2001 Seadoo Sportster LE. Just got it!

[Bonmotwang]

Or maybe a compass, possibly a lake water temp gauge? I've removed the blank plate and placed a voltmeter in that space but haven't wired it in yet. Actually was torn between using either an ammeter or voltmeter, I think an ammeter can tell me if my battery is still in need of charge, voltmeter is easier to wire. Found the perfect ammeter for this purpose, while still trying to decide which one to install. LOL:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Ammeter-by-...Parts_Accessories&hash=item25906ec927&vxp=mtr

I ordered a voltage meter.

 

[Bonmotwang]

CD player is working, fish finder is alive.

Now trying to find the model manuals to use them.

The CD player also spit out a PO's CD :-D

Edit: Just found out the PO got the CD player wired wrong: Yellow wire should be constant 12V battery power direct for holding the memory of the CD player settings, Red wire should be connected to a switched 12V power source. But PO connected the Red to battery directly and Yellow to bilge fan switch, which I think is controlled by boat ON/OFF switch.

Either way I don't think it is smart to leave anything always connected to your main battery, even it only drains very very low current, which is software controlled.

I don't need memory on the CD player, so I connected Yellow and Red together to my new good looking toggle power switch. Peace of mind ...

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[Bonmotwang]

Tried wake boarding today. Didn't get up. probably I should start with water ski first :-D

Today I got a couple of one long beeps, but cleared by remove and re-install the safety lanyard cap.
Checked the manual, one of the reason is "Bad connection between safety lanyard cap and DESS post". I think that was because I left the lanyard on the DESS post and stopped the engine by pressing the red button. and when we was working on the fishing stuff, somehow bumped the lanyard cap / key chain, caused bad connection.

 

[Bonmotwang]

Today we spent a few hours of good time on the lake. Fishing, boating, tubing and trying wakeboarding.
Very nice day. But I noticed that when we were anchored fishing. Some water got into the boat through the deck drain. Kind of in and out. I think it is normal right? Because the ball seal at the back is just "touch" tight?


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[Sportster-2001-951C-Stock]

Today we spent a few hours of good time on the lake. Fishing, boating, tubing and trying wakeboarding.
Very nice day. But I noticed that when we were anchored fishing. Some water got into the boat through the deck drain. Kind of in and out. I think it is normal right? Because the ball seal at the back is just "touch" tight?


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The ball for the deck scupper drain should have a soft rubber sealing surface, so check the condition by looking with a torch/light from underneath, I think the rubber color is gray and it may be made of silicone or perhaps latex. Normally mine is very slow to drain depending on the angle of the keel but sitting around for the day I don't often notice much water entering. (seems always it's wet there with some moisture less than 10cc around the drain though).

I think the deck level is very nearly the same as water level so I'm not surprised you could see some water.

Anyway, it's possible there may be some debris caught between the seal and the ball like a tree leaf or pine needles for instance? Maybe you can see/correct this from below without disassembly.

 

[Sportster-2001-951C-Stock]

Tried wake boarding today. Didn't get up. probably I should start with water ski first :-D

Today I got a couple of one long beeps, but cleared by remove and re-install the safety lanyard cap.
Checked the manual, one of the reason is "Bad connection between safety lanyard cap and DESS post". I think that was because I left the lanyard on the DESS post and stopped the engine by pressing the red button. and when we was working on the fishing stuff, somehow bumped the lanyard cap / key chain, caused bad connection.

I normally leave the lanyard cap on the post as well, and reawaken the MPEM from sleep mode by a light push on the cap (two short beeps). Also, I stop the engine by pressing the start/stop button.

 

[Bonmotwang]

All good then. I will take a look into the drain to see if the soft seal is there.

Right now I am working on a boarding ladder design using 1.5 ABS pipes because climbing onto the swimming platform is hard. And people think the reverse gate could be stepped on!
I got a design in mind, will report when it is done.


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[Sportster-2001-951C-Stock]

Yes, I know what you mean but man it's nice having a swim platform! Some of the older boats I've had never had this feature.

Normally we stop the Sportster in shallow water for playtime so it's easy to use the swimming platform, just sit on it and you're practically in the boat. In deep water you're supposed to grab the rear handle and lift your knee onto the swim platform then most people can pull themselves onto the platform unless they are too weak or old. The owner's manual suggests this method so you can find the description there, this is how I re-board in deep water while skiing and it works well for me.

I had thought about making a rope ladder with PVC pipe steps but since we stop in knee deep shallow water re-boarding hasn't been an issue.

Also when stopping, place the shifter in full forward position to raise the reverse gate, then it can't be easily stepped on and in shallow water won't hit the ground in case waves are coming and the stern happens to bump the bottom.

Friday here it was windy and I wasn't watching the boat carefully, the wind was strong enough to overcome the anchor and washed the boat against the beach. This fouled the speedometer pickup with sand but the reverse gate was fully up so at least it wasn't dragging in the sandy bottom. There were handfulls of sand inside the steering nozzle by the time I realized the wind had blown the boat onto the beach, LOL.

 

[Sportster-2001-951C-Stock]

Also, I had thought about mounting one of the swing-down type of one-step ladders like are used on the jet skis but haven't b/c we finally learned to use the shallow water for most of re-boarding onto the stern.

So maybe you could check those jetski type ladders out for some ideas, I think they may have a spring-loaded version and one that is held by a nylon strap with a snap.

Another idea is a multi step "over platform" type telescoping ladder except to mount this one the brackets will occupy some space on the swim platform and drilling mounting holes will be necessary. These are available in various lengths, two, three or more steps and swing up onto the swim platform secured by a strap with snap when underway.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/3-Step-Stai..._Accessories_Gear&hash=item3f38d8098b&vxp=mtr

 

[Bonmotwang]

My idea is to have it removable. It will be hooked on the tow hook where the cooling water comes out. and it can be stored in the storage area above the engine.

 

[Sportster-2001-951C-Stock]

I like this idea and interested to see your design/test. I want to avoid drilling holes in my boat, LOL!

 

[Bonmotwang]

UPS delivered the guide. Will install it tonight and test it on Friday. It will be very windy the rest if the week.

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[Bonmotwang]

Boarding ladder will be assembled from this pile of parts

Total of $50.

This is 1.5" pipe. OD is about 2".
1.25" pipe is available too, but cost almost double. So I picked the BIG one

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[Bonmotwang]

Bought the water ski trainer for the kids.

The good thing about it is at the boat end, parent can hold the rope instead of the post.


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[Bonmotwang]

UPS delivered the guide. Will install it tonight and test it on Friday. It will be very windy the rest if the week.

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According to amazon reviews. I primed the metal piece. I will paint them gloss white.

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[Bonmotwang]

Put the guides on. Had to leave about 2" space between the bar and the rim of the boat, because the max width is in the middle of the boat. I will try it out in the next trip. If the space becomes a problem. I will add a piece of stand off to compensate the 2" gap. When loading the boat, stand off can be turn away 90 degrees. When the boat is almost in position, the stand off will be turned in to hold the hull.

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[Waterluvr]

Nice work on the guide poles! That makes backing up an empty trailer easier when retrieving the boat, you have something to see to get an idea of where everything's at if you can't see it in the side mirrors. I need to add those to mine pronto...

 

[Sportster-2001-951C-Stock]

Put the guides on. Had to leave about 2" space between the bar and the rim of the boat, because the max width is in the middle of the boat. I will try it out in the next trip. If the space becomes a problem. I will add a piece of stand off to compensate the 2" gap. When loading the boat, stand off can be turn away 90 degrees. When the boat is almost in position, the stand off will be turned in to hold the hull.

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I think this won't be a problem but if you do still experience difficulty centering the boat then a bungie cord on both sides around the guide to the cleat should place the boat exactly center during A Katrina storm?

 

[Bonmotwang]

Thanks. Without a deep 1/4" socket, those 8 nuts is a pain LoL. The bracket and the angle bar is solid, and the white pipe and the angle bar is a snug fit. According to the instruction, you need to drill through the pipe and bar to bolt through. I don't see why you have to do that, plug I want to rotate the pipe 90 degree for the 2" gap.


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[Bonmotwang]

I think this won't be a problem but if you do still experience difficulty centering the boat then a bungie cord on both sides around the guide to the cleat should place the boat exactly center during A Katrina storm?

Ahha. I like the bungee cable better than my 90 degree idea.
I will store two short bungee cable in the tool box.

PS. Just brought home a knee board and an pair of adult skis. Garage is not a problem. Boat seems to be to small for a 7' tube, kids trainer skis, adult skis, and a knee board :-D

I guess the "hall way" in the middle of the boat so far is still ok.

I will try knee board next time, and hopeful.


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[Sportster-2001-951C-Stock]

Bought the water ski trainer for the kids.

The good thing about it is at the boat end, parent can hold the rope instead of the post.


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These skis should work well, I never tried this type that ties the two skis together, that seems difficult to keep your balance but maybe not.

Remember to tell the kids to keep their knees tight to their chest and their arms outside their legs, this keeps everything tight and in alignment until the speed increases then they can stand up, naturally, and always lean backwards slightly.

I'd almost bet they get up the first time if the driver can resist the temptation of dragging them too slowly.

 

[Bonmotwang]

I was wondering how slow or fast I should be driving to start.
So I do need to push a little more speed then?


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[Sportster-2001-951C-Stock]

Boat seems to be to small for a 7' tube, kids trainer skis, adult skis, and a knee board :-DSent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I never tried to carry all those toys at the same time even in a large boat! Leave them ashore until you need them.

Since you used PVC, it's easy to experiment with.

I'm very surprised the square tubing doesn't have a thick hot-dipped galvanized coating! But it's a better match and looks much better painted on your trailer anyway!

 

[Bonmotwang]

That makes backing up an empty trailer easier when retrieving the boat, you have something to see ... ...

I was thinking about shortening the pipe to half because it is too tall for the sportster, but now there is a perfect reason to keep it standing UP. :-D


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[Sportster-2001-951C-Stock]

I was wondering how slow or fast I should be driving to start.
So I do need to push a little more speed then?


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It takes my boat FULL THROTTLE to pull me up on a single ski, and if I want to I can lean back and the boat goes nowhere, then begins to cavitate if I keep my ski vertical, LOL! I have to lean more forward with this boat, but it affects my balance negativly, the boat should have enough power to pop me out of the water, I shouldn't be able to hold the boat back. So it's a little weak for me.

In the case of the kids, if they can hold on without falling over to left or right (keep knees to chest to avoid this) then they should pop right out of the water on those double skis. The driver has to get the boat on plane before this can happen, should happen almost simultaneously.

So I would say you cannot use full throttle until they become experienced and confident, but if you drag them they cannot get up and they will get tired very quickly, so you need to get the boat moving as fast as you can without ripping the handle from their hands to get them on top of the water.