Dano

For tv How about recorded viewing rather than live with the down time trimmed out. Get the whole day or weekend down to just 2 hours. I don’t know what went wrong back in the 90’s but I can remember watching tournaments on ESPN. I think it was called hot summer nights. If we could just get back to that I would watch every single one.

Check the transmission oil level. If it’s like a borg Warner low oil level will cause it to fall out of gear momentarily when cornering.

@On_edge i do have vacuum secondaries. That would explain the behaviour I’m seeing. I’ll have to check into this further.

@skiboyny I tried a stronger return spring. no difference.

@BraceMaker will do when I get back to my boat Sunday. I have done this test when I installed and both servo cable and throttle cable moved freely and smoothly. I will double check though.

@VermontSkier yes I’ve done auto calibration. Mine beeps as it should but doesn’t seem to react right away. Not really a noticeable change in rpms or acceleration. I’m comparing to another boat that I’m familiar with that is the same hull but running the mercruiser tournament ski 350 with a 2 barrel carb. In that boat pp beeps and the boat almost immediately stops accelerating and locks onto the set speed. It’s very noticeable change in acceleration once pp beeps. Same with several other boats I ski on but they are DBW.

Anybody using PP 9.2 with a carbed indmar 351? I thought mine was locking and settling into speed well, but after driving several other boats I have noticed they hit target speed and settle without overshooting at all. It’s a very sudden change in acceleration after PP beeps. Mine does not get this and runs past set speed 1-1,5mph. Settling back to set speed a few second later. I’m trying to sort out if it’s just the way it is on these Holley carbed motors or if something is not right with PP. I have Kx set at ++ and I have tried a stronger return spring with no change to how it settles to target speed. Runs good ball times after it’s settled and the pull feels very good. It’s just the settling into target speed.

Anybody using PP 9.2 with a carbed indmar 351? I thought mine was locking and settling into speed well, but after driving several other boats I have noticed they hit target speed and settle without overshooting at all. It’s a very sudden change in acceleration after PP beeps. Mine does not get this and runs past set speed 1-1,5mph. Settling back to set speed a few second later. I’m trying to sort out if it’s just the way it is on these Holley carbed motors or if something is not right with PP. I have Kx set at ++ and I have tried a stronger return spring with no change to how it settles to target speed. Runs good ball times after it’s settled and the pull feels very good. It’s just the settling into target speed.

Read the link @AdamCord posted above then go free ski and try to get high on the boat with a tight line while keeping the handle in tight to your hip. You'll quickly realize "pulling" the handle in does not work. I'm not a short line skier and I probably am terrible at executing what Adam is talking about, the little bit of improvement i have made in this regard has for sure improved my skiing.

Does he have receipts for the engine replacement? If not who knows for sure what was installed? Providing the engine is the correct block with the correct heads, and the correct ignition system. It's likely something relatively simple, like fuel supply (carb), timing, or weak spark. Carb's can be troublesome especially if you have a vacuum leak at the base of the carb (most likely spot on a boat). If he's installed an automotive distributor rather than original equipment your timing will be all messed up since cars generally use vacuum advance, boats do not. faulty spark plugs or a weak ignition, can cause most of the issues you mention in your post. Because your problem seems to worsen at 3000rpm it seems to point towards a weak or failing ignition. Check the ignition components are the correct ones, check timing both at idle and insure it's advancing as it should, by 2500 RPM you should see roughly 28 degees of advance give or take. If that all passes then install new spark plugs. If no change your likely looking at a fuel issue.

@chrislandy yup I know the feeling. I was in disbelief it was the cable because it has always operated smoothly. I consider myself to take exceptional care of my boat but I had overlooked regular changes of the cable. Which could have been very dangerous. I personally know a good number of boat owners that likely have never given their steering cable a second thought. They probably should.

@Rednucleus I've owned the boat for the past 20 years. It was not tight to steer at all. Not even a little bit. I cut the cable apart to see what happened. It broke about 4 inches beofre the aft end. (before it attaches to the steel rod that runs through the support tube. Looks like it corroded through the cable.

Holy smokes I dodged a bullet today. Skied a couple of days ago with no issues. Took the boat home, parked it in the garage and then launched this morning. While pulling away from the dock the steering cable broke. Thankfully i was at idle and going no where. I can't imagine how bad this would have ended if it had happened at ski speeds. for the record this boat is a 1989 Centurion Falcon with a rotary helm. The steering has always been super easy and seemingly without issue. the lesson here. Steering cables should be replaced on a routine basis. This cable looks to be original, and way past due for replacement. In doing some research here I'm seeing it's recommended that cables be replaced every 500hrs or 10 years whichever comes first. If you own a boat that is exceeding these, I encourage you to order a new cable and get it swapped out. I'm really thankful this didn't end with an injury or a boat parked on shore.

@ReallyGottaSki I have to agree. Get out there and free ski, do drills, take video, do it some more. Free skiing is a great way to learn new things. Don’t even link turns together. Focus on the one thing you are trying to fix. I like to practice pull out, and gate shot into a glide on the other side. Goal is to stay tall, connected with the handle in tight, and to keep a tight line all the way out off the wake. In this scenario there is no turn to think about just stack and connection.

@S1Pitts what did you do? You mind sharing your settings?

I've been using the BOA version for the past 2 seasons. Have it mounted up behind my Carbitex front. I really like the HRT. It's fits well, is comfortable, provides plenty of support and freedom of movement. Overall it's just a really good option.

Instructions from perfect pass show it to be after the motor box and before the back of the boat

Lighter doesn’t mean you are stronger or fitter. Just as being stronger doesn’t mean you have to weigh more. Being lighter due to dieting may not make you ski better if you’ve lost muscle mass in the process. And being super strong in all the wrong ways won’t help you ski better either.

@MacsBrendella23 if it were my boat I would replace that steering clamp block and the attaching bolts with the proper Stainless steel hardware. Inspect the Clevis on the end where it attaches to the rudder arm and replace if you have any doubts. Most importantly watch this video before assembling at the 6:30 mark especially.

@MacsBrendella23 If skidim doesn’t have what you need try https://www.skiboatpartsonline.com/index.php. I’ve bought from Ron several times and his online videos are very helpful. Sounds like you’ll be needing a new helm and cable.

Running Kx+ fixed all this for my boat. Old carbed 351w. Completely stock stargazer with zbox version 9.2. Runs within .02 on all buoys. On public water. I can’t imagine it performing better.

Pro tip. Provided you have a double wide garage. If you put the boat in the garage on an angle with the swing away tongue you might gain the space needed. My 20’ boat fits in my 19’ deep garage. With the teak off

I’ve been spending some time rethinking how I ski wake to ball. Really focusing on trying to stay connected and swinging higher as opposed to wider. What I’ve found is my ski has to come out of angle much sooner in order to follow the handle path. Now I’m noticing that I’m skiing with more speed, and control at apex and I’m more “still” on the ski and I’m not really countering at all. I don’t really understand what is happening but I like it. I use to pull long thru the wakes focused on getting wide and early which really made me focus on shoulders level accomplished by an earlier reach and countering as I approached apex in order to maintain outbound direction. I always felt as though once in this position I was basically committing to a certain path prone to making a big move to change directions.It’s hard to really describe the difference. I think squaring hips and shoulders is a stronger position but you have to ski a different path to do it.

I see CP with hips and shoulders squared to the ski, or pointing in the same direction of travel. All the other pics look like those skiers are counter rotating more.

Update: I went with the OJ 310 (13x11.5 CNC 3 blade) Finally had a chance to try it today. I am very impressed with it. Compared to the stainless steel 13x13 3 blade i took off. The OJ is absolutely amazing. Hole shot is night and day better and throughout the RPM range the boat just feels more responsive. If I didn't know better I'd swear somebody had added 50hp to the motor. It really is that impressive. Haven't skied it yet but I'm looking forward to it.