My Winter Project

[itsdgm]

Well, it's a very long story of how this project began.

Two years ago I had a stuck valve in my 07 Yamaha AR210. That led to me pulling the engine at least three times and sending it back to the repair shop, almost missing an entire boating season, finally realizing that the hard to find water leak was a cracked block, then buying and installing a used replacment engine in the boat in order to save the next years boating season.

Well, what to do with the engine with a cracked block? I ended up finding a good used engine block pretty cheap which led me to swap all of the parts over from the original engine to the replacement block. At first, I figured I'd rebuild the original engine and reinstall it back into the boat. But how would I know if it was reliable? I know, I'll try to find a used waverunner with a blown motor.

Guess what? There's a reason why eBay is loaded with replacement engines and parts. These engines are way more durable than the hulls. Lots of guys simply part out the ski after major damage to the hull. So it took over 6 months of searching and finally I found a ski with a 2005 Yamaha VX110 Deluxe Waverunner with a Non-Ho 110 engine that was within driving distance.

So, will I make a profit on this deal? More than likely not. I probably will break even at best. However, I didn't feel like I could sell the engine if I didn't know how well it would run. Also, how would I know if my first ever engine teardown/rebuild was done right if I wasn't the one who first fired it up?

Also, I've had a very stressful last year. I really need a project like this to take my mind off of things. Wish me luck, here we go.

IMG_0812

• itsdgm
• Dec 2, 2017

I finally found a home for my rebuilt engine

IMG_0813

• itsdgm
• Dec 2, 2017

2017 winter project. A 2005 Wavreunner VX110 Deluxe

 

[Ronnie]

Good luck Dennis but I hope you don’t need it.

 

[Scottintexas]

not a bad remedy for stress release!

being your first rebuild, we're you apprehensive at all or did you feel you had enough other mechanical experience to carry you through?

just wondering about the difficulty level for a novice home mechanic,

 

[robert843]

Good luck my man looking forward to seeing how it progresses

 

[swatski]

S

Well, it's a very long story of how this project began.

Two years ago I had a stuck valve in my 07 Yamaha AR210. That led to me pulling the engine at least three times and sending it back to the repair shop, almost missing an entire boating season, finally realizing that the hard to find water leak was a cracked block, then buying and installing a used replacment engine in the boat in order to save the next years boating season.

Well, what to do with the engine with a cracked block? I ended up finding a good used engine block pretty cheap which led me to swap all of the parts over from the original engine to the replacement block. At first, I figured I'd rebuild the original engine and reinstall it back into the boat. But how would I know if it was reliable? I know, I'll try to find a used waverunner with a blown motor.

Guess what? There's a reason why eBay is loaded with replacement engines and parts. These engines are way more durable than the hulls. Lots of guys simply part out the ski after major damage to the hull. So it took over 6 months of searching and finally I found a ski with a 2005 Yamaha VX110 Deluxe Waverunner with a Non-Ho 110 engine that was within driving distance.

So, will I make a profit on this deal? More than likely not. I probably will break even at best. However, I didn't feel like I could sell the engine if I didn't know how well it would run. Also, how would I know if my first ever engine teardown/rebuild was done right if I wasn't the one who first fired it up?

Also, I've had a very stressful last year. I really need a project like this to take my mind off of things. Wish me luck, here we go.

IMG_0812

• itsdgm
• Dec 2, 2017

I finally found a home for my rebuilt engine

IMG_0813

• itsdgm
• Dec 2, 2017

2017 winter project. A 2005 Wavreunner VX110 Deluxe

Awesome! Watching !
So, do you know what's wrong with the ski, yet? Does it have a blown/cracked hull?

--

 

[itsdgm]

not a bad remedy for stress release!

being your first rebuild, we're you apprehensive at all or did you feel you had enough other mechanical experience to carry you through?

just wondering about the difficulty level for a novice home mechanic,

I was pretty confident that I could do it. I have the shop manual and I watched a couple of YouTube videos. So I felt like I had nothing to lose.

The only real procedure that was foreign to me was torquing some bolts down to spec. I had never heard of "degree torque" settings before. But it made sense after discussing with a local shop mechanic and buying the tool.

 

[itsdgm]

S


Awesome! Watching !
So, do you know what's wrong with the ski, yet? Does it have a blown/cracked hull?

--

So far, here's what I know about the ski:

1. Hull is in great shape. It has a few scrapes here and there, but appears to be fine.
2. Battery is dead.
3. Steering cable needs to be replaced.
4. Seat needs to be recovered
5. The owner said that he rarely used this ski. He told me that it ran fine the last time it was used. It simply wouldn't crank last time he went to start it. He took it to a mechanic who said he could start tearing into it. But he didn't feel it was worth doing. So even his add even alluded to the fact that it might need serious engine work.

I've thought of several possible problems.
1. Bad starter
2. Stuck pump
3. Hydro locked engine

I probably won't get to this project for a couple of weeks. It seems that my "Honey do List" just grew longer as soon as I parked this project outside the house.

 

[Neutron]

Here is the big problem i see.
Remove ski engine,
Install your rebuilt engine from the boat into the ski,
Tear down engine from ski,
Rebuild old ski engine,
Look for a new project for newest engine.........
Etc....

 

[Seadeals]

Glad you finally found one! I am excited to see how things go. I still keep an eye out for used VX waverunners back east. I want a spare engine if my block repair ever fails. Plus, we could use it when we camp at the lake. It would be cheap to store it by the campground and the multiple round trips with the travel trailer and boat takes too much time and gas.

 

[itsdgm]

Glad you finally found one! I am excited to see how things go. I still keep an eye out for used VX waverunners back east. I want a spare engine if my block repair ever fails. Plus, we could use it when we camp at the lake. It would be cheap to store it by the campground and the multiple round trips with the travel trailer and boat takes too much time and gas.

I found at least half a dozen VX waverunner in the $2000-3000 price range that claimed to be running. So there's probably some near you too. My problem was that everybody who had one with a bad engine was too far to drive and the cost of shipping just didn't make sense. So this was the first non-ho ski that I found.

 

[itsdgm]

Here is the big problem i see.
Remove ski engine,
Install your rebuilt engine from the boat into the ski,
Tear down engine from ski,
Rebuild old ski engine,
Look for a new project for newest engine.........
Etc....

Yeah, this could be a vicious never ending cycle

Eventually I'll be parting one out and selling on eBay. I already sold my original case with the crack/failed weld.

 

[Ronnie]

You have a lot of patience, i would probably have already tried to get it started or at least done a compression check. I’ve been looking for another project ski for my son and I to rebuild but haven’t found anything yet and the four stroke engines intimidate me since I haven’t had much experience working on them. Anyway, I hope your ski Doesn’t have any major problems so you can get it running without too much expense.

 

[itsdgm]

You have a lot of patience, i would probably have already tried to get it started or at least done a compression check. I’ve been looking for another project ski for my son and I to rebuild but haven’t found anything yet and the four stroke engines intimidate me since I haven’t had much experience working on them. Anyway, I hope your ski Doesn’t have any major problems so you can get it running without too much expense.

Thanks @Ronnie I have had a chance to do minor things with the waverunner. So my first priority is to diagnose what, if anything, is wrong with the engine. That shouldn't take too long. But any big engine work will probably have to wait a few weeks.

 

[itsdgm]

Well the first order of business was to get the WaveRunner off of the trailer and into the garage. So I found a stand on Craigslist that was perfect for that.

IMG_0819

• itsdgm
• Dec 3, 2017

Found a shop stand on Craigslist ;)

Also, I don't have room to store a double trailer so that needed to go. The original owner stated that he'd throw in the trailer for the agreed price. Before I saw the ski and trailer my plan was to simply sell the trailer and recover some money. After I saw the trailer, I was wondering if it would make it home the 60 or so miles that I had to tow it and I really figured that I'd have to chop it up and put it in the dumpster at work. I have never seen a trailer this rusted out. The axle, rims, tires, springs and fenders seemed ok. But the frame of the trailer was actually folding in half at each bend where it had rusted through. There wasn't a square inch of paint that hadn't blistered from rust underneath. In fact, I found the ID tag at the bottom of the toolbox. It had the paint stuck to the back side of the tag. The paint had literally separated from the trailer because of the rust. So really I don't think there was enough solid metal to weld over all the holes on this thing. Trust me, the pictures don't do it justice. Anyway, I had a few buyers lined up in the $150 range but a friend of mine really wanted it for the axle, springs, wheels, fenders, coupler and toolbox. So, we removed the bunks and bow stops (just in case I need them on my next trailer) and I handed him the paperwork and he was kind enough to tow that eyesore away from my house.

IMG_0682

• itsdgm
• Dec 3, 2017

The trailer was thrown in with the ski. It's pretty much rusted through.

IMG_0814

• itsdgm
• Dec 3, 2017

The trailer was thrown in with the ski. It's pretty much rusted through.

IMG_0820

• itsdgm
• Dec 3, 2017

I pulled the bunks and bunk brackets off the trailer.

IMG_0821

• itsdgm
• Dec 3, 2017

I pulled the bow stops off the trailer.

So by the third or fourth day of ownership I had the ski in the garage and the trailer gone. I'll be looking for a good galvanized single trailer. I'm pretty sure this ski is going in the ocean.

IMG_0823

• itsdgm
• Dec 3, 2017

Got the WaveRunner in the garage.

Now let the fun begin.

 

[Jgorm]

Awesome! The fx140 also had the same engine. I should have time to dig into mine early next year. My fx140 drops a cylinder sometimes, but only had 95hr. Hopefully between that and the boat I can get the boat wielding by April.

 

[itsdgm]

Awesome! The fx140 also had the same engine. I should have time to dig into mine early next year. My fx140 drops a cylinder sometimes, but only had 95hr. Hopefully between that and the boat I can get the boat wielding by April.

Nice, make sure to document it. If so, I'll keep an eye out for your posts to use as a cross reference.

 

[buckbuck]

I'll be watching your adventure @itsdgm . I am thinking of rebuilding one once I retire. This will give me an idea of what it will take.

 

[itsdgm]

I'll be watching your adventure @itsdgm . I am thinking of rebuilding one once I retire. This will give me an idea of what it will take.

I really wish that I had the time and patience to document the complete engine tear down that I did. It was time consuming enough as it was. So I just powered through it. So I’m trying to document this one to make up for it .

 

[txav8r]

@itsdgm , Dennis, that is a whole list of chores you have lined up! I admire your determination and I fully understand the project helping to counter stress.

I just heard from Cummins on the engine issue in the coach. I haven't said much about this here, but they are hello che to replace the engine with a new reman crate engine. It's the only way we can trust that coach again, and the repair authorized by fe warranty company fell $15000 short of what is needed to do the repair correctly. If I was 10 years younger and it was a gas engine vs a big diesel in a motorhome, I would tackle it too. Just grateful Cummins is helping a little. Oh, the diesel dropped a valve, toolkit the piston, cylinder, slight damage to two other cylinders, wrecked the head beyond even core, took out the turbocharger and actuator, and corrupted the EGR snd EGR cooler. A crate engine comes with all of that as a zero time motor, and is built on the Cummins line. It comes with a 2 year, 100,000 mike warranty. Anyway, I digress...will follow your rebuild!

 

[itsdgm]

@itsdgm , Dennis, that is a whole list of chores you have lined up! I admire your determination and I fully understand the project helping to counter stress.

I just heard from Cummins on the engine issue in the coach. I haven't said much about this here, but they are hello che to replace the engine with a new reman crate engine. It's the only way we can trust that coach again, and the repair authorized by fe warranty company fell $15000 short of what is needed to do the repair correctly. If I was 10 years younger and it was a gas engine vs a big diesel in a motorhome, I would tackle it too. Just grateful Cummins is helping a little. Oh, the diesel dropped a valve, toolkit the piston, cylinder, slight damage to two other cylinders, wrecked the head beyond even core, took out the turbocharger and actuator, and corrupted the EGR snd EGR cooler. A crate engine comes with all of that as a zero time motor, and is built on the Cummins line. It comes with a 2 year, 100,000 mike warranty. Anyway, I digress...will follow your rebuild!

Wow, that would take a me a few winters to tackle that one. Glad to hear that you're getting a bit of help from Cummings.