acpilot

I have the Swoop Tower as well. I was wondering if anyone has installed a white nav light on their Swoop Tower. I am tired of using that stupid looking pole at the back.

Under the dash. Mine was a 20amp fuse in the hatch slot. The pumps tend to get seized and it trips the fuse. Take the plate off the pump and lube up the impeller with a bit of oil. Replace fuse and try it.

I thought I would pass on a tip I learned the hard way while winterizing my Black Scorpion this weekend. I was almost finished and after filling the block with A/F I thought I would just double check that I had the A/F throughout the engine by loosening the blue plugs to insure a bit of A/F would come out. the last place I was checking was the block and as I loosened the plug "snap" the head broke off and A/F starts running out (because the plus is hollow). I did manage to get it out only losing about 1 gallon of A/F and used the plug from the upper portion of the impeller in it's place . Anyhow, the lesson is buy yourself a few extra of these blue plugs because if you ever break one your screwed unless yopu have a spare. I bought 3 extra and will keep them in the dash storage compartment so I will always have one handy.

Man, the last time I saw tools like that I was getting some dental work done! That's some serious gear.

Heater was done, ballast done, just double checking and snap! No problem getting it out just use a small phillips screwdriver and push hard and they will turn right out.

I was flying back to vancouver from Mexico City the other day and our route took us right over Salt Lake. I noticed a nice looking lake about 25 milkes south east of the city. It did seem quite busy the day I flew over. It looked like a resevoir and across the highway to the west was a ski hill and what looked like a housing development. Anyhow, just curious if anyone knows the name.

superdft I am always jealous every time I fly over Lake Powell on our flightpath to Mexico City. Maybe someday I'll haul the boat all the way down there and rent a house boat. The pictures you all post of it are amazing.

Wiggs, awesome set up to haul the boat. I'm sure your dad forgot it was behind him a time or two even going up the Cocahalla. Anyway, if you get a chance maybe take a photo or two to post on how to do bearings. I tow very little each year, just down to Lake Whatcom from Langley a couple of times, but it may be an idea to do mine next spring. P.S Again I love that color and gel coat scheme!

Well just finished replacing my exhaust gaskets today. What a difference, I guess I was just getting use to the tic tic tic. It is super quite now. Anyhow, it another example of awesome this forum is. I especially want thank h20king for the great write up on how to change them. I realize most crew members have v-drives, however for those of you with a direct drive and a tower here is a tip. I used some rope and tied/hung the riser/manifold from the tower. As a result when I took out the bolts the rope supported the weight of the manifold. I basically just pulled it back,cleaned everything up and then installed the new gasket and then swung it into place and tightened the bolts. The local shop where I bought the gaskets told me that when I run it for the first time take along your torque wrench and just re-tighten the bolts because as the block heats up things will loosen. Sure enough tonight on the lake just a little tweek to get to 30lbs. Thanks again fellow crew members

I am curious about the exhaust leak sound. I understand it is a "tic tic tic" sound but was wondering is it heard at speed or idle. I think I can hear a small ticking sound at idle but don't hear anything at speed over the engine noise. Is it something that is very obvious? Is it also obvious that you can hear it on one side and not the other? Thanks

Bigcatpf Thanks for the help with my ballast problem. It turns out you were correct it was my pump impeller jamming up. I took it out lubed it up with a bit of oil and away she went. One interesting thing though was it is not on the "hatch" fuse but rather a 20 amp unmarked fuse on the panel. I discovered it when I started looking at all the fuses and found it blown. I put a new one in and hit the ballast in switch and "poof" blew it. Traced it back and sure enough it is a larger red oil resistant wire to the pump. Anyhow, thanks again.

I don't have a volt meter with me at the lake, however when I place the switch to "out" the switch does light up. Is this an indication that the pump is getting power, or is the switch powered seperatley. Thanks

I am also having a problem with one of my ballast pumps. I have an Elite Bowrider with a single bag in the rear locker. It has two pumps , one for "in" and one for "out", all operated with a single switch. The 'out' Jabsco pump has stopped working suddenly. I am intested in this jumper solution as it could be my problem. I was wondering if anyone could pass on more info of what I should look for behind the switch. Thanks

Finally had a great day on Lake Whatcom as well. Glass in the morning for a nice ski and then a surf along with just kick'in back and floating in the afternoon. Today, find the rain coat and make sure the cover is on tight as the wind blows and the rain comes down.

bcollins Thanks for the advice. I have the same extractor from West Marine. The tall 4 quart/litre extractor with the 3 tubes. I did modify it with a hose type fitting that screws on to the dip stick port. I think I may not have pumped the extractor hard enough because the first 2.5 quarts flowed like crazy and then slowed down. I may also not crack the filter as well. Thanks again.

bcollins I am curious which extractor you use and your process. Do you crack the filter before? How hot do you have the oil? I am curious what I may be doing wrong. Thanx

I am curious how much oil you get out when you suck it thru the dipstick. I have quite a tight seal, crack the filter a touch and have the oil hot as well. Even with all that I only get about 3 or so litres and then another litre with the filter. just curious how much other guys get with the extactor.

Wiggles There is a place behind Galleon Marine in Langley called E&H Hitch. They could probably set you up.

Wiggles Great photos of the Golden Ears Bridge. Was there a lot of debris in the river? I spend most of my time down at Lake Whatcom in WA, however, these photos make me think I should do a river cruise some night since I live about 10 blocks from the bridge.

I was wondering what others are using to lubricate their shift and throttle cables. I just finished de-winterizing and found that my throttle feels a bit stiffer. If you press the center button in to disengage the shifter it is smooth as silk, however if you use it like regular it feels stiffer. Any ideas?

I had the same issue with my 2006 Centurion last year. The engine seemed as if it was surging after 30 min or so on the water. I changed the fuel water separator (always a yearly thing anyway), and put in a new fuel filter. The issues didn't go away. I ended up taking off the distributor cap and found all the contacts corroded. I gave them a quick sand and it solved the problem. The boat ran great for a couple of weeks and then the same symptoms returned. I ended up just buying a new cap and had the rest of the year trouble free. I would take a look under the cap and check the conditions of the contacts. If you already bought a new fuel water separator don't sweat it as I think it is a must to have a spare on-board. Good luck

I know this may be sacrilegious on this forum,however, I am a skier and trying to get a flatter wake. I have the Elite Bowrider direct drive and I recently saw a Centurion Sport Bowrider with a fixed metal plate at the rear. As I mentioned it is fixed and sits flush with the bottom of the boat. I was wondering if anyone has this type of thing or knows of anyone who has because I am curious how it works. Okay, know you can all go back to discussing how to make a bigger wake!

My boat and trailer are at the lake about an hour from my house. I am heading down next week and thinking about re-greasing the bearings. I was just wondering if anyone can tell me if the VM Custom has the "Bearing Buddy" system where you just pump in new grease until you see the new stuff start to come out to confirm there is new grease throughout. I haven't popped off the caps on the wheel, however, I am assuming this is where the nipple is.

Evolution Covers all the way. Unmatched quality and customer service. I was talking with Cory the other day on my way to the Seattle Boat Show (picking up a cover for my buddy) and he was mentioning that he has started making a less expensive cover out of a different material now. Not as good as the Sunbrella style fabric but a cheaper price point for those in need of this.

Duramat I use the tall cylindrical 4 liter fluid extractor from West Marine. It works well, and even better after I modified it to screw onto my dipstick. Just remember that the oil has to be really warm and it only takes about 10 pumps and she sucks it almost dry. The tranny fluid no problem as well. Yes I did have my bucket on the swim pad, however, the hose as I mentioned was too long and went down below the fake-a lake. I went thru about 4 1/2 gallons of AF and I think about just over 2 gallons stayed in the engine, heater hoses etc. I will pour some in manually via the main water pump hose just to fill up.