Maintenance Tips?

[AtomicPunk]

Aside from flushing, I always hose the ski down (usually with wash mitt and car soap) , flush the pump out. I also vacuum out any standing water in the bilge.

What else are you guys doing/using on your motors? I am specifically interested in what kind of maintenance you are doing on billet motors to keep them looking good?

[BruceSki]

I hose the whole engine bay with fresh water, then bilge it out and let it air dry. CRC 656 spray down everywhere after that. Flush pump with the hose and backflush through the pissers. Thats about as far as I go. Maybe 3 times a season the ski gets the soap treatment.

Be careful spraying cleaners on the motor, I took the "shiny" off my ADA head by spraying the motor down with a simple green type degreaser.

[Boris]

Flush and rinse the whole ski with salt away.
Once dry, spray the whole bilge and pump with Boeshield T9 and leave the hood off.
After about 4 or 5 rounds with the Boeshield I hit the bilge with WD-40. It washes off any oily residue and gets the motor all shiny and ready for the next coat of Boeshield.

Never had any corrosion issues and my bilge is always clean.

[WaveDemon]

my post ride maintenance is putting the ski on the trailer and taking it back home.

[Tkmww]

my post ride maintenance is putting the ski on the trailer and taking it back home.

I take it you ride the lake then?

I pretty much rinse the whole ski with fresh water, flush the pump to get all the sand out (which you never can) flush the ski for a few minutes, bilge out all the water from engine compartment. Spray engine compartment, handle pole bracket, steering setup, exhaust outlet, pump, trim etc with wd-40.

Don't forget to rinse all your gear also...salt water eats everything!

[BruceSki]

hahaha demon just rocks haggard skis.

[chasingdaylight]

Just get that thing to the water!!! as much time that you are taking it will never see water.. Just flush, wash, rinse and silcone spray for that purdy motor. when things start looking rough just break out the spray paint...

and tanner... wave demon means what he says you had to see his last ski the thing even had a hole in the side... let's see how he treats his new ski ...

[AtomicPunk]

I am just trying to keep my motor running/looking good, because I am not planning on ever needing/wanting another.

assembly should start Thursday night... break-in this weekend.

[Tkmww]

and tanner... wave demon means what he says you had to see his last ski the thing even had a hole in the side... let's see how he treats his new ski ...

Hahahaha

[WaveDemon]

I take it you ride the lake then?

I pretty much rinse the whole ski with fresh water, flush the pump to get all the sand out (which you never can) flush the ski for a few minutes, bilge out all the water from engine compartment. Spray engine compartment, handle pole bracket, steering setup, exhaust outlet, pump, trim etc with wd-40.

Don't forget to rinse all your gear also...salt water eats everything!

I don't ride fresh water. you guys are just wound too tight.

http://www.x-h2o.com/showthread.php?...ild&highlight=

[Freakrider]

CRC brand silicon really sticks,stays and does the job...

[227]

A thorough flush with water only. No bling on my ski- its business only. I store it inside my garage with hood off and with the pole in the up position. ( I run a loose pole) Antisieze all your bolts when dis/reassembling

[JetManiac]

I use CorrosionX on my engine and electrics, it doesn't wash off like WD-40 and silicone will. I just wipe down the excess after a ride and the engine looks great.

It has kept my ss865 and other motors looking like new. It is also a great penetrant for removing stuck parts as well as having high dielectric strength for preventing electrical problems in the surf.

[Rickster]

Rinse engine bay, backflush, and store in Garage with hood off for next ride.

[matth113]

cant believe no one has said anything about fluid film its the shizo...wd 40 is doodoo unless u sank your ski

[Bluffskier]

I use Fluid Film on the engine, pump and seals. I use die-electric grease on all electrical connections and they stay good. The secret to the engine compartment that is you must siphon or vacuum the bilge dry first, and then flush it with fresh water and drain dry, then repeat. It sounds strange but it works for me. I have had minimal corrosion so far. I store in the garage with pole up and hood off too. I left the hood on one night and it was like the dew set inside my ski the next day. I don't like the shop vac either, I got shocked one time.

Also when my ski starts getting put together I'm looking in to a better paint, maybe liquid electrical tape, for the inside/bottom of the motor mounts, I have found my mount corrosion seems to start from the inside out. Also going to RTV them to the hull and use thread sealant on the engine to mount bolts to try and keep them dry underneath.

I also walk around the ski backwards 3 times shaking a small box of extra bolts and hose clamps to ward off any evil spirits, hahaha. Whatever works!!!!!!!

[FlightPlanDan]

Maintenance tip from this weekend: Thought my s/s switch was going bad.... when I pushed the green button all I got was a click or a fart sound from the e-box. As I checked connections I found some very bad wire/cable on the pos coming off of the battery.
I kept cutting it back to install a new connector, but never got to wire that looked good. (if I kept cutting it would have been too short)
It got me running and I had no further trouble that day. But I plan to replace the entire cable bat to e-box.

If I had inspected it on a regular basis I wouldn't have missed the morning waves.

[chriselmore_1]

I had a loose ground do the same to me

[AtomicPunk]

those cables can look great on the outside (mine did) but crispy on the inside... really no way you can tell until you have a problem. My ski is an '04, so 6 years is not bad for 100% saltwater riding.
I was able to cut mine back, but I SHOULD change all of them out.

[trotty]

I rev excess water out as soon as its on the trailor after a session, take home flush out for 5 - 10mins then rev out remaining water, remove hose and sprinkle engine bay for no more than 20seconds then stop engine and pull throttle back (to allow a certain amount of fuel to remain). I then wash inside and out (shampoo outside) paying particular attentions to steering section / pump etc. I then sponge out excess water in engine bay (as I dont have bilge yet). Have a cigarette and a cup of tea whilst its drying. When dry, i cake everything in wd in the engine compartment (i prob go ott at this stage but just to be sure). I then wd steering components, turning handle bars either way and putting a squirt in their, also pull the throttle and squirt a little on the cable..everything thats metal gets the treatment including the trailor. The ski is then garaged, hood off to breathe and repel condensation with the handlebars up. I then soak all my riding gear or run it in the shower and hang to dry. This is what I do after every session even if I am going the next day.

Just before next session, i put a cupful of soapy water in the engine bay before I leave (not too much) and drive to site. The soapy water will have somewhat loosened any crap/buildup at the bottom of the ski and is bilged out once out haveing fun. I then repeat as stated above once day is up. I dont know wether Im missing anything but thats how I roll anyways. Trotty

p.s I would use silicon but have yet to find a product in the uk thats cheaper than wd40 so just go through a sh"t loada that