Watertight- REALLY ??

[62saab]

Hi All,

I've not yet had the opportunity to put my MAX II into the pond;I've did the garden hose check at all bearing housings,no leaks/seepage . Nonetheless,I would like to hear from other MAX owners regarding their 'real world' experiences as to actually how watertight their vehicles have been,and,for how long during their ownership/use.
They may be watertight 'out the door'(new),but for how long afterwards ???
What would be a realistic,acceptable amount of leakage ,if any to live with? Apparently, zero leakage is temporary state.......
Your experiences will be helpful.

[Toys4Me]

You will get some water in the tub. Water will make its way through the bearings no matter what. I've never had more water come in than my bilge pump couldn't pump out in a matter of seconds. I have ran into an issue with rivets leaking on my max iv. I replaced them all and even put a dab of silicone in the hole as well. Best advise I can give is keep the bearings greased.

[onefunzr2]

My model year 1999 Max II only took on water on its maiden voyage when I ran the engine at full throttle to determine where the recommended half throttle position was paddling in 2-3' deep water of a beaver swamp. The wing nuts around the tub perimeter were not tightened enough and lots of water got through until I realized what was happening. [the electric wire loom was pinched on the port side where the top and bottom meet causing a 1/2"gap along that side] Once I got them all tight and followed the instructions to limit the engine to half throttle when paddling in open water, nary a drop gets in. I just floated out toward the beaver's house last week and after the 1/2 hour trip the inside was as close to the description dry-as-a-bone as one can get. Color me happy.

[ARGOJIM]

Max iis with 22s at high rpm and leaning turns will get water through the vent holes.

[Canadian_Zuk]

I have 2 bilge pumps and I haven't had enough water come in at any time for them to be able to suck anything out. If I'm on the water for 30min or more I get enough water for a steady stream to flow out my drain plugs when I pull them but not enough for the pumps to pick any water up. As said, some water will always find its way through the bearings unless you have synthetic bearings or fully sealed bearing cages. I find most of the water that finds its way into my Max gets thrown in from the back tires. When I'm on the gas my back tires toss a ton of water up the back of the machine and a lot of it comes in through the engine cover. Mud flaps or 1/2 throttle would solve this for me but I just use it as an opportunity to flush out the bottom of the tub.