be greatly appreciated.


Thanks,
Allen

 

[dbdave]

Do you have any idea what the other piece may look like? I would think that without moving anything, you could make an adapter to your vacuum hose using tubing that is small enough to go down the hole you think the piece fell into and try to vacuum it out. It doesn't have to be big enough tubing to let the piece go through it, just big enough to fit the hole and be able to hold the piece while you lift it out.

Just trying to visualize how this could work but I may be way off base. Otherwise, get your plastic magnet out?:leaving:

 

[agreatho]

Thanks for the reply...the piece that fell in is exactly the same as the one I took a picture of. The cap has four of these tabs...two somehow broke off. I have tried what you suggested. I will try again with stronger suction and also considering removing the larger of the screws on the side directly.

 

[joaquin12345]

Did you actually see it break off and fall in or you took the filter out and the pieces arent there anymore?? Are you the only one that has changed the oil in the seadoo and is this your first time or have you been doing it. Reason I ask is if your not the original person to do this and this is the first time you actually do the oil change then how do you know it fell in there. I have 2 seadoos I just bought and when I changed the oil one of the caps had 2 pieces missing and the other had 1 missing. The ski had been running fine and have been running fine so I assume that whoever had the ski's before me somehow broke the little pieces sometime during an oil change as they break really easily. I actually went ahead and finished the cap off and broke off the other pieces so they wouldnt fall down into the engine case. Also I havent looked hard enough but if I remember correctly I dont even know if the piece could actually fit down in the small hole at the bottom of the canister. Anyways just some thoughts.

 

[agreatho]

Yes...I saw the piece drop to the side. Tried vacuum trick again tonight. Not succesful.

 

[ski-d00]

Those tabs always break off. That's why you should switch to the aluminum cap. I've rebuilt motors and found them in the bottom of the pto housing next to the oil screen. I don't think they cause any issues that I've seen but I would say that they are not good floating around in the pto housing and they can get chewed up in the flywheel/sc gears. I doubt you'll be able to get it out unless you remove the pto housing which isn't really that difficult but it will take some time and new pto housing gasket.