Stainless Wear Ring?

[DSchmidt54]

Hey Guys, just talked to my local mechanic about getting a new wear ring.... mine is good (.035) clearance.... but it has some small grooves that make me uneasy.... well he told me he can order me a stainless wear ring for 70 bucks that will work on my 1996 GTX.....

So my question...

Are they worth it? Do they work well?

He said they are very tight and in some cases will actually scrape on the impeller for the first minute or so of use.......

Thanks in advance.
Drew

 

[get_real]

Hey Guys, just talked to my local mechanic about getting a new wear ring.... mine is good (.035) clearance.... but it has some small grooves that make me uneasy.... well he told me he can order me a stainless wear ring for 70 bucks that will work on my 1996 GTX.....

So my question...

Are they worth it? Do they work well?

He said they are very tight and in some cases will actually scrape on the impeller for the first minute or so of use.......

Thanks in advance.
Drew

Never heard of it, but I would think it would be easy to tear up your impleller and complete pump if you injest something through the grate. I'd stick with the original or the new Delrin that has some give to it for a recreational ski.

 

[Coastiejoe]

The wear ring is the weak link.

You need some sort of a weak link so that any damage is relatively minimal.

Will it work, absolutely. Will it work well, probably above average. But,,, when there is a problem it is COSTLY...

If you look at replacing the impeller due to the stainless ring not giving there is hundreds right there...

 

[nammer]

these are some other people's thoughts on it

http://www.**************/forums/showthread.php?t=67635

i remember reading a while back (I could be mistaken) preferred in racing, but less forgiving with debris

 

[nammer]

http://www.**************/forums/showthread.php?t=67635


hmm guess we can't copy greenhulk

 

[CReynoldsMIZ]

Yeah it has always made me wonder why seadoo used plastic rings. My dads old js550 and yammi have a stainless wear ring and they have never had a problem with impellers and are original and connect up so good with absolutely no cavitation and they are 28 and 20 years old...

 

[suke]

My yammi is all metal. Prop looks new and it's a 96. No worse for wear than 2 seafood pumps I have that needed new wear rings.

 

[SabrToothSqrl]

Lol seafood.

The idea is the plastic one gives. Lose a $40 part vs. a $200 prop.


I'd only use the stainless one if you are racing a closed course. If you ride recreationally, plastic. I get them for $40 from a friend of mine

 

[Robj]

Plastic is cheap and easy to change. I'll stick with plastic.

 

[Dr Honda]

As the guys above said... "It's a fuse for the pump."


It's a cheap part... and it can be changed in about 30 min. Not to mention... most of the guys coming here, that need a ring... it's the factory ring, and it lasted +10 years.

A stainless ring is good for racing, when you need very tight clearances, and don't care about damage. BUT... if you put in a stainless ring... and you suck though something hard... you will destroy the ring, the impeller, and possibly bearing/shaft damage. SO... there is the possibility that a repair will get expensive.



Now... for the guys who said "Yamaha and Kawi had solid rings".... well... that's true. BUT... they are EXPENSIVE to replace. And by the time you need a new wear ring... you also need the rest of the pump parts. AND... while it's true that you can have a solid ring, and have it around for +20 years (if you are careful) that is not the norm.



The wear ring for my Islandia is $400 !!!!!!! (solid, from Mercury) I would LOVE to have a plastic ring in there, that could be changed every 4 or 5 years, and only cost $40.


AND... as a final FYI... the intermediate housing for Yamaha is $170 and the Kawi reman pump is $399. (if you need to change the ring) PLUS... you would still need an impeller, since it will be warn too.



Personally... I will keep my plastic ring. It was a great idea from SeaDoo.

 

[suke]

As the guys above said... "It's a fuse for the pump."


It's a cheap part... and it can be changed in about 30 min. Not to mention... most of the guys coming here, that need a ring... it's the factory ring, and it lasted +10 years.

A stainless ring is good for racing, when you need very tight clearances, and don't care about damage. BUT... if you put in a stainless ring... and you suck though something hard... you will destroy the ring, the impeller, and possibly bearing/shaft damage. SO... there is the possibility that a repair will get expensive.



Now... for the guys who said "Yamaha and Kawi had solid rings".... well... that's true. BUT... they are EXPENSIVE to replace. And by the time you need a new wear ring... you also need the rest of the pump parts. AND... while it's true that you can have a solid ring, and have it around for +20 years (if you are careful) that is not the norm.



The wear ring for my Islandia is $400 !!!!!!! (solid, from Mercury) I would LOVE to have a plastic ring in there, that could be changed every 4 or 5 years, and only cost $40.


AND... as a final FYI... the intermediate housing for Yamaha is $170 and the Kawi reman pump is $399. (if you need to change the ring) PLUS... you would still need an impeller, since it will be warn too.



Personally... I will keep my plastic ring. It was a great idea from SeaDoo.

No issue on my 96 wave venture which spent it's whole life on the beach around all kinds of shells, driftwood, etc. Granted it was always ridden by responsible people. Only time I ever let someone else ride it without my direct supervision and they sucked up a shell and clogged a cooling line.

 

[DSchmidt54]

Thanks for the input guys! I ended up having a bad seal between the hull and the pump mounting bracket (i/o plate) and the ride plate....... Ended up pulling it off and revealing it all..... Currently I'm about halfway through..... Taking pictures along the way..... Will probably make a how to for for it when I'm done.

 

[DSchmidt54]

Re-sealing ***