What's your year...?

[seadoosnipe]

For the 3D owners who have the "leaning" type, what year is it and what position do you experience this most/worse.

With the few years they have made the 3D, I'm wondering if there is a change in the pitch of the impeller between one of them, that may be why I hear that some have the problem and some don't...........

Thanks!............:cheers:

 

[Orange]

2004. Don't know if its an early build or late build

 

[Kiwiski]

i also read somewhere that it is something do to with the impellers on the 3d's

 

[seadoosnipe]

Correct....

That's why I want to know the years. I"m in the process of looking up the pitch on the different year models to see if there was a change and if so, to what pitch worked best......:cheers:

 

[S. Jones]

3D leans until planed-out

Snipe:

My 2004 3D will lean until it gets planed out. (Its OK once there, but on Lake Michigan its rough so it gets hard to tell more.) I would like to try and address this leaning problem now before I put it in the water for Summer.

You mentioned mine is a 787 models with 10/16 pitch. What is involved in installing a 15/21 pitch impeller? (cost, performance, etc) What is your confidence factor that it will solve/improve the problem?

Also you mentioned pump mods, wedges and extension kits could increase performance without stressing the engine. I like the idea, but dont know enough about it... Any thoughts regarding their performance vs. cost and installation?

I would like to get the new impeller and performance items installed at the same time. I would be happy to pass along the results for others once completed.

Let me know,

S.Jones
GetToJones@aol.com

 

[ski-d00]

The real problem is not impeller pitch, but the rotation of the impeller does make it worse. It's the weight distribution, look at it just sitting in the water by itself, it still leans. The solution is to correct the weight distribution.

I bought my first 3D in the summer of 04 and noticed the problem right away. SeaDoo acted like I was speaking a different language so I gave up on them quickly and decided to fix the problem myself since I am a Mechanical Engineer and realized the problem was a simple statics problem(I learned later that some dynamics were involved due to impeller torque rotation).

Here's what I did and forgive me if I don't get all the details right, it's been 5 years and I am in my forties now...

I took some lead discs and starting strapping them on the front, left side of the engine compartment in an effort to correct the balance while floating. I then rode it and noticed that the lean was much improved but not perfect so I kept adding weight and it then actually leaned a little bit left while floating but was level at idle. I think it took like 30 lbs total, but I didn't want to add 30 lbs since it would only slow the boat down especially with my 200+ on it. So, I began looking at items of 15 lbs to move from the right side to the left side to get my 30 lbs of offset and it was obvious when I saw the battery. I ended up moving it to the front left side tucked in a tight area, needed longer wires and had to move some hoses, piping, etc. and remounted the tray. It turned out to be a fairly extensive project but when done it rode perfectly at idle, I think I still left a few pounds of counterweight as well, can't remember.

When I bought my 06 DI, I expected to be doing the same excersize but to my amazement, it was perfect and noticed the battery is back left and other items had been moved around that didn't really have to be different versus the previous years so it tells me SeaDoo knew it was a problem.

Hope this helps everyone. It was worth the effort to fix it, let me know how it goes.

 

[ski-d00]

Also, I switched to a sealed gel battery because it no longer could stand straight up in its new location.

It's important to note that the further you move weight off center, the more effect it has(which is torque). So, in moving the battery from the area it was in(right centerish) to the as far as left as possible position, it has more effect on balance, kind of like the fat kid on the seesaw who has to sit more towards the center for it to work.

I never really looked closely at moving it to the rear like the newer models, that may be a better option. As I recall, I didn't want to change the front to back balance thinking that more weight in the rear would make it want to sink more on reboarding.

 

[seadoosnipe]

Sounds reasonable...

I think you might be on to something. But, from what I understood, the ski stood upright, with no lean at idle. That's why I started looking at the year models and changes made in between them.

But, if your saying that you know they are leaning at idle, I do agree, it would be a weight ratio offset problem. And like you said, in the newer model, you saw where Seadoo made the changes you found effective.

So, that might be something worth trying. I don't have the ski, so I think I'll have to leave that up to Orange. Your the guinea pig on this one.

I'll wait to hear back from Orange on this one.........

 

[ski-d00]

I searched seadoo dot net and found somebody else who did something similar in moving the battery to the left, sounds like they did it a little differently but also worked but they didn't go into much detail.

When looking at the boat very closely just sitting in the water, it probably leans 3 degrees to the right, it's not even enough to notice unless you are looking really closely. But when you're on it and idling, it leans like 8 degrees to the right(it feels like 30 degrees) and your natural instinct is to jerk it upright but it never stays. You can shift your weight to the left but not comfortable or practical, also seems worse in kart mode maybe cause it's more difficult to shift your weight when your stuck in the seat. Once you get it up on plane, it still leans, but only a little, maybe 3 degrees.

I have a 5 minute channel ride to get to the lake and it bugged me so much I would be cursing at it the whole way. So, I decided to attempt a fix after a few weeks.

 

[Orange]

I'll test it. I need to get my engine rebuilt first though....

 

[Orange]

Any pictures of the battery move?

 

[ski-d00]

Sorry, I didn't take any pics and I sold it that one a couple years ago but if you take a couple pics of the engine compartment, I can photoshop in where I put it.

 

[Orange]

Will do when I get my ski back.... probably in a week (I hope)

 

[D 5UPE]

Mines the 3D di Built 2006, Bought 2007, not noticed any lean in the water. My battery is on the left as is the oil tank. Motor leans to the right.
So does the 800cc 3d have its battery and oil tank in another place to the 947 di engined ski's?

 

[ski-d00]

Yes, the 800 has the battery in the front right, oil tank also in the front. SeaDoo could have placed the components in exactly the same spot on the 951, there's plenty of room, but they didn't which proves they knew there was a leaning problem(it's actually so obvious anyway).
The battery in the back is definitely not convenient, takes like 10 minutes just to get to it, but better than leaning.

 

[cnd660r]

I have an 04 3d that leans just sitting in the water. I have a 20 minute ride at idle to get out of my bayou in to the main waterway and it is really a pain. ski-d00, I've attached pics of my engine compartment if you can show where you moved your battery to. I think I know where you are talking about but it doesn't seem to far off center to make a difference.

Thanks,
Chad

 

[ski-d00]

I know exactly how you feel, you'll be glad you did it after it's done, I was, but it will take some work to do it right.

From your first picture, it is directly to the left of the oil tank, kind of right next to the motor. You will have to cut and remove a piece of foam the exact width of the battery for a good snug fit and also to get it to fit as far to the left side as possible and you will also have to switch to a sealed battery because it won't sit upright and you'll need longer cables or an extension cable(auto stores will have these). You'll have to unstrap and move the oil tank(I don't think disconnect) to gain access to the area.

You may want to look at putting it in the back like the newer ones, that's something I never investigated and not sure how much room there is on those models.

 

[cnd660r]

Thanks ski-d00. I'm going to look at it this weekend, I may remove the sound-deadening exhaust thing in the back left and put it there. Just wondering what kind of tubing would work to bypass the exhaust to the outlet. I also have a dry cell battery in my GTX so I am just going to swap it since it's less maintenance.

 

[boudin]

Has anyone successfully improved the 04/05 3D balance just by moving the battery? It looks like there is plenty of room behind the oil reservoir, if part of the foam is removed.

-Greg

 

[ski-d00]

yes, I did it to my 04 several years ago and have since upgraded to the newer DI. I moved it to the left of the oil tank because the more you get it off center, the more effect it will have. The foam does have to get cut out and I even put some additional dead weight in there as well to get it real close to level when idling. It was a major improvement but ended up being more work than I thought: new sealed gel battery, drilling into hull for new battery mount location(very difficult to get to), longer cables, etc. Not a 30 minute fix, plan on half a day at least to do it right.

 

[cnd660r]

Does anyone have a 2006/2007 DI that can post a picture of how the battery is set up in those? I was considering buying a DI battery tray and mounting it next to the oil tank, just wanted to see if seadoo changed the hull between the models to give the battery more flat space. been searching the internet for hours now and cant find a picture of a DI engine compartment where you can see the battery.

 

[ski-d00]

the battery is not in the engine compartment for the 06/07s. it is back left under the rear platform, takes like 10 minutes just to get to it. I'm out of town all week otherwards I'd take a picture of mine, not sure if seadoo changed the hull to accommodate the new battery location.

 

[cnd660r]

Well moved the battery a few weeks ago but haven't had the chance to post pictures due to college keeping me busy.

I just cut out the foam next to the oil tank and mounted the battery tray on the flattest spot possible in that area. I ordered a 2007 3d battery tray and straps from RIVA and made a bracket out of an old street sign laying around in my garage. Drilled the holes and mounted the setup with some good ol' JB weld to hold it all in place. Also had to reroute the hose fittings behind where i put the battery, used some vacuum hose fittings with plugs. Also had to add a length to the red battery cable. The ski still has a very very slight lean but it's not noticeable at all, i might add some more weights just to make it perfect, im a little OCD when it comes to some things...

Overall it was a very extensive project but well worth it. the ski handles like a dream. No noticeable lean at idle when i ride through no wake zones. now i just need to find time to ride it...

 

[ski-d00]

very nice work, looks similar to the one I did but I had the battery sitting a little further left so that it wouldn't stand up right and welded up an Aluminum tray so that it sat at that angle. It was almost laying on its side so I had to switch to a sealed battery.

Yours looks stock, that's how seadoo should have done it, or they should have at least supplied a kit to owners after they knew it was a problem instead of ignoring it and acting like they've never had anybody complain about that before.

 

[Ibanez540r]

CND660R - Curious what kept you from doing the install in the rear? Seems fairly easy now that my exhaust is removed... and do you know what gauge wire the battery cables are? 8?