Possibility of autopilot for jet boat

[Larry]

Larry,
have a read of page 59 of
http://www.raymarine.com/raymarine/SubmittedFiles/Handbooks/Autopilots/ST3000_wheel.pdf

Maybe it will allow you to set it to either fast or slow response.

My motor-sailer has a very quick response to the wheel, and the ST3000 copes
perfectly - except when I am sailing with a quarter or following wind. But
then again, I have a problem steering with that angle of wind!!

regards, and I hope you find something that will work
Philip,

I'm beginning to think that I may have been given the wrong advice by
Raymarine. I realize, however, that it is doubtful that I can expect any
help from them. Perhaps either the 3000 or the Sport Pilot might be able
to be made to work. The Sport Pilot is a very easy install. The 3000 may
have different electronics. I'll have a closer look.

In my situation, even if the rudder gain is incorrect, I wouldn't care
since I principally want to be able to take my hands off the wheel to setup
the downriggers, so if the boat is just heading in the approximate
direction, that's ok.

Thanks for the help.

 

[Larry]

The stator is behind the impeller. It is necessary to stop the rotational
flow of the water and redirect the thrust straight out the nozzle. They
are fixed vanes around the housing of the rear shaft bearing, the back of
which is a cone into the center of the nozzle to increase pressure and flow
speed.

Ok, I'll check for it. The very last thing closest to the opening turns,
but perhaps there is something else I didn't notice. For example, there
might be a strut further towards the bow. Thanks.

 

[Larry]

God, how awful! Is this thing a Ficht or Merc's abortion of it? I was
under the impression they were using manifold fuel injection, not that
awful direct 2-stroke injection that bankrupted OMC and nearly Brunswick.
I'd NEVER own one of those!

I have no idea. The replacement motor has now gone for 2 1/2 seasons with
no problems however. I don't know if they are using manifold or direct.
EFI is just what they call it.

If this had happened to me, I'd have been talking about a refund, not a
repair. Sure glad mine was a regular 2-stroke V-6 with carbs they'd been
making since 1983....

I think all small marine engines are using some form of fuel injection. I
don't know if they are doing it to reduce emissions, boost mileage, or
boost power, but it seems to be common to I/O's, outboards, or jets.

I didn't ask for a refund since the dealer fought to get me a new engine
and provided a very nice boat as a loaner. But, if I had it to do again,
I'd get something entirely different. It would be larger and probably use
two outboards and would be better to setup for fishing.

 

[Larry]

The bearing I'm talking about is AFT of the impeller, running in a high
pressure zone in the impeller's outlet. The seal is on the forward end of
the stator vanes, right behind the impeller. This bearing, by the way, is
necessary to hold the impeller straight in the hole it sits in, keeping it
from touching the walls around it.

I tried to answer this earlier, but something ate my response.

The shaft descends vertically from the engine fore of the pump. Water is
pulled up through the grate and propelled out directly aft. It probably
uses the wear ring you mention. I didn't see a stator, but I'll have
another look.

I still doubt old Brunswick made a pump out of solid stainless steel.
Noone could afford to buy that much machine work. It might have a
stainless sleeve inside the pump around the impeller jetskiiers call a
"wear ring". "Things" in the water get wedged between the impeller and its
wear ring which is what causes the circular gouges you see in the pump.

Brunswick sold Mercury to Bombardier several years ago. I believe
Bombardier also owns Johnson and Evninrude - what used to be Outboard
Marine. Bombardier also owns SeaDoo.

My experience with rocks was that they wedged between the impeller and the
wear ring you speak of. I didn't get any gouges and the net effect of the
experience seems to be the loss of 1 knot of speed.

The rear bearing still requires maintenance...as does its pump bearing
seal. Order the service manual from the dealer or Merc and do it very
carefully.

That's a great idea - I'm going to do it. Also it will tell me how to fog
the motor. I had the dealer do that last year and it cost me US$ 145.00
whcih seems like a lot for something that simple.

 

[Larry]

Yecch....no thanks. My local See Doo Doo dealer is a crook so it's not an
issue here. I'd never buy one of those awful direct injection two strokes
with all their history of failures.

You might be interested in a little bit of FEDERAL law I learned all about
when returning to that same crooked bastard my 1997 Yamaha GP1200
waverunner. The Magnusson-Moss Warranty Protection Act has a clause in it
that says:

"(c) Prohibition on conditions for written or implied warranty; waiver by
Commission
No warrantor of a consumer product may condition his written or implied
warranty of such product on the consumer’s using, in connection with such
product, any article or service (other than article or service provided
without charge under the terms of the warranty) which is identified by
brand, trade, or corporate name; except that the prohibition of this
subsection may be waived by the Commission if—

(1) the warrantor satisfies the Commission that the warranted product will
function properly only if the article or service so identified is used in
connection with the warranted product, and

(2) the Commission finds that such a waiver is in the public interest."

15USC50 section 2302 (c)......current as of today.

If they tell you you MUST use their brand of some special oil, and the
Federal Trade Commission hasn't given them a waiver to weasle out of this
law, they Brunswick has to GIVE YOU THE OIL FREE for the life of the
product. It's Federal Law....

My dealer never said that, but it was stated by the SeaDoo dealer near
Moosehead Lake, Maine. I found out that you can use ANY synthetic oil made
for EFI or DFI and there are many brands, so that isn't an issue. It's
still more expensive than regular oil, however.

 

[Matt Colie]

Reply in line way down.

I have no idea. The replacement motor has now gone for 2 1/2 seasons with
no problems however. I don't know if they are using manifold or direct.
EFI is just what they call it.




I think all small marine engines are using some form of fuel injection. I
don't know if they are doing it to reduce emissions, boost mileage, or
boost power, but it seems to be common to I/O's, outboards, or jets.

As an ex-Detroit development engineer - Trust me - the only reason the
manufacturers are going to electronic injection systems is emissions.
What you also have to remember is that almost all (not quite yet) all
the "marine" engines on the market started out as passcar motors and
then were re-applied to stationary and marine service. If they tried,
few could even meet stationary emissions with a conventional carb, but
that is almost a moot point as the hardward (carb, manifold, fuel pump,
and a conventional distributer) are simply not available anymore. Yes,
they can get some horsepower sometimes, but the market volume is not
there to justify the tooling and certification costs.
Matt Colie