Son of a BLEEP!!!! Newbie mistake... UPDATE!

[BigDaddy in GA]

If it makes you feel any better.. Two stories lol.

#1 - I was pulling into a lakeside bar and swung the starboard rear out too far and clipped a dock in front of at least 30 people damaged gel all the way to the glass but a patch kit repaired it easy. I was able to park it in the slip just fine, but embarrassed was definitely an understatement.

#2 - I let my buddy captain my AR230 one time, and he’s never had any experience with jet boats. I even tried to give him a crash course on what not to do…..

He first didn’t throttle down slowly as we were getting close to the entrance to the slips of a lakeside bar, he threw it into neutral detent, which absolutely submarined the front lol. The drunk wives were freaking out with how much water we took on, which I was trying to calm them down because we all know the boats are self bailing AND it’s okay that the boat gets wet. I was too busy calming them down that I didn’t see we were approaching the dock slip way too fast. My buddy was already embarrassed so he wanted to get off the boat pronto. By the time I noticed it was too late, the nose smacked the front of the slip hard. Thankfully the boats were built pretty tough in 08. It did damage the gel coat all the way to the glass, but it was something I could repair.

My poor buddy got shit the rest of the trip but owned up to it and apologized a thousand times. I was just happy no one got hurt, since we had 8 adults onboard. Also told him I’m glad he damaged this boat and not our future nicer boat! I didn’t make him pay for anything since the guilt and embarrassment was enough.


With the time we’ve owned our jet boat we have agreed we don’t want to own anything but a Yamaha jet boat. The advantages of the jet boats far outweighs the learning curve it takes to captain them. I’ve come to realize that slow is smooth and smooth is fast. I don’t have the drive system like you [yet], but I rarely use throttle at all and only use the forward and reverse detents around the dock. Obviously in no wake zones we use no wake mode and if I need to give it some juice to correct something I will.

You’ll get so good at captaining your boat that people will eventually talk about that and the memory of the first voyage will become a laugh instead of an ego killer!

This DOES make me feel better!!! Thank you so much for taking the time to share your stories with me!!!! A couple of days have passed since I tried to Evel Kenievel my boat over a POS pontoon boat, and thanks to all of you I do feel a little better about it. At the end of the day I have to suck it up and move on. Embarrassment has passed, now I'm just mad at myself for being a moron.

 

[BigDaddy in GA]

Sounds a lot like a small piece of something stuck in your impeller blades - very common for this time of year when there's a lot of spring rain runoff. If you can pull the boat out of the water, use your phone to get some pictures from underneath and through the boat intake grates.

I will absolutely be doing this! Everyone here is of the same opinion, that something is in the intake. I really thought something could be jacked up with the brand new engine, so I do have some relief that it's simply a quick fix, and I can go on and enjoy my brand new scratched to hell boat.

 

[BigDaddy in GA]

Hi Big Daddy.... I was just trying to parse your description of the issue. It could be interpreted as there is a bad vibration coming from the starboard engine when the starboard engine RPM is at 4000 RPM, or that with the starboard and port engines set to the same throttle position that the starboard engine rpm goes "through the roof" (which I interpret as over-revving). Can you clarify? Also, what throttle mode are you in? You might try setting the throttle mode to single lever (in which the engines are synchronized automatically) to see what that does. If that changes things, it's not a fix, but it's a good data point.

Even though you checked the clean-out port, if you were doing that while in the water it's certainly possible that you have something sucked up somewhere that you didn't notice / couldn't get to from the clean out port. That sort of thing seems to always go much smoother when stable and out of the water where you can inspect the intake and easily see down into the clean out port. Also, there seems to be some weird magnetic force that new boats have when it comes to sucking things up. Always seems to happen on their first outing but then settles down after that!

Somewhat off-topic, but as you are getting used to the boat and its operating characteristics, you might find it helpful to ignore things like no-wake modes and the paddle controls and just set the thing into single throttle mode and leave it there. Less likely to get confused with pushing buttons in tense situations.

Tommy, big help here! Thank you for thinking thru my situation...kudos to you Sir. I did try the various modes. Single lever was a no go...as the engines came up in rpm's, the starboard side would vibrate the hell out of the boat...everytime without fail. I mean a LOUD over-revving sound that again sounded like the rpm's were going thru the roof. Like stomping on you car accelerator pedal while in neutral. I had to use dual lever mode to get back to the dock. Port side ran at about 6K rpm's flawlessly, but anytime I approached 4K on the starboard side the situation would occur. I could only get up to 13mph or so, on the way back. I didn't want to stress the port engine too much.

As I pulled back in the slip, using the Drive system and paddles, I also noticed the functionality was greatly reduced. I guess this is due to the starboard engine actually having no thrust at all.

Hoping the service dept at the marina isn't too busy this week, so I can get this sucker out of the water.

Also, great advice on setting to single lever mode. I will absolutely try this!

 

[BigDaddy in GA]

The truest quote you’ll ever see lol. My wife acted like I punched a hole in the hull when I hit the dock, it was literally inch by inch big and depth to fiberglass.

This is hilarious and so true!!! Unfortunately for my situation, when I hit the pontoon boat, my wife busted her ass and fell. My name was mud for 15 minutes. Not only for the crash, but also because of the new and modified language I taught my boys that day. Definitely would've been a viral video!!!!!

 

[I_squared_r]

This is hilarious and so true!!! Unfortunately for my situation, when I hit the pontoon boat, my wife busted her ass and fell. My name was mud for 15 minutes. Not only for the crash, but also because of the new and modified language I taught my boys that day. Definitely would've been a viral video!!!!!

Haha, sounds like wives always over react. My cousin and her husband bought a new travel trailer and the husband hit the stop sign leaving the dealer. He says it's superficial damage. His wife asks "Superficial? " While he talks about replacing the door, some cover, etc. quite a few things. So we tease him a lot about this and throw around "superficial" when we talk about minor mishaps.

So your damage isn't through to the fiberglass. That's good news, you can wait until the off season and buy the gelcoat to repair it yourself so you can save money. It's really not that difficult and there's lots of youtube videos on how to do it. You're lucky it's just superficial damage.

 

[chippens]

Friend went off the highway into a ditch towing his new boat home… I believe the cause was trailer sway while getting passed. Didn’t have any insurance coverage on it yet.

 

[Julian]

This is hilarious and so true!!! Unfortunately for my situation, when I hit the pontoon boat, my wife busted her ass and fell. My name was mud for 15 minutes. Not only for the crash, but also because of the new and modified language I taught my boys that day. Definitely would've been a viral video!!!!!

Yeah....probably a small piece of wood in the impeller. Depending on the size of your arms, stick your arm into the clean out port and feel the leading edge of the impeller with your finger. If you find a piece of wood....then you need to get it out.

My favorite tool for that is a hook blade on a utility knife (keep one on the boat!). This way you can reach in and pull the knife towards you to whittle it down. Small arms make this easier. If it's really stuck, putting on the trailer and pulling the pump may be needed (this is actually really easy...we have directions on here)

Be glad you have your first scratch out of the way quickly! Now you can relax more!

Enjoy!

 

[drewkaree]

I broke the engine cover of the pontoon, which again should be in the junkyard.....it doesn't even run...and scratched the heck out of the front of my boat. But that doesn't compare to the biggest damage of all....my ego.

C'mon, stop that nonsense. Your ego is what's causing you to view the problem as the pontoon. It wouldn't have mattered if there was a perfectly fine sailboat, or even another Yamaha, it was simply an accident, and the type of boat or the condition of it had nothing to do with it. You're still able to use your boat, and like @Julian said, you got your first scratch out of the way. You're luckier in that respect than I was - my salesman made my first scratch, which I've left, to this day.

You didn't ruin anything, except in your mind. All this will be is a story your wife will retell, years from now, and your kids will remember, while enjoying the other stories that are sure to follow in your boating life. Life's hard, put on a helmet, rub some dirt on it, and suck it up. Get back to looking for the positives in every situation, they're there if you look. The best learning almost necessarily comes from mistakes we made, and you've got another reminder to help you in the future if/when something like this happens.

Then, all the crap talking started. "That's what happens when you get a jet boat, no one can drive the d@mn things", "your first boat is a jet boat, probably not a good idea", "didn't take you long to figure out why people don't buy jet boats".

One of the very few things I have no patience or time for, are people like this. Many won't take my approach, and it doesn't sound like this'd be you either, but I'd be slinging back just as good as they were dishing out - "Thanks for asking, we're fine. Your concern for our injuries are noted", "Good thing we don't have video of all your mistakes, but I see you're married, so you have a recorder to remind you that you're not perfect either", "Somehow I managed to drive this damn thing well enough that we enjoyed our day, but you stick with what you're comfortable with, I'll keep enjoying mine with my family", "I don't recall seeing you in the showroom when you were selling me on a boat, but I'm sure you have useful advice that you're about to share, on turning this bad idea around", "Nah, what it quickly showed me is just how many people are happier to criticize, instead of offer to help, or chime in with anything constructive". I might wrap it up with the ever popular "maybe you could try pulling your bottom lip over your head and swallowing".

PLENTY of people on here wakeboard, ski, tube with their boats. Not ONE of them ever has had a flawless ride 100% of the time, yet they keep at it. That should show you that some of the best experiences can only be had with, and through, "failures". All those douche canoes who want to pretend they're perfection personified can pound sand.

I'm available for kid's parties, and for the dock trolls, try the veal, and don't forget to tip your waitress!