cant figure it out. ski keeps dying (FIXED IT)

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team510

squarenose
Location
Hayward, CA
i have a squarenose with basically a 2 season old crate 701 from yamaha. lightened flywheel, mikuni 38 carb, coffman pipe from the 650, MSD ignition...basically not much done to it. always runs smooth and reliable.

the other day though i rode it for quite a while and then parked it on a beach, then rode it some more chasing my friends boat wake. well it like bogged down on me and died. then i couldnt get it to do pretty much anything except idle. it fires up fine, runs fine on the stand, but when i get up on it it runs cool for a minute then acts like it runs out of gas. give it more gas and it just boggs down and dies. changed the plugs, removed the inline fuel filter, removed the overheat sensor, fattened it up half a turn.

still boggs down and dies. wtf is wrong with my ski? someone help me please!
 
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Watty

Watty

Random Performance
Location
Australia
Yeah, check/clean your carbs. This should be the first point of service in any problem that isn't clear.

Check for water inside the flywheel cover, and also check for water in your electrical box. Water in the gas tank? Clogged filters? Low compression?
 
Kaveman

Kaveman

Born in USA(not Kenya)
Location
texas but soon tejas
What did the plugs look like when you changed them? Were they wet with water? Were they wet with fuel? Were they black and carboned up? Were they white and dry? Have you verified spark under load using an inline spark tester?
 
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team510

squarenose
Location
Hayward, CA
couldnt really read the plugs because i towed the ski home on the swim deck of my buddies boat and it forced a ton of water through the motor and filled it up so the plugs ended up covered in water. cleared all the water out and it fired up fine, ran great on the stand.

im pretty sure the problem isnt in the electrical box because it runs fine for a minute or two, then boggs and dies out. from my experience, electrical problems are constant and dont go away for a minute, then come back after you run it for a while and then stay there. if i let the ski sit for a couple hours it'll ride for a minute or 2 and then start acting up again. thats why i thought it was the heat sensor.

i hadnt changed the plugs in a while and i changed them and it definetly helped when i first started riding, but then it still died. im definetly going to pull the carb and clean it out. i think the small filter inside it clogged once before when i wasnt smart enough to run an inline fuel filter, but i have been running one ever since. ill pull it apart maybe today and take a look at it. sucks with memorial weekend coming up, but im so broke its probably smart to have my ski pulled apart for a weekend =). save some damn money.
 
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team510

squarenose
Location
Hayward, CA
Dirtybird said:
Possibly the same problem? http://www.x-h2o.com/threads/18077
Click to expand...


sounds totally different from my problem. my ski turns over and runs but when you give it gas it dies. when it first started doing this i was stranded but just hung onto the tray and idled for 2 hours for about 8 friggin miles till i got to where my friends were. just wouldnt stay running if i gave it more gas. or if i gave it more gas and could feel it starting to die i would let off and let it idle for a while, then give it some gas again, and just keep going back and forth that way. thats why i think its carb/gas related.
 
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team510

squarenose
Location
Hayward, CA
Dirtybird said:
Does it idle and then as soon as you put a load on it, then it dies?
Click to expand...

sort of. when i first get it in the water i fire it up and take off it runs fine. i got about 100 yards, made a couple turns, and it died. fire it up again and try and plane out and it'll die before it planes out. so i have to then just idle it back to the dock.
 
Kaveman

Kaveman

Born in USA(not Kenya)
Location
texas but soon tejas
Run a compression test on the engine. If the combustion chamber is leaking gases into the water jacket at the head gasket it will heat up the sensor rather quickly. When this happens the rev limit is somewhere in the 2000-3000 rpm range. Another possible cause is the ignition coil. It could be breaking down as it heats up naturally through use. Check the resistance of the coil when you have the problem. If the resistance readings are not within specifications then the coil is suspect. Remember ALWAYS check in this order...mechanical condition (compression and leak down), electrical condition (all components within the ignition and charging system including the battery) and then fuel system (fuel delivery and condition). You cannot ever tune carburetion to compensate an electrical or mechanical problem.
 
crashski

crashski

X
Location
Pacific City Or
What kind of head do you have on your ski? I ask this because if it is an O-ring head you could be leaking water past an O-ring. I had this problem with my ski this winter, it would run great out of water and even idled fine in water but as soon as you added gas it would die. The system would pressurize and spray water into the cylinder killing the motor.
 
Dirtybird

Dirtybird

Ex*ta*ski
Location
St. Clair, MI
team510 said:
sort of. when i first get it in the water i fire it up and take off it runs fine. i got about 100 yards, made a couple turns, and it died. fire it up again and try and plane out and it'll die before it planes out. so i have to then just idle it back to the dock.
Click to expand...

same thing happened to ours. We'd run it at home on the stand and it'd run fine. We got it in the water. Through the no wake zone, then once we got in the river it'd take off and then die. My brother would hold himself from being thrown over the bars, but we found out it had a cylinder out. Under load it wouldnt be able to handle it with one cylinder. :dunno: Hope thats not the problem, but sounds like it. :bigeyes:
 
Mouthfulloflake

Mouthfulloflake

ISJWTA member #2
Location
NW Arkansas
are the plugs wet?

I had a seeping head gasket that would start and run FINE out of the water, but in the water, the plugs would be really hard to fire, and underload it would bog badly.
 
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team510

squarenose
Location
Hayward, CA
its a stock head. motor has never been apart. came start out of a box from yamaha about a season and a half ago.

i know its not an exhaust leak. it would be spewing smoke into the engine compartment if it was. i know cause i was blowing exhaust couplers for the first 3 months i rode it cause i had a cooling hole plugged with sand.

ill try and see if my buddy has a compression gauge that will work. i dont think that would be my problem as the motor is pretty fresh and its a stock head but i guess things happen. i guess it could be the problem though cause i was riding the ski for a while, parked it, started riding it again and thats when it started acting up. the gasket could have finally let go before i parked it. i dunno. ill keep you updated.

auddie...ur gay but i still <3 u....
 
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team510

squarenose
Location
Hayward, CA
fixed it. stupid little filter in the carb was full of junk. i knew it had to be the carb. just the way it was acting i didnt think it could be anything else. there was some seriously junk in that little thing including what looked like a couple strands of hair lol. i have an inline filter on the fuel line but apparantly i need a better one lol. but i cleaned that filter out, and ran it aat woodward resevoir and it ran great. need to lean it back out thought since i richened it up a turn now it loads up in the 5mph sections and it loads up when i roll up slow to a wake and doesnt give me the pop off the water like it should. thats easy though. thanks for everyones input though especially fathom. u were right on. i had an idea it was just going to be that. im so glad it was. everyone started scaring me with all these possible problems lol. thanks guys.
 
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Watty

Watty

Random Performance
Location
Australia
Do yourself a favour and take those filters out all together. Just run a fuel filter inline with the fuel feed to the carb.

It's easier to see/clean and doesn't take as much junk to block it. I also find that the internal carb filters tend to hold a bit of water whereas the inline filters will let it through into your engine to burn. Sounds dire, but all ski engines burn a little water at some time.
 
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