Power wedge on 06 LSV has a lot of play when stowed

[Juice75]

Hey team,

Picked up an 06 WS 23 LSV last October with the power wedge.  Love the boat!  However, when we hit a good size wake, I get the "wedge is moving up" alarm.  This is with the wedge already up.  I checked the wedge today, and when stowed, I can still lift it up about an inch, so it has a good bit of play in it.  

Is having the play normal?  And if not, how do I fix it?  

I can through the "calibration" I found on this site (running it through all the way down and up 10 times), and that helped, but still getting the alarm.  The wedge still functions great, but I'd love to get this fixed and moving like it should.

 

Thanks!

[csleaver]

There is usually some play when the wedge is stowed, but make sure your wedge actuators are both fully extended when the wedge is stowed.  There are a couple manual adjustments that may help.

Loosen all the adjustment through bolts on the top plate of the wedge mount so you can adjust the wedge blade up and down.  Disconnect the piston end of the actuators from the wedge.  Turn the pistons counter clockwise until the actuators are fully extended and will spin but not lengthen any more.  Reconnect the actuators to the wedge.  Lift and hold the wedge blade so the upper tips are level with the top of the mounting bracket where the through bolts are then tighten the bolts.

Here is a good description with pictures:

https://www.bakesonline.com/media/resourcelibrary/MalibuWedgeDiagnostic2011.pdf

Also, if one actuator is moving slower than the other, it may be worn and both actuators would need replacement.

https://www.bakesonline.com/power-wedge-actuator-5-lobe-malibu-boats.html?ff=1&fp=517&gclid=CjwKCAjw_-D3BRBIEiwAjVMy7A_4brL5lTRijopzMnfEcDr9f9dQcT7aCCX9ARVD0gB3ztLkk57FbBoCVvQQAvD_BwE

I have seen a couple boats prior to 2012 with new actuators that still get wedge moving warnings at the wrong time.  If you have newer 5 lobe replacement actuators and still have the original 3 lobe lenco control box, the position may not read accurately.

Edited June 28, 2020 by csleaver

[Juice75]

21 minutes ago, csleaver said:

 

This is amazing!  Thanks!  My wedge definitely sits too low when stowed...maybe an inch or so.  Any chance you know how to raise and lower the wedge without manually spinning the paddle wheel at the same time?

[csleaver]

The short answer is no.  The long answer:

Lowering the wedge is easy, it should go down when you press the wedge switch down and the boat is at 0 to 9 MPH.  To stow the wedge push the wedge switch up when the boat at 1 to 9 MPH, or spin the paddle wheel by hand if the boat is on the trailer so the speedo reads 1 to 9 MPH while pushing the wedge button up.

The only other way is to disconnect the actuators and turn the actuator pistons clockwise or counter clockwise to shorten or lengthen them.