Waverunner question????????
 

I know some of you own PWC's.

My girlfriend and I have been looking at some used waverunners to buy and use in smaller lakes where I can't run my boat.

She has a 4 year old, so were needing to find a brand that has a good riding hull. I know there is a lot of brands out there and I don't know a lot about them. I know all there hull designs are a little different.


I'm a powerboater!! I know to stay out of the middle of the lake!!:D :D

Thanks!!

If its going to be all three of you riding get a 4 person one, I think Seedoo makes the largest, or get one of the little jet boats Yamaha makes.;)

Were looking at buying a pair of them, so it will be a couple of 2 seaters or 3 seaters.

Thanks for the reply!!:D

I have a Sea-Doo SPX. They say it is for 2 people...We also have the new Yamaha 4-Stroke. If it is in the budget I would HIGHLY reccommend it. SMOOOTH as can be, plenty of power and great handling.

Good luck. Shane

Shane,

That was a question I was fixing to ask. I heard due to EPA issues slowly but surely 2 strokes were going to be out lawed on some lakes. I know of some lakes already implementing this.

What are 4 strokes roughly going for? I would rather buy one thats not going to have to be converted later on.

Thanks:D

IMO the Yamaha can not be beat in reliability.
It is the only one of the manufecturer's that has put thought into the fact that they are used in water. From grease fittings to separate battery compartments its well thought out.
Im not up on the latest models but I have a 95 Raider and 95 Venture. The Venture is way big and has lots of storage. The Raider is more fun to ride but is really a 1 up machine. We used to ride the lakes and take them camping, lots of fun.
Get one of each, a three man and a single. It makes a good mix and covers the bases.

29,

The emmissions factor played in a big role in the decision to buy the 4-Stroke. As Tantrum said, YAMAHA's reliability is second to NONE! The fit and finish on the YAMAHA is impeccable. The machine is amazingly quiet and has tremendous amountsof power all through the power curve. It fires up each and every time without hesitation. The ride quality is phenominal but I have tried any of the other brands this size. It is pricey though. I would look to buy left over or 1 year used unless you have $8500+ for each. I think they were actually selling for near $10,000 in some locations. I have a friend in teh business that helped me out.

Good luck.

Shane

For a first time rider, look into Yamaha and Polaris.
We tried a Sea-Doo and found it too unstable. Damn thing almost rolled as we were trying to get on.:eek:
The Yamaha was a lot better and fun to ride.
Then we tried the Polaris. Stable as rock and comfortable to ride. You can litterally stand on the gunnel and it won't try to roll over. I was sold. I have two '95 SL750's. Been lots of fun. We started taking my grandson out on them when he was 2 years old. We never worried about being tossed off or possibly rolling over.
Look into the Polaris, you won't be sorry.

Thanks Iggy!!

:D :D

I currently own Kawasaki's, Yamaha's and Sea- Doos. If I were to narrow it down to just two I would pick a Sea-Doo GTX and a Sea Doo XP.

The GTX is smooth, dry, comfortable and handles well. (Great for wives and kids!). It is available in a 4 stoke this year that won rave reviews from everyone and next year comes the supercharged 4 stroke!

The XP is a one rider crotch rocket. It is fast and handles great. It is actually capable of turning faster than most people can hang on. It is a lot of fun on the small craft warning days!

Kawasaki = top notch build quality, fast, not as many features and comfort as the others.

Yamaha and Sea Doo are about the same. Good Build Quality. Yamaha leans towards performance and handling at the expense of comfort and convenience. Sea Doo has pretty much the same speed and handling with more comfort.

Steve

Stay away from the high power ones. Had a 800gp & motor blew up just before went out of warranty. Now have a GP1200R Spent most of this year in shop.

You may want to check out the new Honda F-12. A beautiful machine, 4 stroke, very stable and heavy, seats 2 very comfortably (although it is called a 3 seater). Honda reliability with marine outboards is well known. However, since this was Honda's first year into PWC's, as with anything the first time out, there were some minor problems, the 2003 models should have all the kinks out and will set the new standard for other manufacturers.

Got two Yamahas, and they are reliable and very smokey, But because of EPA, bought a Honda this season as I wanted to go to Tahoe for vacation and all I can say is WOW. Smooth and very quiet, also very quick. I bought the Turbo model. Plenty of room for three and very stable. Honda did their home work on this one.................

Hey shawn, man you must be rollin in the dough!! You lookin at new trucks new jet ski's and fixing up your Scarab.. :D LOL

You need any new help where you work????:D

by the way yall cold yet??:cool:

We have both Yamaha waveraider and Polaris SLXH. I'm happy with the Yamaha, not so happy with the Polaris. Our neighbors have a couple Kawasaki 900's and have been very happy with them. Our next purchase will be a couple Kawasaki 1100ZXi's

With that said, I think you've had a recomendation here for every brand;)

I vote for Sea Doo. We have 4 between my family and friends and bought them all used from a rental place. None of them have needed anything but a battery. 3 seaters are really 2 seaters and 2 seaters are really 1 seaters so plan accordingly. The new 4 strokes are the bomb regardless of who built itbecause you are buying the top of the line. If you're worried about new regs, buy a cheap 2 stroke and send 100 bucks to the AWA/IJSBA;)

Hey guys!

Appreciate the input on this! This board really does help people make decisions!!


NASDBOY!!!

As for you!:D Work is great up here! As far as the comment about the dough!!

DeAnna talk to your other half lastnight and I'll tell on you!!!!!:D :D :p :D


Thanks again!!!

Really ???
 

[QUOTE]Originally posted by 105mph_38_2003
[B]29,

I have a pair of Ultra 150's, one will do over 80 mph and both are bullett proof.



So what modifications do you have on your ultra that will make it do OVER 80 ???


I too have a 99 ultra 150 and love it..

But if I was going to buy a new ski, it would be the Honda 4 stroke turbo...

I own for my personal use 3 Yamahas. One is a '91, and then a '94 and a '98.

I am a partner in a boat/bike/jetski repair/rebuild shop. We own another 17 to 20 skis there.

I cannot emphasize enough that SeaDoo has a horrible and well-deserved reputation for crankshaft problems. If a SeaDoo motor is not properly maintained/stored/winterized, then it is possible/probable that it will retain moisture in the crankcase and the hardchrome plating on the crankshaft will flake. This typically will take the whole motor out because the usual symptom of the trouble is 3 seconds of odd noise before the rod locks onto the crank, snaps in two and punches holes in the block. If we purchase a SeaDoo for resale, we will only do so cheaply enough to figure in a new crank. We see this on new models as well. We see this on skis that look showroom fresh with low hours. Emphasis is that you have no way of knowing how the boat has been maintained and stored. Only a thorough fogging with the motor up to temp will ensure the integrity of the crank (every time it is stored for more than a month).

The SeaDoo GT(s, x, etc) is a premium 3-up luxo ski. Excellent ride, nice trip computer, soft seat, dry ride. The DFI 2-stroke is both quiet and powerful. The XP is unsuitable for 2-up riding. It is very "tippy" at slow speeds. It is, however, a blast to carve and squirt on one.

The GSX is a premium 2-up luxo-sport ski. Can easily fit 2 adults and a child on it even though it is technically a 2-seater.

The SeaDoo 4-stroke is a great boat and performs well.

Polaris and Tigershark make decent enough skis but they have very low resale in our area. The dealer network is scattered and the only large dealer we had around here dropped them (polaris) due to too many warranty repairs keeping their service department so busy that they couldn't take the more profitable customer repair and hop-up service work... Maybe in a snowmobile area there will be a better dealer network on those brands. They are both good brands.

Kawasaki has some extremely nice models. The injected 1100 is a good motor but we have had two in with electronic issues that the dealer couldn't figure out (no, we are not authorized to do warranty work on Kawis but the owner was at wits' end). These were early injected models and there have been updates that supposedly have addressed those issues (we have not seen any more with a similar problem). The ZXi models would not be a good choice for a small child as they are not "settled" at speed.

Honda has sat and watched the jetski market and has truly done their typical remarkable job of hitting it right the first time. They really only offer one ski, but in two distinctive flavors. It is a four stroke 3-seater. One is a turbo with a few more bells and whistles and the other has no turbo. The turbo enjoys a higher top speed, but that is the only performance difference. The non turbo is quicker out of the hole and is down on acceleration only slightly. Handling and ride are really good.

Yamaha offers entry level, performance, and luxo skis. In my opinion, there is no better package than a Yamaha (Honda may be if time proves them as bulletproof). Early Yamaha 500cc motors were junk (as they were essentially 50hp outboards turned on their sides) but all the following motors are solid as a rock.

TurboJack, I hate to hear that you continue to have issues with your Yamahas, and I can only scratch my head. We simply see no troubles other than stiff or stuck carb diaphragms from sitting, impact damage, impeller damage from rocks, and the occasional mud-packed cooling system from trying to drive thru mud. We put a crank in a XL1200 that had sat on the bottom of the lake for a week before being parked in a barn for a year. We put an oversize piston kit in a 1992 model that had been run out of oil until it locked solid (the teenage girl said that she got it started three or four more times before it quit for the last time) - that boat had been run nonstop on our lake by that family - it probably had 1500 hours on it. The crank was fine and it only needed the piston kit after being overheated and seized. It has been running fine for 2 years now (we saw it this summer to unwrap a bunch of ski rope from the pump). The XLT is a nice boat.

Everybody else's 4 strokes are good boats. I always prefer to wait a year to get the bugs out but so far all of the 4-strokers appear to be reliable. A 4-stroke boat will be slower than its similar 2-stroke model. It will feel heavier, it will handle differently. It has TEN times the number of moving parts. If it gets swamped (partially sunk) as happens occasionally, it will require far more than the removal of spark plugs and a quick hit of the starter to blow the water out (you will be looking for a boat ramp to pull it out and go thru it). They are quiet, but no more so than the extra-quiet 2-strokes available on some. They are more fuel efficient at some rpm ranges (which can certainly be a plus). They do not smoke. More importantly, as has been mentioned, SOME water is being marked as OFFLIMITS to 2-stroke craft (by self-righteous idiots). If you feel you are near areas that may fall to this trend, then a 4-stroker is for you.

My kids are completely unintimidated by skis. My girl is 9 and is tiny (weighs 50 pounds). My boy is 11 and weighs 75. They both prefer the 57mph Raider and XL1200 to the 38 mph WR3. Your 4-yr old will love skis.

Some hulls ride far smoother than others in a chop. Some hulls "spin out" easier and smoother than others. Some hulls carve corners better than others. Some hulls jump wakes smoother than others. Some hulls spray you more than others. Some hulls will let you stay dry more than others. Some skis feel very nose-heavy. Some hulls pick the nose up nicely. Some hulls tend to lean to the right or left at cruise. Some hulls are skittish and nervous at speed. Some motors vibrate through the handlebars at cruise. Some are very smooth. Some have handholds to aid in climbing aboard if you fall off in deep water. Some have storage compartments that are hard to access. Some have no adequate storage. Some have coolers built in.

It goes on.

M

mcollinstn,

I would like to thank you for that post! It was probably the most informative post I've read!

My decision has been definitely more narrowed down after that!!


Thanks again! I luv this board!!! Thanks Jeffrey!!!


:D :D

Yamaha XL1200 3 person big enough to board in the deep water about 60Mph reliable and some used ones out there Ith think they started making them in 1998. I have one it's great.

for that speed you have to be running triple pipes RIGHT ???
 

:confused:

Just out of curiosity, does anyone know anything about the Swift Oceanics X-2000 Jet ski. I had read alot of stuff about them, but no dealer network was set up, and I dont think it ever took off in the market. Swift Oceanics is a company that makes big ocean yacht's, and some runabouts too. They had a tunnel hull jet ski with a 175hp Kawasaki 1250cc 4 stroke, street bike motor. It was an all aluminum hull painted solid black, with nice chrome header sticking out of the side. I never had seen one in person, but it looked really cool, and in all of thier literature, they claimed 90+mph. The tag was $13,000, alot for a ski, but I never heard much about them, and the web site they had is gone. Did anyone here ever see one or ride one, and what's todays status of that company?

http://www.swiftoceanics.com/images/Laserx/Laserx1.htm

I heard about it and saw pictures of it. It had real potential on flat water.

As far as I know it never took off. I have not heard anything for at least a year.

Steve

here's a pic

On the 2 stroke vs 4 stroke.

What happens when you flip them? Dosent the 4 stroke have problems? And, which one are you more comfortable working on? If you know how to work on both, get the 4 stroke. If you have no idea then get the 2 stroke and take it apart, take digital photos after every step then put it back together to see if it runs. That way, you will know how to replace the broken stuff once it breaks.

holly shit Rob,,,,
 

That thing is awesome looking... I bet it would be a ***** in some chop, but on flat water that thing looks like a lot of fun....

105,,, I was not testing you, but really wanted to see if you knew what you were talking about.. alot of people think their ski's go 70 plus mph because of their dream-o-meter's. I had a guy ask me how fast my ultra was I said it will do 64-66, he told me his sea-doo did over 70, I said wanna race,, he was like sure,, he was pretty embarrased when my 65 mph ultra SPANKED his 70 plus sea-dooo... check out the ultra150.com message board if you don't already..

mcollinstn:
I too think that was a great post.
I have two ski's, a '01 1100 di , and a '02 1200R
Since the only dealer in my homwtown is Kawasaki, I buy them.
It is funny when these guys with their "80mph" skis get waxed by my 1200 at a real 64mph.
The kids really love skis! A lot of action going on, and you can turn on a dime with them, they love that.
My little 4 year old girl fell dead asleep in my arms while riding across the lake!! It was smooth that day:D

help!!!! i am looking to buy a slightly used pwc this spring. i have two questions. one where can i get a list of lakes that allow two stroke. i know that they are becoming obsolete. i will mainly ride on the great lakes in mich, ohio and pa. i am looking at a two and four stroke. both yamahas. xlt1200 and the fx140. any suggestions. all i am looking for is something i can tow skiiers and boarders from and something with some kick when riding solo. i am in my mid twenties and want something with some getup and go... thank you for your advice

Stick with the Yamaha Or Honda 4 strokes they are not the fastest things out there but they hardly ever break.

I live on the water and get to ride all kinds and since they all know I work on bike's for a living I get roped into working on their skis from time to time. I haven't worked on a new 4 stroke yet and I would say 10-12 two stroke's last year.

Plus the 4 stroke's are almost silent, so you wont p i s s as many people off.

I have raced PWC since 1990. There is a very simple choice for reliability. Yamaha. Sea Poo has great performing boats with good handling hulls. But Yamaha will have the most reliable everytime.

I might ad.....A Pro Superstock Runabout boat will run a person 30-40k to be competitive at that level. These boats will out accellerate the best sports cars made today. But the top speed on them is right around 80 mph for the fastest, best backed factory riders. I have a tough time believing someone that says they have a boat that fast unless it's a full Pro Superstock and they've invested over 30k in it. The World record held by Riva Yamaha is in the mid to high 80s and they spent A LOT $$$$$$ to get that.

Buck

Buck,

I got an ex pro-mod 1st generation GP1200 with a Dan Lamey R&D powervalve motor that has a fresh bigbore kit. Factory triples, Novis, GForce, Magnum setback pump, girdled head, MSD total loss.

Can't wait to run it (didn't get a chance last fall cause it got cold soon after it arrived, and when we had an odd warm day there wasn't any C17 fuel handy.. Is in short course tune with tabs and a scoop grate and an acceleration prop. S'posed to run mid 70's on the rev chip at 8400. Will give feedback after i get it wet, but my plan is to true the hull, lose the scoop, send the impeller back to Skat for a repitch, and see if I can get 80.

*******************

4 stroke vs 2 stroke?
The 2001 up XLT1200 Yamaha is a wonderful boat. Aside from starter solenoids and the need to ditch the catalytic converter, they are just about perfect for a 2 stroke 3 seater. You can find killer deals on them too.

They ride well, corner well, jump acceptably, accelerate hard, top out high 50's, and have a nice deep exhaust rumble. Lots cheaper than the 4 stroke and feel much nimbler due to the weight and distribution of it.

Only drawback on the 2 stroke 1200 is that it is thirsty and has a bit of mid speed vibration that comes back thru the bars just a touch.

Sounds like the boat is set up well. I bet it corners on rails. I think the biggest rush will be the accelleration. Probably unreal!

Let me know how she runs. It's been a little over a year since I last raced. I like to keep up with it still.

Buck

I still love my old 91 superjet Yamaha
starts everytime

TopDJ, you've got the rationale goin'. The ONLY real pwc's are the STANDUPS baby. Thing is, I've been riding them since I was 12 (29 now)...even a factory Yamaha 1200R (74mph) bored me after a couple runs. Here's my babies...

How about a couple of Doo's?

Look no further:

This is the ride I bought this past year. Rides great. You step on and it doesn't try to tip over. I think this is the mac daddy of ski's!! Its a 3 seater and runs like a bat out of HELL!!

29scarab,
Aren't they putting turbos on those Hondas now? Is yours turbo charged?

I have a couple I'll make you a deal on

I agree with mcollinstn. I have a Polaris 1050 that is a nice ski but when something breaks ( and it always does) parts are a pain to locate. Too few dealers for Polaris and a poor parts network. I also have a Yamaha 1200XLT that runs 64mph and is very reliable. All future PWC's will be Yamaha's. I took the advice of a friend of mine at a local boat dealership that does repair work but no sales of PWC's. He told me that by far Sea Doo was the least reliable and to stay away from them. He rated Yamaha the best followed by Polaris. However, now that Honda is in the game, I would expect them to be more reliable than Polaris.