Something different! My 1992 Boston Whaler Rage

[OutRAGEous]

First off, I want to say thank you to the X-H2O community for your help. Several member have given me excellent help when I've posted questions, and I've gained heaps of knowledge from lots of other threads on here.

Also, JetManiac has helped so much with his super efficient shipping and huge inventory. Thank you!

Now, about my Rage...

I grew up in the Pacific Northwest, and have been around boats since birth. Boston Whaler and Grady White were always the boats to have. When I was a kid we had a family cabin-cruiser for summer vacations. We had a 10’ tender with a Yamaha 9.9 and a 20’ centre console welded aluminum fishing boat with a Yamaha 115 V4. Now, imagine yourself as a 12 year old kid when you see an ad like this:

A magazine cover like this:

And this!!!

I was in love!


That was over 20 years ago. I’ve never forgotten the Rage and I’ve always wanted one.


Here’s the Boating magazine review from 1992:

Given my research now, the original Yamaha powered Rage was originally specced with a really, really crappy impeller and a low-power engine. Not exactly the way to impress people. The first generation Boston Whaler Rage was made only in 1992 and 1993.


After 2 short years, Boston Whaler revised the boat and installed the rear-mounted OMC jet unit with 90 or 115hp. These boats went faster but suffered from noisy operation, poor reliability and terrible weight distributions. Now, in 2017, spare parts for the jet pump are obsolete and impossible to find.


After the crappy OMC jets, Boston Whaler briefly sold the Rage with the Mercury 175hp SportJet. These are apparently super fast, but also super hard to find.

 

[OutRAGEous]

In summer 2015 I found a Yamaha-powered 1992 Rage for sale locally. The boat was rough looking, but it ran during the seatrial and the price was low enough that I went ahead, despite the hull looking a bit rough for wear. I was so thrilled to have found one running that I could buy. Here’s a pic with the previous owner at the helm during the sea trial:

I bought it in early August, and I used it every chance I could get. It was fun to drive and I was so stoked to have a Rage of my own. A few pics of my first month with the boat:

Thompson River in the British Columbia interior

Squamish River on the British Columbia south coast

After a month of fun, the boat left us stranded on a river on Monday afternoon of the Labour Day long weekend. We were able to paddle across the river, hitch-hike to our truck, and then pull our boat out by driving through a farmer’s field. I suspected an ignition problem but wasn’t able to figure it out. The boat was left at my inlaws’ place over the winter. I was bummed.


Back to what makes the 1992-1993 Rage so unique is that the entire drivetrain is exactly the same as the Yamaha WaveRunner III. Everything, right down to the steering and reverse cables are the same. There are thousands of the WaveRunner III around, and most parts are still available. The original engine was Yamaha’s 650 twin. Technically it measured 633cc. Yamaha developed this engine in to several later versions in the 700-750cc range. Any of these engines will exchange for another, although different exhaust chambers will be difficult to fit in the Rage. A version of this engine is still sold brand new today by Yamaha in the SuperJet standup ski.


The Rage is pushed with Yamaha’s 144mm pump. This unit is installed in every SuperJet and basically every early-mid 1990s Yamaha WaveRunner. Parts are easily available and inexpensive. Aftermarket parts are plentiful and the impeller selection is huge. This is a key factor to keeping the Rage running and maximizing its performance.


For technical assistance with the engine and pump, by far the best online community is www.x-h20.com. The site is focussed on standup skis (primarily the Yamaha SuperJet) but since the parts are so interchangeable between models the vast information is directly applicable to the Rage.


After the winter hibernation I was determined to get my Rage running. Over the winter I had been searching online and found that the ignition safety kill switch was a likely cause of my troubles on the river the previous year. The switch contacts corrode and the connection becomes intermittent. I cut the kill switch wires, charged the battery, and the engine started right up! I was still wary of being stranded on the river again so I took it to a nearby lake. No problems!

 

[OutRAGEous]

I used the boat through April and May and it was running fine. At this point I started researching ways to improve performance. The boat ran well on flat water, but on choppy water the jet pump wouldn’t stay “hooked up” due to air entering the pump. Also, the idea of an easy motor swap was tempting.


One day I found a local WaveRunner III with a blown engine for $200CAD. I paid for it sight-unseen to use it for spare parts for the Rage, and to eventually sell the WaveRunner III for a profit. At the same time I bought a 61X 701cc engine from an online forum. Stoke factor was high.


Then I started poking around the boat getting ready to pull the engine. Some pics of the engine and pump in the as-bought condition:

Note the home-made single bar intake grate. Good for water flow but bad for blocking debris.


When I started pulling things apart I discovered that the pump was severely corroded, and the stator section was actually corroded through so that some of the pressurized thrust was being lost due to leakage. Also, the wear ring was contacting the impeller. The original Yamaha wear ring utilizes a stainless sleeve pressed in to an aluminum housing. In salt water the aluminum corrodes and swells, causing the stainless wear ring to deform and make contact with the impeller. Not good.


So it was time to decide…keep the Rage and fix it up, or just sell it?? I had so much fun with it, but also lots of frustrations. My wife encouraged me to keep it, so it was time to go shopping.


For pump parts, I dealt with Dave at www.impros.com. I ordered the Solas die-cast stainless wear ring, Solas die-cast stainless 12-vane large-hub stator section, and the Solas exit/steering nozzles with trim. I also ordered the Impros Hooker large-hub impeller to work with the large-hub stator section.


For all the other miscellaneous parts I ordered from JetManiac over on www.x-h2o.com. JetManiac has EVERYTHING that you could need to keep your Yamaha running. And all in stock for great prices and super quick and efficient shipping. Browse this thread for all of the JetManiac products:

www.x-h2o.com/index.php?threads/jetmaniac-master-parts-list-new-used-yamaha-and-custom-build-parts.85372/


Here’s the old stator section with the old impeller. Some previous owner had removed the inefficient Yamaha aluminum impeller and had installed a Skat-Trak 9-17 stainless impeller. You can see the leading edges are banged up from sucking debris through the pump.

Here you can see the trailing edge of the impeller bent from getting some driftwood lodged between the impeller and the stator vanes. Also note the deformed outer edge of the impeller where it was rubbing on the stainless wear ring liner.

 

[OutRAGEous]

Old vs new.


You can see the corroded OEM Yamaha aluminum wear ring housing and stator section vs the new Solas die-cast stainless wear ring, Solas die-cast stainless 12-vane large-hub stator section.

And the old Skat-Trak 9-17 impeller vs the new Impros Hooker 9-15 impeller.

For fun, I compared the Skat 9-17, Hooker 9-15, and the Solas YB-I impeller that came on my parts WaveRunner. Note that the Skat-Trak impeller already has a larger hub that the Solas, which helps to increase pump pressure. The Hooker hub is even larger, which is required when using the Solas large-hub 12-vane stator section.

Solas YB-I on left, Hooker in middle, Skat-Trak 9-17 right

New Solas pump pieces ready for assembly:

I assembled the prop shaft and pump bearings following the method outlined in this thread. It worked perfectly and I’ve had no signs of binding or bearing issues. Recommended.

http://www.x-h2o.com/index.php?threads/how-i-assembled-my-solas-pump-without-a-press.137372/


Pump and impeller assembly pics

Impeller to stator clearance:

Assembled!

In the meantime, I had the boat supported on wooden blocks in my driveway and I discovered that the hull had some cracks in the fiberglass. The 1992-1993 Rage had a flat pad under the engine which includes the bilge drain. The bilge drain is a notorious feature for allowing water in to the foam of the Whaler hull. My boat has this problem, and the fiberglass hull on the engine pad is partially delaminated L

Fiberglass repairs were required here and on the chines where the previous owner had hit some rocks.

Here’s a pic of the boat interior showing the engine compartment, midshaft and bearing housing, and the hull over the intake tunnel area. The boat is well packaged for the factory equipment but there isn’t much room for aftermarket exhaust expansion chambers or other changes (like a three-cylinder 1200cc Yamaha engine which would be amazing).

Not many pictures of the reassembly. The new engine looks exactly the same as the old engine. I rebuilt and rejetted the carb using OEM Yamaha parts from JetManiac. The only bling is red-anodized billet throttle cable wheel on the carburettor and a black anodized throttle lever on the steering wheel.

 

[OutRAGEous]

The boat runs SO MUCH BETTER than before! The engine is smoother, and requires lower RPM to cruise along at a reasonable speed. The pump/impeller provides so much more thrust in all conditions. The thrust in choppy water is improved dramatically, and the steering response in all conditions is so much better. The boat also handles better because the pump maintains suction in turns so the tail doesn’t spin around as easily. You can still spin if you want to but it’s no longer a worry that it might happen at any moment while turning.


Most of my boating is done with just me and my dog, although this may change soon since we’ve just had a baby boy. This will be his boat one day! Some pics of my adventures after the rebuild:

 

[OutRAGEous]

Oh yeah, the boat runs about 33knots now with me and 30L of fuel onboard. Previously the boat only managed around 25knots

 

[Quinc]

Very well written! I enjoyed reading about all the history etc you included.

 

[OutRAGEous]

Very well written! I enjoyed reading about all the history etc you included.

Thanks Quinc! This is like an XXXL couch compared to most machines on here, but I love it for what it is.

 

[rowsto]

Nice work mate, top write up. I recon you could shorten that midshaft and fit a triple in there, get a little creative with the exhaust and you'd be laughing

 

[OutRAGEous]

Nice work mate, top write up. I recon you could shorten that midshaft and fit a triple in there, get a little creative with the exhaust and you'd be laughing

Yeah, I can see that being possible. It would take some work to massage the boat's deck and console to fit.

 

[DirtKurt]

Nice work! Never realized the early models had the yamaha drivetrain like this.

 

[OutRAGEous]

Nice work! Never realized the early models had the yamaha drivetrain like this.

Yup! The first two years had the Yamaha 650 with 144mm pump

 

[nucleus_coolins]

Nice read, i enjoyed. Pretty sweet boat man, good work.

 

[Mdavies_02]

The down fall with a thread like this is once read through it its over. Great build!

 

[Turtle]

Is it only the early years that had the yamaha powerplant in them ? Or did other years have this as well?

 

[OutRAGEous]

Nice read, i enjoyed. Pretty sweet boat man, good work.

Thanks!

 

[OutRAGEous]

The down fall with a thread like this is once read through it its over. Great build!

haha, yeah, I know. I just wanted to share and get the info out there to help others with the same boat. Hopefully I'll do a few more upgrades and post pics of my use this year.

 

[OutRAGEous]

Is it only the early years that had the yamaha powerplant in them ? Or did other years have this as well?

Only the 1992 & 1993 Whaler Rages used the Yamaha 650. In 1994 Whaler used the OMC 90hp TurboJet, then in 1995 & 1996 used the OMC 115hp TurboJet. 1997 was the Mercury 175hp SportJet.

 

[Squarenosed]

Nice little boat! I've been half-seriously looking for something like this for a little while and stumbled across this the other day. Paid $40. Needs a little work...

 

[OutRAGEous]

Whoa, that does need a lot of work, but for only $40...cool score!