The Lake Won!!!

[BRAZOS 205]

Well, I contemplated posting this, but I always like to see pictures on the board and I always like to hear personel stories of tragedy. So, I thought I would share.

I went out East, to East TX Skier Territory last weekend. A buddy has some land close to Caddo Lake, it has some channels you can ski thru, but it it stumps galore to my new found knowledge. I was teaching my buddy to pull a skier on my boat because I wanted to go next and he was a bit rusty. Start the pull, upto 18mph, depth gauge reads 12 ft, BAM, back of boat rises, and horrible noises. I tell the driver to shut it down, and then I tell everyone else on the boat we will be drinking the rest of the day because we sure as h--- will not be skiing.

Took the boat to the dealer on Tuesday, waiting for the final count $$.

[BRAZOS 205]

The Strut has a slight lean to the right.

[BRAZOS 205]

The Prop is slightly damaged which is really weird because it was a loud strike, and I didn't think there would be a blade left.

[bradamerry]

Caddo Lake is not a skier's dream lake :noface: . You are the first to damage a boat there!

[6ballsisall]

Wow!! That thing took a beating! Did it get your skegs too? I can't believe the prop wasn't mangled. it must have hit it just right. Whats your insurance deductible?

[BRAZOS 205]

I hope this makes a few people feel better about there bad luck at the lake. Prop needs rework, new strut, but I think the driveshaft is bent, the dealer initially didn't think the drive shaft was bent, lets hope he is right. I will keep everyone posted on the final tally. But the Lake Definitely Won This Round!

[BRAZOS 205]

The rudder and the skegs looked untouched. It's like the strut took the brunt of the stump (I think) and the prop and rudder just hopped over it or around it. You have to look very close to the prop to see any deformation. There is some.

[BRAZOS 205]

Here's another angle of the strut.

[BigBarney]

Bet you could do a mean 360 now! Seriously, that just plain ***.

[Leroy]

Ouch! It should be against the law to allow stumps underwater. Especially bad when you are reading 12'. Hope it's just the prop and strut.

[Ben]

I feel your pain, not a good way to get the day going.....

Start "Bent Strut Thread" Hijack:

Here's what mine looked like below.

End Hijack...

From the looks of your prop, you didn't hit that bad, but I'd highly recommend a detailed inspection of the stringer that runs right to left between the rudder box & the strut mount. We cracked ours more than 1/2 way through, so you may have hairline creacked yours...

Our other learning experience was the dealer needs to re-align the motor, not the 'glass shop.....

Sorry to hear the news, good luck on a timely recovery and smooth insurance proceedings.

[Maristar210]

Welcome to the bent strut, new seals and prop club.
It only costs 1K to join. :banana:

Stump? what stump? I don't see no stinking stump!

Just be glad no one was hurt.

Steve

[BriEOD]

Ouch!! Yeah you need a prop, shaft and a strut. Don't feel bad your not the first.

[stevo137]

Welcome to the bent strut, new seals and prop club.
It only costs 1K to join. :banana:

Stump? what stump? I don't see no stinking stump!

Just be glad no one was hurt.

Steve
I believe that is still less than a new lower unit on an I/O....

[east tx skier]

Brazos, where were you? River or Big Lake? My guess on the repair, assuming no gel coat damage is approx $800.

I'm not sure if you ever read my story of the broken off channel marker I ran over last 4th of July on the Louisiana side of the big lake. Toasted the prop, bent the shaft, and drove the prop into the gel coat. Hence my estimate.

I feel your pain, believe me. I can give you lots of leads on good places to get the work done if need be.

/edit, whoops, didn't see your strut was damaged. Add to that estimate. :cry:

Please let me know where you hit the stump. Caddo is 0.7 feet down this year and we're having a family reunion at our place there next weekend.

[east tx skier]

Caddo Lake is not a skier's dream lake :noface: . You are the first to damage a boat there!

I couldn't agree more. No good water at Caddo. ;) Lake O the Pines is a great place to ski.

[Maristar210]

I believe that is still less than a new lower unit on an I/O....


Blee dat... you right

Steve

[J. Patterson]

We have a few stumps at Logan Martin too. Especially up river where the skiing is good. I have seen 3 Malibus crack the hull when they struck a stump with the prop. My Mastercraft only bent the prop when I ran aground hard , ( real hard put my wife into the windshield with a cracked skull, scary, ) 2 years ago. Coincidence ? Maybe. But I have never seen a Mastercraft crush the strut up through the hull.

J. Patterson
Trussville, AL

[east tx skier]

The weird thing was that the strut didn't get damaged at all. The shaft bent aft of the strut.

[BRAZOS 205]

East,

I put in at the highway bridge going over a channel, Maybe hwy 43, no dock just ramp. But I had to drive towards the big lake thru Government Ditch to Johnsons Ranch. I was skiing by some channel markers. We actually drove by another boat ramp at Johnson's Ranch, which we should have put in at, but that was were we pulled out of at the end. I was at the mercy of my friend's father who somewhat knew the lake, He did mention Lake of the Pines, but they wanted to go to Caddo because we could hang out at a buddies dock at Johnson's Ranch.

No fiberglass damage was done to the boat on the outside. I hope there is no stringer damage on the inside. I don't think its that bad.

[east tx skier]

Hmm, where on Johnsons were you. I know of one stump over there that is right before you get to the big lake, but it is way out of the channel.

Johnsons Ranch has been almost unskiable this year because of all the water hycinth. Last month, after a storm, it almost blocked off the whole thing. Had you turned the other way at the 43 bridge, you would've had about 5 miles of pristine water.

I may post a google satellite photo of Johnsons in a minute. If you could give me a good idea of where the stump was, I'd really appreciate it.

/by the way, that thing about Lake O the Pines is just a joke we tell to keep the boats off the river at Caddo. ;)

[BRAZOS 205]

Last year I came out to Caddo and put in at the bridge and skiied in the other direction, it was nice. I thought that was what we were going to do, but this guy's lake house was thru Government Ditch (not fun) at Johnson's Ranch. I pm the best estimate of were the stump is.

[east tx skier]

Johnsons can be good skiing, but is usually overrun with fishing boats. Plus, the hycinth has been terrible this year. The river on the other side of gov. ditch can be great, too, but can get crowded.

Was that stump anywhere near this?

[east tx skier]

Also, Govt. Ditch is nothing to fear. There's a tree down that you need to watch for, but it's safe passage nonetheless.

[BriEOD]

What is that tree house Doug?

[east tx skier]

That is "Dick and Charlie's Tea Room." I can't remember what the sign says exactly, but it's funny. Basically an old fishing shack across from the ramp B205 is talking about. I'm trying to get an idea of where he hit this stump as this is where we either are skiing or driving across to ski on the other side of govt. ditch.

You recognize that from the card even though it isn't covered with sweet, sweet beer?

[BriEOD]

Yeah, now that you mention it I do recognize it from the card you sent me. That' place looks like it is going to fall into the river. They sell food in there?

[east tx skier]

Nah, it's just something to point at when you drive by. The sign says something like "no cussin, no fightin', no bare feet ...." It could become a water hazard at any time.

[BriEOD]

That's funny as hell...Only in Texas.

[east tx skier]

... and Louisiana, and Arkansas.

[BRAZOS 205]

Yea, The Stump was right near that shack, but like you said in the the pm, Just stay towards the boat ramp side of the river than the shack side you should be fine. I cant remember if we were downstream or upstream of that shack, sorry. By the time I got into the water to check the undergear, we had floated away(upstream) by momentum, I never actually found the stump by hand.

[east tx skier]

Well, anyway, it's a bummer. I hate that it happened. Good luck getting it fixed.

[CoFooter]

You're luck the strut/prop took the brunt of the hit. I've seen rudder impacts take out signigicant portions of the stern when they go.

[BRAZOS 205]

$900 and 2 weeks later I have a new strut, new driveshaft, and a reworked prop (only 1 month old). Best part about it is I get to take the boat back to the dealership next week to have them fix the fiberglass damage they caused when they replaced the strut, Jackarses!!! :mad: They said they didn't notice it. Good thing I took pictures before I dropped the boat off. If I'm going to pay $900 to fix my boat from damage caused by hitting a stump, why would I not have the fiberglass repaired if it was also damaged by the stump. It's obvious they caused the damage.

At least I will be on the River this weekend. :)

[BriEOD]

Wow, that's aggravating they would try and pull one over like that. I'm sure they will get it looking good again.

[Cloaked]

I can't believe they tried to get over on you like that with the damage. Pictures are worth many words. Ray Charles could have seen that and he's not even a mechanic....

Stick to yEr guns. More dealer antics...

[stevo137]

Glad to see you back in action B!
They had better fix the damage or pay a glass guy to do so.

[SteveO]

Brazos, Was TxMC the party? If so, who is running service now that Jeff is gone?

[east tx skier]

Brazos, I'm glad to hear you had pictures to take back with you. That shouldn't happen. On a related note, my wife's uncle ran over a stump on Johnson's Ranch at Caddo this weekend with his ski ray. Bent prop, shaft, rudder, drove prop into the glass. Bad. I had my boat down there the day before. We took my father-in-law's down there right afterward and found a 12 foot log (no joke) floating down the river.

That lake is low my friend.

Glad to hear you're fixed up (sort of).

[BRAZOS 205]

Yea, it is aggravating, but they didn't give me any grief about fixing it, they just said they didn't notice it. A guy named Adrianne is running the service dept now at TxMC.
Steveo-what happened to Jeff?

[G-man]

Jeff is at Full bore Cycle as I read on another post

[G-man]

Be sure they check shaft alighnment after the fiberglass work. I hope Ted is still doing their fiber work. he is very good.

[BRAZOS 205]

Yea, they said they will call Ted in next week for the fiberglass repair.

[André]

The fact that they pretend that they didn't notice it(after working under the boat for several hours) says a lot.
I would have prefer an excuse like "hey,we chipped the gel while installing the underwater gear,we're in peak season,go enjoy the boat like that and bring back the boat at the end of sesaon or whenever it will fit in both our agendas..."

[east tx skier]

I spoke to Ted when I needed some glasswork done. Very nice fellow. But very expensive and doesn't take credit cards. But since you're going through the dealer, that latter issue, which was a deal killer for me, probably won't effect you. Plus, I'll bet you're filing a good ins. claim on this one. I would.

[east tx skier]

The fact that they pretend that they didn't notice it(after working under the boat for several hours) says a lot.
I would have prefer an excuse like "hey,we chipped the gel while installing the underwater gear,we're in peak season,go enjoy the boat like that and bring back the boat at the end of sesaon or whenever it will fit in both our agendas..."

Andre, different strokes I suppose, but I'd be steamed with either of those excuses.

[André]

Yep,they should have mentionned it right away.

[PapaJoe]

Dude,

I feel your pain... My boat is at Texas MC now for the same thing... Except I knew I should not have been riding where I was when we hit a stump... What I don't get is, If a lake is 50+ years old, how come the trees are not rotten??? I figure because no oxegen, and it takes longer for wood to decay??? I was lucky... $5700.00 damage...

Now I have to fight with my insurance company... Probly be without my boat for 6 weeks...

JOE

[SteveO]

Joe,

Where were you skiing???? I'll be sure to avoid that area based on your experience. $5700 OOOUUUCCHHH. Insurance?

[PapaJoe]

Down here at Fort Hood... Stillhouse lake... I'm in the Army... I knew I was in a bad place... But the water was Sweet!!! My friend talked me into it... And well, he rode for about 1 1/2 minutes... Live and Learn... Jeff said damage was "nothen"... But still... I have to learn to tell my friends "NO!!!"... My friend feels really bad, and is chipping in to help pay the deductable... Its at Texas MC now... Drop by, ask AJ or Jeff to show you... Dosen't look like much... Sure does cost alot...

JOE

[east tx skier]

Dude,

I feel your pain... My boat is at Texas MC now for the same thing... Except I knew I should not have been riding where I was when we hit a stump... What I don't get is, If a lake is 50+ years old, how come the trees are not rotten??? I figure because no oxegen, and it takes longer for wood to decay??? I was lucky... $5700.00 damage...

Now I have to fight with my insurance company... Probly be without my boat for 6 weeks...

JOE

$5,700 :eek: I'm guessing (1) you had a lot of glass work, and (2) Ted is still doing their glass work for them. I hear Ted's the man when it comes to glass work. He wanted about 3 to 4 times as much as what I paid to fix my father-in-law's blue boat last year. I found another really good glass guy in the process and couldn't be happier with the job he did.

For the record, I'm not trying to take away from Ted at all with that last statement. He was extremely nice to deal with. I just wound up going with someone different for other reasons that had nothing to do with Ted.

As for the old lake and why this stuff won't rot, I was just wondering the same thing last weekend.

[BRAZOS 205]

IT'S NOT FIXED!!!
I took the boat to a small local lake to run it around and check for any vibrations on the new driveshaft, strut, and prop. I just didn't have a good feeling about the repair since the head service guy left in the middle of my boat being there and the fiberglass chips they gave me.
I reversed off the trailer with more than just idle speed, No problem. I got out of the no wake zone, gave her some gas, and horrible vibration when traveling faster than idle. Almost the same vibration it had before the undergear was replaced. First, I think they didn't realign the driveshaft and motor. But it should vibrate in reverse also. That makes me think the transmission. Can a transmission cause horrible vibration in forward gear and not reverse?
Taking the boat back to the dealership tomorrow, I can't believe they didn't water test the boat after replacing all of the undergear. Actually, I can believe that since they tried to pass off the chipped fiberglass on to me. I'm a pretty laid back person, but this boat repair is starting to really piss me off.

[east tx skier]

Keeping my opinions to myself, if you are less than satisfied, I can recommend someone else to work on your boat. It's going to be a bit of a drive for you though. Sorry your having such a bad time with the repairs.

[G-man]

brazos205 it sounds like the engine is not aligned. I would test the boat in their lake before leaving this time. Sure wish Jeff was still there so he could figure it for you.

[east tx skier]

That's what I was thinking. When I rearranged my father-in-law's boat last year, my mechanic told me he made a very large adjustment to get everything realigned. When we got the boat back, it literally ran more smoothly than it ever had (he is the second owner).

[PapaJoe]

Where are you going to get your boat fixed??? Texas MC????

[PapaJoe]

Crap!!! Brazos 205, I saw your profile.... Man... AJ would not do that!!!! I have faith in him... He is tring to fill Jeff's shoes now... Huge job... He can do it... He will have to grow into the position... Give him a break... But yea... He should have tested it in the lake before he gave it back to you... Hell, its too easy with a spot just down the street from thier shop... They are working no my boat now... I will take it for a test run before I pull it back to Fort Hood... Its a three hour drive...

JOE

[jimmer2880]

Wow... that really stinks dude. $900.00 & they threw in chipped glass to boot.


What I want to know is where are the pic's from the $5700.00 stump project? That sounds extremely painful. Of course, it doesn't take much to add it up.