bent tower

Offdapeggs · Criminal Joined: 25 Jan 2003 Posts: 54 City: Tulsa, Ok

Hey, I bent my tower when it was off the boat, it is a zero flex tower.
Has anyone ever had to bend one back?

jedsterr · Soul Rider Joined: 13 Jan 2003 Posts: 291 City: Star Idaho

HOW HOW HOW HOW HOW in the world did you manage to bend you tower??????? !! ???

Geoff Standish · Addict Joined: 13 Jan 2003 Posts: 843 City: Calgary

I've heard lots of people doing that...My dealer says it often happens when you pull like 2 or more tubes using the tower.

wakeboarder · Addict Joined: 24 Apr 2003 Posts: 702

yea but he bent his when it was off the boat

DaveBrowning · Posted: May 26, 2003 2:21 pm Post subject:

Wouldn't bending one back just make it even weaker?

Brad Embleton · Addict Joined: 13 Jan 2003 Posts: 511 City: Niagara Falls

Stupid question but how would pulling a tube bend a tower???? Not that i have ever put a tube on my tower!!

wakeboarder · Addict Joined: 24 Apr 2003 Posts: 702

the pressure created by the tube sliding accross the water. when we had our bass boat, we bought a 2ft pole to get the rope above the moter, and my dad slung me across the water in a tube and the pole twisted. never could bend it back

Brad Embleton · Addict Joined: 13 Jan 2003 Posts: 511 City: Niagara Falls

weird i thoght that there would be more pressure with a rider on it

wakeboarder · Addict Joined: 24 Apr 2003 Posts: 702

boards kinda glid across the water and tubes just drag, i guess it depends on the tube. if your edging it creates lots of pressure also. so i guess there about the same

Offdapeggs · Criminal Joined: 25 Jan 2003 Posts: 54 City: Tulsa, Ok

This is how I did it, it makes me sick

The tower won't fold down enough to fit in our garage,,, so we have to take the top off and put it upside down on the floor of the boat.
we did that and pulled into the garage, then, when we were pulling out a week later it barely hit the garage top and bent the tower.....

So,,,, I took it to a tube bending shop today. they worked on it for a long time and got it bent back into shape and it fits back on the boat.

But,,,,, while they were heating it they burnt a hole in the tower.........

so I am going to take it to an aluminum welding shop and see if the can cut it where the hole is and put some inserts so I can remove that section of the tower, and it will fold down enough to fit in the garage.......

UUHHH WHAT A Weekend.

DaveBrowning · Posted: May 26, 2003 6:32 pm Post subject:

That sucks... good luck with everything!

Offdapeggs · Criminal Joined: 25 Jan 2003 Posts: 54 City: Tulsa, Ok

Ok,

get this, we took the boat to the lake just to get out there. not to use the tower to board behind... Let my son wakeboard off the slalom pylon..

We go about 300 yards and I hear a clacking from the motor....
I raise the engine pad, and there is a very loud clacking comiing from the front end of the motor where the water pump and harmonic balancer are..............

We have never had a problem with the boat,,,,, and now some ghosts have decided to haunt us......
Can you believe that I told my wife last week that we were going to drop the tower removing it someday... so we went to look at a new boat......... 2 days later all of this started...........

So I take it to the mastercraft dealer tomorow to see what the noise is,,, wish me luck.

Fishmaster · Posted: May 26, 2003 6:53 pm Post subject:

WOW,

Sorry to hear about the boarding ghosts. On the tower, once you get it cleaned up, do a loading of about 500lbs on it to make sure it all works well. I'd keep people in the front of the boat the first few times out as a insurance policy until you have confidence in the tower again. DONT pull tubes with the tower! Tubes cant let go!

A competition skiier in a course that is a serious pro with incredible form may be able to do 600 lbs on the rope but most boarders are under 1/2 that. If you test it to 500 lbs you should be able to build some confidence again. We have some "high tech redneck" test procedures we can share, give me a call if you need any help.

Bill 877-77-Tower

Parks138 · Criminal Joined: 12 May 2003 Posts: 94 City: Wake Forest

Damn dude i would be pissed if my zero flex bent like that

mainelaker · Posted: May 28, 2003 6:58 pm Post subject:

Offdapegs, is it possible the pylon was loose causing the clanking noise in front of the engine?? My buddies Nautique would make some noise from the pylon until we tightened some nuts?

Offdapeggs · Criminal Joined: 25 Jan 2003 Posts: 54 City: Tulsa, Ok

Monster tower,
thanks for the post, and the advise I will probably call you,
especially if i need a new tower.

Good news, I took the boat to the dealer and they looked at it that day, the noise in the motor turned out to be nothing at all, just the belt. I looked at that but i was so frustrated I didn't see it.

A friend of mine said that you can patch aluminum, has anybody done that.

the 500lbs test is a good idea, i will definitely do that

wakeboarder · Addict Joined: 24 Apr 2003 Posts: 702

hope you get it fixed soon

Wake upPp · Soul Rider Joined: 11 Feb 2003 Posts: 338 City: NOR-CAL

why not just have a shop tig-weld the hole up?

hyperlite-proair man · Outlaw Joined: 04 Mar 2003 Posts: 193 City: columbus in.

have you talked to the guys at zero flex? and tell them the your zero flex flexed ? what did they have to say about it ? and what do they recommend on how to fix it?