r/jetski • u/Crafty_DIY • 10d ago
Grabber tool for debris in intake?
Most of us have been there, you are trying to grab a piece of wood that has lodged up inside your intake grate. Maybe you rolled your ski over on the side of a shore, maybe you had to put it all the way back onto your trailer.
Yesterday my 2015 Yamaha Waverunner sucked up a piece. Had to limp it home in No Wake mode for an hour. I'm glad I did not jump into the 60 degree water because it would have been futile trying to dislodge the tiny stick.
I put the ski onto my boat lift, go under the thing with my paddle board, and tried to grab at the twig with a pair of long channel locks. It was F-ing awkward and would not do the job.
I have one of those little plunger-style claw tools that's made for grabbing at a small tool that you drop into the engine bay of a car when working on it. It doesn't quite have the grabbing power necessary to get at a lodged piece of wood inside the ski.
Does anybody have the "goldilocks" size tool that will fit through the vent, and have the grabbing power to fish a piece of wood out?
3
u/SpringFuzzy 10d ago
A 8-10mm rebar which you bend in a vice will probably get the job done. Maybe make it into a giant fish hook lol.
3
u/xspook_reddit 10d ago
I do not have this, but it looks promising:
https://jettech.com/en-us/products/intake-recovery-tool
I do have these, though:
https://www.amazon.com/Long-Curved-Hemostat-Forceps-Stainless/dp/B09B9SZ7D9/ref=sr_1_9
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u/Plcoomer 10d ago
Does what you have work?
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u/xspook_reddit 10d ago
Crossing fingers, never needed it since I bought it.
But I wished I'd had it when something similar happened. Sucked up a 3" wood chip and that little basta*d would not come out. Got home and hit it with a long screwdriver - came right out.
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u/Head_Protection_9475 9d ago
We ride with a big group so people suck stuff up frequently and I heard good things about these intake tools. A few of the guys keep one in their ski at all times
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u/Medical_Ad_573 10d ago
My solution is to not ride when there is lots of debris in our lake (reservoir) which always happens after a moderate to heavy rain. When I DO get the occasional clog in my grate I blow it out using reverse.
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u/ImRightImRight 10d ago
Reverse is still sucking water the same way, though? Just redirecting it when it comes out the back
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u/xspook_reddit 9d ago
Newer SeaDoo models have an actual reverse called iDF.
I have used it a few times, but just for weeds; not sure if it would work with hard debris caught between the impeller and wear ring.
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u/ImRightImRight 8d ago
wild. I'm not fully grasping their animation. Is it a 2 speed transmission? Or a direct drive that can disengage and reroute power temporarily through a reversing mechanism?
Still can't get over u/kingtuft 's Ass to Ass Jet Ski Booty Blowout Technique
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u/Dry_Chip_6210 10d ago
https://a.co/d/0b2vZn5N And a couple long extensions usually do the trick. And a filet knife for rope
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u/kingtuft 10d ago
Only thing I’ve found to work every time is another ski, putting them back to back and using the other skis pump to backwash the stuck ski.