Squeeks & Rattles on Alpha Z Tower

[Serbaholic]

Squeeks/rattles on the alpha tower for my '13 Z3? My bases are fine, no cracks. But it can get loud on chop. Is it the rubber gaskets? Someone said to buy Alpha Z Tower lock bushings? I reached out to Texas Tige. Any advice? Stole the gasket pic from another member for visual.

[Galaxy24]

I had this same issue on my '13 Z1. I could see the wear and contact points on the two surfaces. Where the tower meets the tower base. I put a thin film of multipurpose white lithium grease on the two surfaces. Hasn't been a problem for years now.

[Serbaholic]

I had this same issue on my '13 Z1. I could see the wear and contact points on the two surfaces. Where the tower meets the tower base. I put a thin film of multipurpose white lithium grease on the two surfaces. Hasn't been a problem for years now.

Thanks for the reply! Are you talking about where the base meets the 'gunnel'? You greased those two surfaces? How did you get the base off.. behind the upholstery panels?

Oops.. I reread your reply. So are you saying where the tower folds.. at that contact patch between the tower and the base? I'm down to try that.. simple solution.. could it really be that easy though?? lol

[Galaxy24]

Not sure on your specific issue but each time we hit a boat wake or bad wind chop the tower would chirp or squeak. A little grease in our case took care of the issue. I updated your image to show where I applied the grease. When I folded the tower I could see the wear points in the color coat of the tower. I hope it's this easy for you!

[Serbaholic]

Not sure on your specific issue but each time we hit a boat wake or bad wind chop the tower would chirp or squeak. A little grease in our case took care of the issue. I updated your image to show where I applied the grease. When I folded the tower I could see the wear points in the color coat of the tower. I hope it's this easy for you!

I hope so too.. much appreciated! I'll give it a try. Someone also mentioned to get some new rubber grommets.. as they noticed their tower was missing them. I haven't checked that but will today/tomorrow.

[MarkL]

I have an '11 RZ2 with Alpha Z that did the same thing, squeaks and bangs cross wakes. Issue was that there was play in the tower where it sat on the tower base. You could grab the tower just above the base and with some force move it left and right a little. To stop it, I bought Silicone Sheet Gasket, Red, 1/16 Thick. Cut a strip about 1.25" wide and folded over, cutout the holes on each side for the thru bolt and put the tower back down. I did this on both port and starboard. I did not have to do it on the hinge bolt side. The caveat is that I do not put the tower down anymore or I have to redo it. There is probably a batter way but this stopped the metal on metal rubbing.
Like post above mentions, new rubber grommets will help but I needed to fill in more space due to however my tower was cast. But im guessing the issue your describing will be fixed by taking out the play with more rubber. Cheers

[Serbaholic]

I have an '11 RZ2 with Alpha Z that did the same thing, squeaks and bangs cross wakes. Issue was that there was play in the tower where it sat on the tower base. You could grab the tower just above the base and with some force move it left and right a little. To stop it, I bought Silicone Sheet Gasket, Red, 1/16 Thick. Cut a strip about 1.25" wide and folded over, cutout the holes on each side for the thru bolt and put the tower back down. I did this on both port and starboard. I did not have to do it on the hinge bolt side. The caveat is that I do not put the tower down anymore or I have to redo it. There is probably a batter way but this stopped the metal on metal rubbing.
Like post above mentions, new rubber grommets will help but I needed to fill in more space due to however my tower was cast. But im guessing the issue your describing will be fixed by taking out the play with more rubber. Cheers

Mark, your the man! Did you apply the silicone gasket on top of the tower base? Did you remove your rubber gaskets or left them in place? I"m trying to envision how you did this, but my brain isn't working! I made this video earlier, https://youtube.com/shorts/SL99nUhvu6Y?feature=share .. wonder if that shows you anything?

[MarkL]

You want to focus on this part of the tower. Leave the current rubber grommets - they aren't wide enough so you're filling in the gaps to fix the banging. Cut the rubber sheet roughly the width of the red line that I added to your picture and long enough to fold over this tower piece in the pic. Make sure to cover both holes completely. Then I needed three people to seat them.. one to slowly lower the tower and 2 to man the rubber sheets and make sure they stay put. It was some trial and error and some pieces fell in. If this piece in the picture is tight to one side the rubber will bind so your helpers may need to be strong enough to pull on the tower and even our the gap. Once they are in there you can use an Exacto knife to cut the holes out or just cut and "X" in the rubber. That should stop the banging.

My approach was taking advantage of stuff I had in the garage. But this is for sure your problem area. So give it some thought, you can probably come up with an improved way to make it more permanent and continue to raise and lower your tower after.

Cheers

[Serbaholic]

You want to focus on this part of the tower. Leave the current rubber grommets - they aren't wide enough so you're filling in the gaps to fix the banging. Cut the rubber sheet roughly the width of the red line that I added to your picture and long enough to fold over this tower piece in the pic. Make sure to cover both holes completely. Then I needed three people to seat them.. one to slowly lower the tower and 2 to man the rubber sheets and make sure they stay put. It was some trial and error and some pieces fell in. If this piece in the picture is tight to one side the rubber will bind so your helpers may need to be strong enough to pull on the tower and even our the gap. Once they are in there you can use an Exacto knife to cut the holes out or just cut and "X" in the rubber. That should stop the banging.

My approach was taking advantage of stuff I had in the garage. But this is for sure your problem area. So give it some thought, you can probably come up with an improved way to make it more permanent and continue to raise and lower your tower after.

Cheers

You are a phenomenal help, much appreciated! Will try to get this done over the weekend and I'll report back to others who "most likely" have a similar anger towards the Z Tower. Beautiful tower.. she just talks to much lol

[Serbaholic]

You want to focus on this part of the tower. Leave the current rubber grommets - they aren't wide enough so you're filling in the gaps to fix the banging. Cut the rubber sheet roughly the width of the red line that I added to your picture and long enough to fold over this tower piece in the pic. Make sure to cover both holes completely. Then I needed three people to seat them.. one to slowly lower the tower and 2 to man the rubber sheets and make sure they stay put. It was some trial and error and some pieces fell in. If this piece in the picture is tight to one side the rubber will bind so your helpers may need to be strong enough to pull on the tower and even our the gap. Once they are in there you can use an Exacto knife to cut the holes out or just cut and "X" in the rubber. That should stop the banging.

My approach was taking advantage of stuff I had in the garage. But this is for sure your problem area. So give it some thought, you can probably come up with an improved way to make it more permanent and continue to raise and lower your tower after.

Cheers

Mark.. Thankful beyond words. It worked like a charm. Zero rattles or squeak's. Feels like a new boat again.. much appreciated! I'm going to clean this up with a black gasket and cut it closer to the tower so its not so visible. I held it in place with a ziptie.. made it easy to lower the tower without it moving. You are a good man!
IMG_20250915_175651221_HDR.jpg

[Grebva3]

What type of gasket did you buy and where? This is genius...love the tower but as mentioned before she talks too much for my liking. Do you have any pics with the tower down.

[Serbaholic]

What type of gasket did you buy and where? This is genius...love the tower but as mentioned before she talks too much for my liking. Do you have any pics with the tower down.

Its all MarkL and his idea.. props to him! Just plug this into amazon and you'll find it, Silicone Sheet Gasket, Red, 1/16 Thick. No picks with the tower down unfortunately

[Grebva3]

Thanks I'll order it!!

[MarkL]

Hi Serbaholic, i'm super happy to hear it worked for you. The zip tie trick was smart! Cheers