Maintenance advice for a newbie

[amccoy]

Just bought my first jetboat, 2017 242 Limited S. I know to do oil and plugs every year but what other maintenance tips does the JB Community have? I really want this boat to last and look great for years. I've been working on cars and motorcycles since I went to work in my dads shop at 13 years old, I'm not scared to tackle any job.

Thanks in advance for your help.

 

[tdonoughue]

Hi, @amccoy. Welcome and congrats on the new boat!

First, find the FAQ on this site. Should be a link at the top. That will run you though a lot of the basics.

One of the magic things about these boats are how easy they are to maintain. Plugs and oil is about it. I would also recommend a good wax once a year and I do Hot Sauce periodically to keep the hull looking nice. Beyond that it is just keeping it clean...

Now, you will need several good mods. We are particularly good at spending your money, er, um, advising you on those. First should be to replace the bow roller with a Stoltz roller.

 

[Stevenpigsooie]

I spray yamalube silicone protectant (or CRC 656) on all the metal components that move in the stern, as well as the boat buckles, winch, and hitch about every other trip out. I use marine grease on the high stress metal contacts such as the steering rod, reverse bucket link, etc. The owners manual indicates where you should regularly grease. Also, ring free additive with each fill up.

 

[swatski]

Just bought my first jetboat, 2017 242 Limited S. I know to do oil and plugs every year but what other maintenance tips does the JB Community have? I really want this boat to last and look great for years. I've been working on cars and motorcycles since I went to work in my dads shop at 13 years old, I'm not scared to tackle any job.

Thanks in advance for your help.

I would pay close attention to vinyl, new Yamaha vinyl needs to be babied, its not the best quality. I douse mine in 303 aero protectant, and I do it frequently. It prevents discoloration and keeps it nice and tends to repel dirt. Same with rubber seals, prevents deterioration and dry rot.

Steering linkages will be the first to go under normal use, but particularly in salt. I douse those (along with tie down ratchets, and anything metal) with something like crc 6-56 (there are many way to go - fluid film, or corrosin x) to keep those nice and smooth. It really extends their life. Same with "SS" clamps in cooling hoses - very important to keep those in good condition, those tend to corode quickly in salt.

Pump maintenance is another topic, but if you have good performance and no cavitation - no worries there.

Keeping the batteries on a built-in charger is a must, in my book.

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[swatski]

Also, ring free additive with each fill up.

I do that, too.
(Just don't ask, it's kind of a religious thing, lol.)


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[AJack]

Don't forget about the trailer if you use it in saltwater, especially the lug nuts and transom ratchets. I now carry a pressurized bottle of pre-mixed salt away solution. As soon as I park the trailer, the lugs and ratchet get sprayed.

 

[Ilmmct]

Congrats on the new boat. Welcome to this forum, which is a devious boating Ponzi scheme to extract your money. You get tremendous help with any repair from members like the ones that have already responded to your post.

Here’s an example of the Ponzi scheme, the referenced FAQ gives a normally not mechanically handy guy enough confidence to change his steering cables. This guy then feels he has saved $600 bucks from the pillaging the dealer would have reeked upon him. This naive member then continues to read this forum and hypocritically uses this “$600 of freed up money” to buy towables, LED lights, box anchors, HangTytes, steering enhancements, slide hammers, fender hangers ... moisturizers for the boats skin!

Be very careful you’ve just entered the jetboat spending vortex ...

 

[tdonoughue]

(My wife says: "Yeah....")