RAVE valve help (pictures).

[tomcat&family]

Hey guys-

I thought that making a new thread for this topic would be best, since it is related to one thing in particular.

I was advised in my other thread to clean my RAVE valves. After the rain let up, I headed down the '99 GTX RFI that wasn't running as well as the other (lower RPMs, slightly lower speed, etc... see other thread for more detail). I got one of the RAVE valves disassembled, and here is what I found:

This was the back RAVE valve, and as you can see, it was extremely oily. Is that normal? I have never worked on one of these before, so I am not sure what to look for.

Here's what it looked like after I wiped it down:

I then used brake cleaner, a wire brush, and a wire wheel on a Dremel to clean the carbon up. As per the recommendation of someone else, I sanded it with some fine sandpaper as well. Here's the result:

Okay. Now should I be worried about all of that oil? How does everything look? I also cleaned out the inside of the slot where the valve goes in, but I have yet to reassemble anything. I heard thunder, so I decided to get the boat covered up before it started raining again. By the pictures, do you think it is safe for me to reassemble the valve and proceed to cleaning the second one up? What about the third RAVE valve in the back? Should I clean that one too?

Thanks,


-Tom & Family.

 

[timmyboy76]

way to go, Tommy...recheck the geotine, from pic, looks like its has a crack, also, looks like water on the spear, being milky look'n. Need to compression test....:cheers:

 

[tomcat&family]

I don't think that is a crack, to be honest. It looks more like a scar of sorts, but I will have to examine it closer now that you have said something. What should the compression for this engine be? It's the 110 horse in a 99 GTX RFI. I think the milky look came from the flash on my camera?

I ended up inspecting the bellows, and that looks to be in good shape, so it's not likely the cause of the oil under the cap.

Thanks.

 

[tomcat&family]

If you'll pardon the two posts in a row, I examined the rave valve more closely. It does appear to be a crack, but it is a very small one. It is not a through-on-through crack. Being on the back side, that shouldn't really have an affect on the performance, right? Also, how do you think that crack was formed, be it a small one.

I have a compression tester, so I will reassemble this valve and clean the other one tomorrow... weather permitting, of course. Should I also clean the RAVE vlave in the back of the boat while I'm at it?

 

[JPX]

Hmm, that oil on the RAVE valve doesn't look so good.

Crack is probably not a major factor - could even be a casting variation. These valves are not super high tolerance components. But if piece of mind matters, change the blade.

Compresion test will reveal more.

 

[tomcat&family]

Thanks for the reply. I think you are right about that casting issue, as the other RAVE valve was exactly the same.

I performed a compression test after cleaning up the other RAVE valve... it read 150 psi on both cylinders. Isn't that what it should be?

The water is rough right now (1-3 footers w/ white caps), but I think I am going to take it out for a spin here in a bit just to see how she runs with the cleaned up RAVE valves.

EDIT: Well, by the time I got the GTX RFI's fueled up for a run, the weather was starting to turn. I saw some nasty looking clouds coming in, so I called the run off- I'll wait for a nice day with nicer water conditions. Here are the pictures that I took from the second RAVE valve cleaning:

Wiped down:

I cleaned this one up the same way I did the other, so I didn't take a picture of it when I was done. Reassembling the RAVE valves wasn't as difficult as I thought it would be. I figured on spending quite a bit of time getting the bellows back on the black cap, but that wasn't an issue.

 

[derek]

hi. are these 787 or 951 RAVES?

 

[tomcat&family]

They should be 787's, since the '99 GTX RFI's came with the 787 engine.

 

[timmyboy76]

goo job, Tommy...still be little hesitant on reinstalling the blades, with the crack. If material sucks that bad, then wouldn't be long for the crack to go thru and then have a piece drop'n on the piston..?

 

[tomcat&family]

Being that both valves were exactly the same, I am not worried about it. It appears to have been an issue with the casting.

 

[derek]

those 2 cracks are identical. they aren't cracks. they are a casting flaw-in the mold the valves were poured into.

 

[tomcat&family]

Right, that's what I figured being that they are exacty alike... as I said earlier.

Is it possible that my o-rings need to be replaced? Would older o-rings cause the oil seen in the first couple of pictures in this thread? The o-rings weren't hard, but they weren't in like-new shape, either.