Hi Folks!
What have I got myself into?
I purchased my neighbor's 1997 GTX (86 hours on it) for $1050 with trailer. My kids were begging me to do it. I've never owned a boat or jet ski before nor ever driven with a trailer. Anyhow, I got a hitch installed on the family van and went jet skiing today. Figured out how to launch it OK. After a slow speed spin to figure out the controls I came back for my kids, loaded them up and headed into the harbor. The GTX would barely move even though motor was running well over 5000 rpm.
I unloaded the kids and went out alone. The jet ski seems to work fine. I was able to run at about 35 to 40 mph (water was choppy). It seemed to accelerate ok. Could this simply be a weight issue?
I weigh about 210 and each kid is about 80 lbs. I went back out with only 1 kid and still had the same problem - jet ski would hardly move even at high rpm's. Now this is a 3 seater with the 787 engine is it not?
After we got home, I took a look at the impeller with a flashlight. It looks clean and undamaged. I did look through the intake grate and could see that there were no foreign objects, etc in there. What I did see was a badly rusted drive shaft with one deeply pitted area. Definitely a replacement candidate. The wet area in the picture appears to have been almost half rusted through. Could this cause flex in the shaft?
Am I off base in thinking this is a cavitation problem? Anyone care to comment or make a suggestion of what to look for / repair to get this ski running right before I strangle my neighbor?
Your input appreciated! Thanks in advance.
Picture of rusted drive shaft:
What have I got myself into?
I purchased my neighbor's 1997 GTX (86 hours on it) for $1050 with trailer. My kids were begging me to do it. I've never owned a boat or jet ski before nor ever driven with a trailer. Anyhow, I got a hitch installed on the family van and went jet skiing today. Figured out how to launch it OK. After a slow speed spin to figure out the controls I came back for my kids, loaded them up and headed into the harbor. The GTX would barely move even though motor was running well over 5000 rpm.
I unloaded the kids and went out alone. The jet ski seems to work fine. I was able to run at about 35 to 40 mph (water was choppy). It seemed to accelerate ok. Could this simply be a weight issue?
I weigh about 210 and each kid is about 80 lbs. I went back out with only 1 kid and still had the same problem - jet ski would hardly move even at high rpm's. Now this is a 3 seater with the 787 engine is it not?
After we got home, I took a look at the impeller with a flashlight. It looks clean and undamaged. I did look through the intake grate and could see that there were no foreign objects, etc in there. What I did see was a badly rusted drive shaft with one deeply pitted area. Definitely a replacement candidate. The wet area in the picture appears to have been almost half rusted through. Could this cause flex in the shaft?
Am I off base in thinking this is a cavitation problem? Anyone care to comment or make a suggestion of what to look for / repair to get this ski running right before I strangle my neighbor?
Your input appreciated! Thanks in advance.
Picture of rusted drive shaft:
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