Jump to content

Welcome to TheMalibuCrew!

As a guest, you are welcome to poke around and view the majority of the content that we have to offer, but in order to post, search, contact members, and get full use out of the website you will need to Register for an Account. It's free and it's easy, so don't hesitate to join the TheMalibuCrew Family today!

Broken Wedge


eubanks

Recommended Posts

My birthday request to get on the lake Saturday turned out not to be such a wise choice. :(

It was cold, the water was rough, and then it happened! We hit something while my wife was pulling me, and the boat dropped speed immediately. I think this was more due to it freaking out my wife and her pulling back on the throttle than it was damage to the boat. It didn't seem that bad (although I was behind the boat) so I kept riding. After my set, I went to pull up the wedge but it was stuck. You could tell that it wasn't going to move at all.

So we put the boat on the trailer and checked to see the damage. At first we didn't notice anything. After a few moments though, it became obvious that the wedge arms were bent significantly and had jammed the wedge in the down position. All in all, I guess it could have been much, much worse because the drive shaft, prop, and rudder all seem to be fine.

So...How much is it to replace the wedge piece and is it worth filing with the insurance company? Here's to a fun day on the water! Crazy.gif

Link to comment

Unbolt it and take it to a local shop known for repairing props. Explain what it does and see if they can't straighten it out. Should cost you less than $100. Otherwise I think you can order just the wedge (not bracket) for ~$300-400.

Check closely around the wedge bracket, some times small stress cracks have been know to appear due to impact. Not a huge concern, but this might justify an insurance claim if you wanted to have it fixed as well.

Link to comment
Unbolt it and take it to a local shop known for repairing props. Explain what it does and see if they can't straighten it out. Should cost you less than $100. Otherwise I think you can order just the wedge (not bracket) for ~$300-400.

I 2nd it, had one straightened last year, it looks and works like brand new cost me right at $100 new one if my memory is correct is around $500

Link to comment

Last year we thought we hit something as well. It turned out, the wedge screws on one side just sheared. If the wedge is still attachedon the right arm as you look at it, and detached from the left, the screws just sheared under pressure. I called Malibu and they had me send in the wedge and wedge arms and replaced them under warranty. Just and FYI.

Link to comment

Yep, I was going to say the same thing. I would think it would be difficult to hit the wedge w/o hitting the prop or rudder, but I assumed you knew for sure that you actually hit something. Failure of the screws that hold the "wing" onto the arms is a known and common problem.

Link to comment
Yep, I was going to say the same thing. I would think it would be difficult to hit the wedge w/o hitting the prop or rudder, but I assumed you knew for sure that you actually hit something. Failure of the screws that hold the "wing" onto the arms is a known and common problem.

Yeah, it's funny you guys mention this because I've been playing it through my head many times. The prop and rudder are all in line (vertically) with the wedge so it seems very difficult to hit the wedge and nothing else. The only thing I can come up with is that the wedge is a little wider than the prop so there is definitely the possibility of it only striking the wedge piece.

My wife says she definitely hit something. Our wedge has the stainless bolts and the wing piece is fine, so it wasn't the result of shearing bolts as some people have mentioned previously.

The boat has to go to the dealer soon anyway, so I guess we'll have them take a look.

Thanks all.

Edited by eubanks
Link to comment

Yep, I was going to say the same thing. I would think it would be difficult to hit the wedge w/o hitting the prop or rudder, but I assumed you knew for sure that you actually hit something. Failure of the screws that hold the "wing" onto the arms is a known and common problem.

Yeah, it's funny you guys mention this because I've been playing it through my head many times. The prop and rudder are all in line (vertically) with the wedge so it seems very difficult to hit the wedge and nothing else. The only thing I can come up with is that the wedge is a little wider than the prop so there is definitely the possibility of it only striking the wedge piece.

My wife says she definitely hit something. Our wedge has the stainless bolts and the wing piece is fine, so it wasn't the result of shearing bolts as some people have mentioned previously.

The boat has to go to the dealer soon anyway, so I guess we'll have them take a look.

Thanks all.

Which lake???? Not that is really matters, they are waaaayyyyyyyyyyyy looooooooowwwwwwwwww

Link to comment

The wedge is the lowest point on the boat while underway, so its very possible to hit only the wedge. You would know if the bolts failed, which from the sounds of it they didn't. Personally I think the wedge bolts has been blown somewhat out of proportion on this site, I work for a dealership and have never seen any of those failures.

Chris

Link to comment
Which lake???? Not that is really matters, they are waaaayyyyyyyyyyyy looooooooowwwwwwwwww

Shane - We were at Lavon in the cove by the railroad bridge. When we hit something though we were more in the middle of that cove in 20 feet of water. We always ride in there and have never had a problem. It might have been something loose right under the surface but we're not sure. Closer to the rocks there by the opening that goes under the bridge you will see a large branch (that seemed permanent) sticking a few feet out of the water. THAT freaked me out because we ride right there all the time when the water is up...which means that branch is just a couple of feet or so under water. BE CAREFUL!

Link to comment

Which lake???? Not that is really matters, they are waaaayyyyyyyyyyyy looooooooowwwwwwwwww

Shane - We were at Lavon in the cove by the railroad bridge. When we hit something though we were more in the middle of that cove in 20 feet of water. We always ride in there and have never had a problem. It might have been something loose right under the surface but we're not sure. Closer to the rocks there by the opening that goes under the bridge you will see a large branch (that seemed permanent) sticking a few feet out of the water. THAT freaked me out because we ride right there all the time when the water is up...which means that branch is just a couple of feet or so under water. BE CAREFUL!

I hear putting in at East Fork is a lot of fun :) Since I moved, probably will just head south instead of Lavon, prolly will keep the Bu at the river. Sorry to hear. Say hi to my boat when you go in

Link to comment

Just get it fixed at a local place, thats what we are going to do when it gets closer to that time of the year. A new wedge will be right at 500 if not a little more. We got more fat sacks cause we didn't want to buy a new wedge so now we have plenty of weight so the wedge might be just for surfing with us...depending on how I like the wake without the wedge while wakeboarding.

Link to comment
Yep, I was going to say the same thing. I would think it would be difficult to hit the wedge w/o hitting the prop or rudder, but I assumed you knew for sure that you actually hit something. Failure of the screws that hold the "wing" onto the arms is a known and common problem.

I can assure you that it most definitely is possible to hit the wedge hard enough to bend it really badly and still do no damage to the fins, rudder or prop. I thought I had a pix of the damage we did to our wedge two years ago but can't find it. We twisted the toil through about 60 degrees, bent one arm back about 8" but never actually broke anything. And not another mark on the boat.

I took it to a machine shop and they straightened it. I can't remember what they charged but it was a nominal amount. We even bent the stainless pin that holds the wedge down - I straightened it myself and everything has worked fine for 2 years since.

Link to comment

I didn't say it was impossible, just would be difficult. On my boat, the prop and rudder hang down lower than the wedge, and the wedge is not a whole lot wider than the prop. I think you'd have to have the nose way up in the air for the wedge to actually be lower.

Link to comment
  • 4 weeks later...

not wanting to start a new thread, can anyone tell me if it is bad to heat up my wedge arm and bend it back? My friend and I are going to fix it this weekend and I just wanted to make sure that heating it up won't weaken it.

Link to comment

I think for some reason, that would weaken it, itd be like bending a paperclip back and forth. But if someone knows what they are doing listen to them instead.

Link to comment

I'm not sure about aluminum(I think that is what the wedge is made out of), but with steel heating it would be ok. My Grandpa used a torch and a garden hose to straighten a tower used in logging. Heating and then cooling it off the metal on the "outside" of the bend will straighten it out. I think it was the outside. anybody have any experience? I think just heating it up and then bending it would be the fastest though.

Link to comment
...anybody have any experience?

Stewart's our resident metals expert...but he ain't doing much talking lately... :unsure: ...I think after 3000 his fingers got tired. Yes.gif

Edited by NorCaliBu
Link to comment
not wanting to start a new thread, can anyone tell me if it is bad to heat up my wedge arm and bend it back? My friend and I are going to fix it this weekend and I just wanted to make sure that heating it up won't weaken it.

I'm not a metalurgist...but I think you'll be OK. Let it cool on it's own. If you cool it with water, it'll become brittle. (at least steel will...)

Pat

Link to comment

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Restore formatting

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...