Should I buy this F41 Stryker cat?

[Ron Olson]

Check the carb settings, 2 turns out on the low-speed needle and 1 turn out on the high. If that's OK, try switching to the other prop.
There are carbs with a primer bulb and chokes but yours appears not to need them. If it needs a prime, put a finger or thumb over the carb and slowly pull it over until whatever digit has a little fuel on it.

 

[override]

Dually noted sir...Yeah he showed me the thumb over the carb trick, works good minus you getting gas on your thumb. Whenever he was showing me the boat I did happen to twist the HSN a few times thinking to myself "WTF is that for" lol and he asked me "you didn't turn that did you?" I was like ummmmm yeah but I think I put it back how it was.

SO maybe thats where I messed things ups...lol

 

[Ron Olson]

Could be!

 

[override]

Tore the boat down today! Got a bunch of photos too....

So the water getting into the head was due to bad gaskets on the exhaust cooling. Now ofcourse with the photos I have some more questions...I was wondering does anyone have a good place to get screws and nets from to replace some of the bad hex head screws?

First off the shaft could be replaced, it has a bad spot in it on the prop end...

I would like to replace the brass tube the the shaft runs through aswell, although it probably isn't needed.

I noticed the propeller shaft bracket is bent...Is this normal?

Also kinda seems like this is backwards....

Can anyone identifiy the hardware on the boat?

Anyone have any input on this motor (I'm thinking its just a mid mod)...The Carb is a Walbro (any good?) I plan on breaking the carb and motor down tomorrow or the next day.

Here is the body, I started sanding on it today...Most of the "cracks" were just hairline in the gel coat, although you can tell this boat has been damaged pretty extensively. The front looks like it has separated and been bondo repaired. The motor was mounted to low at some point and rubbed through two small spots on the bottom (has a poopy patch job, but I'm gonna leave it be).

Auto Bailer - Gonna replace this one and add one to the other side

Also wanna replace the cowling latchs with some better ones...

Does anyone know of any good websites similar to www.ozrcboatsupplies.com but that is local to the USA? That website has everything I need with good pricing but hell they are out of australia.

 

[Ron Olson]

Whew, that's a lot of questions but I'll give them a shot.
One of the best places that I've found for Zen parts and a lot of other things that you need is at http://www.gizmomotors.com/ . I just placed an order with him on Monday, fast service and it's hard for anyone to beat his prices. He does have everything that you need to whip it back into shape.
The cooling jacket and associated parts can be cleaned upwith something like CLR as you have a lot of calcium or lime build-up in there.
Yeah, I'd replace the cable but keep it around for a spare. The stuffing tube is no biggie but it might cost you a hair over a buck to replace it!
It's a little hard to see if the Zen has has any work done to it from the shots. A quick and easy way to find out generally is to see if anything was done to the exhaust port. Externally they all pretty much look alike. The numbers on the bottom of the case are from the factory.
Walbro carbs are very good and the industry standard for Zenoah's, Sikk's, RCMK's and every other manufacturer including yard and garden equipment.
OK, now to the strut and rudder. I don't know for sure who made it right off-hand. The strut is mounted correctly although it looks backwards but you want the sharpened piece forward. The drive dog then prop will balance it out in the looks department when it's tossed back together. Yes, the previous owner either tweaked on the strut or bent it some other way (dropped it?). You can straighten it or the foresaid owner bent it to the right as a quick way to offset it to the right to help compensate for torque.
The cowl locks work well but have seen better days. Those are Aeromarine pieces and come in two different styles topside but those bases are the same.
I think that I hit on most of the questions so mow I've got one for you. How far are you going to go with the rebuild? If you keep the stock strudder (strut and rudder) I'd be doing something about the Z bend in the rudder linkage as you want that as straight as possible.
Go through the Gizmo site and you may see a lot of other things that you's like to update or make better.

 

[override]

Thanks a bunch for answering my questions....I like that Gizmo site but I don't think he is gonna have everything I will need/want.

May I ask what is wrong with the Z bend? I'm pretty sure I can straighten it out but then again I will have to look at it when I put it all back together. I am getting rid of that junk radio box that was in the boat and getting a new one so I can move stuff around if need be.

As far as how far I'm going on the rebuild...Well I am going as cheap as possible but also trying to get the boat back to as like new condition as possible. I did quite a bit of body work to it today, but I'm having issues with my fiberglass resin not setting up...I think I might have some bad hardner.

Upgrades and different strutter setup will come later down the road when I have more money to put into the boat. Either that or I will sell this one off after I get it fixed up and build a completely new boat.

 

[Ron Olson]

The Z bend is a weak spot in the linkage allowing it to flex a lot more than it should. When making right turns which is what most of us boaters do, especially those who race, it may not allow the rudder to turn enough at high speeds.
If you're looking for a nice replacement radio box, I bought one recently for my blast Cat from www.zippkits.com . For $16.00 plus shipping it's a great buy. It is the best fitting radio box that I've ever installed and that's a lot of them! The only downside is that the 'glass lay-up is a little on the thin side. Zippkits sells 2 boxes, a version with a tape-on lid (the one that I bought) and the other with a screw-on top. The slant-top of the box helps to clear tuned pipes if yours is mounted low in the hull.
Check out his billet aluminum servo mounts while in there, they can add a lot of bling to a normally boring part of the boat.

I'm kind of wondering where the previous owner of your boat got that header as I've never seen one like that and honestly wouldn't care to see another as it looks like a cobbled up piece. I can't see how it is supposed to work properly.

 

[override]

Ahh I see, well I will see what I can do about the Z bend...I think I could get away with a straight rod that is bowed a little bit.

Yeah that header is junk, another item I plan to replace...I'm going to go with the proper center manifold that allows the cowling to not be cut. SO many things were done to this hull that were wrong. The cowling is another item that I plan to replace down the road. I think the cowling is the cause of most of the damage this boat has. Someone thought it would be a good idea to cut breather holes in the cowling allowing wind to lift the front of it up causing it to probably fly off or pick the boat up out of the water. So they cut holes out on the body and mounted tabs to the cowling. The tabs slipped into the hull and due to the drag from the holes cut into the cowling caused the tabs to eventually crack the hull. I'll post pictures up of that aswell sometime so you can see what I'm talking about.

Thanks again for another nice website...Do you have anymore good ones, if so keep em coming! It just so happens that the radio box with the screw on lid is the one I was going to buy...I was gonna pay almost $50 from ebay. OZ has that box but as I said they are located out of Australia. I found them on another website but they want almost $40 for it.

 

[Ron Olson]

Those are the 2 that I've bought a lot of things from because of their excellent service and low prices. Joe Petro at Zippkits finds good deals on quality hardware although imported and passes the savings along. Bruce Lykens at Gizmo Motors is killing off the competition by not making a huge profit on Zenoahs plus the only distributor of RCMK's in the US. If you have a problem with any product that either one of those guys sell, they'll make it right with you.
When possible, I try to find places close to where a person lives. Unfortunately I don't have anything in Texas that I know of.
This outfit is a little closer to you, http://www.cc-racingengines.com/ .
One more for you to look at as he does carry square drive cables, http://www.insaneboats.com/ .

 

[Ron Olson]

Hey, I found a guy that I know who lives in Canada who has hardware identical to yours for sale on another forum site! The problem is that he doesn't know who made the hardware either.
I'd give you the link but I know that some forum sites don't allow links to sites that require membership to view its contents. I don't need a slap on the wrist from another Mod.

 

[override]

Hey, I found a guy that I know who lives in Canada who has hardware identical to yours for sale on another forum site! The problem is that he doesn't know who made the hardware either.
I'd give you the link but I know that some forum sites don't allow links to sites that require membership to view its contents. I don't need a slap on the wrist from another Mod.

Shoot me a PM then...

 

[override]

Ok guys I will post pictures later on but for now I have an issue...I have finally gotten the boat built back up and had it out on the water yesterday, but I have an issue....

Ok, I am pretty sure I am just gonna buy a new carburetor but I figured I would ask before I do...

So my test run results were nothing fantastic....The boat would run good onland but as soon as it hit the water it would die within 30 seconds not matter where the throttle was at or the needles on the carb(keeping them no more than 1/4 turn in from stock, which I dont know what are)....

SO I decided to take the carb off and put it on my Baja.....

The baja ran like poop with the carb until I started leaning it in more...Whats weird is the HSN was affecting the LSN at idle this is what threw me off the most...I could lean in the LSN at idle and get a high idle that should be plenty for it to take off but when gas was applied the motor would try to die. SO I started leaning in the HSN a bit at a time and it helped...I had both needles set at 1 1/2 turns out, the HSN ended up being 1 turn out and the LSN 1 1/14 turn out...The carb has had the model number dremeled off of it for some strange reason so I can't identify it but I think it might be an 813a.

Ok so the strange part about all this is with the needle settings set as mentioned above, my baja ran like it was on steroids...I even was able to get a wheelie out of it so that leads me to believe it is running way to lean.

Any thought on this guys? or should I just buy a new carb and be done with it?

 

[Ron Olson]

Usually we start out at 2 out on low and 1 on high but whatever works for you.
This happens to me as it may be that you've got too much prop on it or the strut is too far down. Could be that the tuned pipe is set at the wrong length. I started converting over from nitro to gas as it was supposed to be less of a pain in the ass. HAH!
I'm wrestling with my new Cat also and have got a BIG race in less than 2 weeks.

I just went back and looked at your pictures. Have you tried to run it without the hatch on? I don't see any place on it that letting cool air in, just a cut-out for the pipe. The carb may be inhaling hot air which can kill it also.

 

[override]

Well considering the boat never ran for more than 30 seconds in the water I don't think it is anything to do with heat and I cut that cowl up aswell...

So you start with 1 turn out and 1 1/2 turn out on your needles...That is where my needles are set at right now when it was on the baja and it ran very nice...Infact the baja ran like a crazy cat out of hell! I just thought maybe it was to lean...So if thats the case maybe the carb on the baja could be leaned out some more! Kinda exciting, more power!

I do think the carb could use a rebuild as its kinda old looking, lemme go take a few pics of it before I throw it back on the boat and post em up.

---------- Post added at 11:07 AM ---------- Previous post was at 10:56 AM ----------

Here are pics of the carb...

 

[Ron Olson]

Nope, 2 turns out on low and 1 turn out on the high-speed needle. Boats will respond differently to carb settings on them as opposed to one in a truck/buggie.
I see that you opened up the hatch from the earlier pix so that's not an issue. You can "back-half" it by removing the rest of the rear which will give it a Drag Cat look that's commonly done with a lot of these.
The tuned pipe length appears ot be OK as you really can't go that much shorter with a wrap-to-center pipe. Down the road you might want to think about swapping it out for a 105 degree pipe especially now that you've got the hatch opened up.

 

[override]

I havnt cut any material off that header yet tho, so it still could be to long inside the pipe...I have the original head that was on the boat which I think was the header your talking about that is already tuned for this engine but I like the way the WTC pipe looks and I have a brand new paris cowl that I was planning to put on this boat so a WTC would be needed.

Thanks for the help so far Ron, I'm about to take it for another test run so we will see what happens!

 

[Ron Olson]

If there's a lot of header inside the pipe, it will need to be cut off but that shouldn't be killing performance enough to be part of why it's dying off almost as soon as it hits the water. You only need about 1/2" past where it's now at. you should be able to see where the water has been flowing and the O-rings are at by now on the header.

 

[override]

Well another fail on the run...I'm starting to get frustrated with this :/ It did run better today than the other day and ran alot longer on the water before cutting out. So the carb was way to rich we know that...I am pretty dang sure the carb is just in need of a good rebuild but not knowing what kinda carb I have, well, its kinda hard for me to get a rebuild kit for it. So I have some muriatic acid that I can put a small drop on the dremeled area and see if it will bring the etching out.

One thing I did forget to mention earlier was that when I was making the transfer from the boat to the Baja I noticed the butterfly screw was loose and the throttle rod the butterfly is screwed to had about 1/16ths of play left and right. I centered it best I could and tightened the screw down so that shouldn't be an issue anymore.

So you know I had the HSN turned out an 1/8th less than 1 turn and the LSN was turned out 1 1/2 turns so the carb should be plenty lean to keep that motor running good.

I am running out of time before I have to go back to work for my two weeks so I think I'm gonna have to put the boat back up on the shelf until I get back on days off...I'm tired of swimming after it, lol...

So Ron....What would be a good carb that you would recommend? Also I need to take pictures but the mounts for the motor after seeing others pictures I think are wrong...There is no rubber between the metal and the rails for the motor which I think is causing excessive vibrations that is probably what caused this carb to be all loose in the first place.

 

[Ron Olson]

Replace the carb with a Walbro 257.
I'm on my way ot work right now so I won't be back on until late tonight. Yeah, I'm working on a Saturday. What sucks more is that it's my Birthday.

 

[override]

Well doesn't that just suck! Happy Birthday Brotha! Hope its good even though you gotta work...

Thanks for the advice on the carb