anyone run Seadoos?

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diymirage

HP@idle > hondaHP@redline
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SEADOOS, NOT SKIDOOS

MAYBE A MODERATOR CAN FIX THAT IN THE TITLE?
ive been toying with the idea of getting a pair for me and my boy (hes 10)
now ive riden dirtbikes and the boy is comfortble on his 4 wheeler but is there something i need to look for with PWCs?

(the one that has caught my eye is a pair of bombadiers, a 90 and a 93)

the seller has dropped the price a few times, and im getting antsie about it
 
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My buddy really enjoys his pwc. 1800 cc four stroke yammy.
I cant get into it.
 
I was a snow-mobile tech for maybe 10 or so years, working for different dealers; including Skidoo, Polaris, and Yamaha.
I would never own one. More specifically I would never own a Polaris or a Kat.
Nor a post mid 2xxx-ish anything.
If I was presented a choice between a Ski-doo or a Yamaha, I would take the Ski-doo. And I would take a course on how to maintain it, and service it, and change jets with the temperature and elevation.
Failing that, I would put away a couple of Gs for a new engine,clutch, and suspension rebuild.
The first thing you do with a snowmobile is to price out the windscreen and hood, and make sure they are still available, cuz if you ride like me, you will need at least one windscreen every year,lol, and a hood every second. Yeah I do bonehead stuff that occasionally launches me right thru the windshield, sometimes taking the hood with it.
The second thing is to always have; fresh plugs,spare jets, and lots of isopropyl alcohol.
My best advice is to
pool your money and buy just one post 1997 one, with a long-travel suspension,rebuildable shocks,and a new hood,lol; then share it.

If you don't like working on them, then don't buy a 4-stroke, nor a fuel injected one. Which in 92/93, you'd be Ok cuz I think only one EFI was offered, and it was a Kat.
Whatever you select/do,may God bless and protect you and your son.
 
Aha! That explains the use of the word Bombardier.
As to Sea-doos, they look like they would be a lotta fun.

But the ones I have worked on, only a few , I'm sure glad I was being paid to. The engines are buried down low, and do not like to come out. Whatever you do, I highly recommend to stay away from a fuel-injected turbocharged 4-stroker.
KISS;
stick with a 3-cylinder normally aspirated job.

Before you put your money down, you just gotta do a compression test, and make sure the jet-drive works.
And before you put it in the water, go thru the carbs.
And before you head out, make sure you have a tow-rope and a paddle, a can of beans with an opener, and one of them space blankets.
 
I grew up on a pair of 90's seadoo SPI's. They were my absolute favorite thing to do. Me and my sister went in halves on a new seadoo spark 2 seater in 2015. We have had a few VERY minor issues with it. Most of it being covered under warranty. Its been pretty solid and reliable. Im 280 lbs and I can get airborne over wakes and waves with it. Its very lightweight and easy to maneuver and do donuts, etc.

I wanted to get an older 90's seadoo just like I had as a kid. But they are always so rough and beaten. The spark is pretty comparable in size, weight, and fun compared to the 90's stuff.
 
thanks for the responses guys

this is the set im considering

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they look good for 30 year old machines, but like i said, i dont know what to look for

i dont see any displacement call out, and i dont know if these would be too big for my 10 year old or too little for me
 
My son buys and sells them all the time. They are a lot of fun. Those are pretty old. I wouldn’t buy them without having a jet ski mechanic look at them. Definitely have a compression check. That is the most telling thing you can check. Old jet skis can be hard to keep running. Like an old car. If you are a decent mechanic, you can learn to work on them, but the two cycle motors are pretty finicky.

I think $1500 for the whole set up would be absolute top price for the whole rig. Trailer is worth about $500, & about the same for each ski. Definitely ride them before you buy. You will really enjoy them if they run good, but there are few things worse than going to the lake with jet skis that don’t run.

I can ask him about them if you want me to.
 
My son buys and sells them all the time. They are a lot of fun. Those are pretty old. I wouldn’t buy them without having a jet ski mechanic look at them. Definitely have a compression check. That is the most telling thing you can check. Old jet skis can be hard to keep running. Like an old car. If you are a decent mechanic, you can learn to work on them, but the two cycle motors are pretty finicky.

I think $1500 for the whole set up would be absolute top price for the whole rig. Trailer is worth about $500, & about the same for each ski. Definitely ride them before you buy. You will really enjoy them if they run good, but there are few things worse than going to the lake with jet skis that don’t run.

I can ask him about them if you want me to.
I appreciate the input
I think he started off around 3500, over the last few weeks I've watched him come down to 3000
I was thinking of offering 2000, but it sounds like thats still high?

If you want to ask your son his opinion, that would be great...no rush though
 
In the 90s My buddies were pretty serious Jet-Ski (stand up type) riders.
I bought a really nice 550 and would occasionally go with them. But no one else I knew liked them (girls) because they have a bit of a learning curve to get through.

So I found a Sea-Doo GTX three seater in immaculate condition. It was great! Very fast & the three seater was very stable even when just floating. Not as much fun as the stand up but everyone else loved it! LOVED IT! Especially ladies (now the effect on females is a totally different topic). No problems ever. Gas, oil & just to make sure I put a new battery in every year.

But Very dangerous! If you were going 40 MPH & let off of the throttle you would still go perfectly straight no matter how much you turned the handlebars. I always made everyone drive it and with me sitting right behind them and I made them go full speed then totally let off the throttle and turn as hard as possible. It was always a shock to them to be going that fast and then have the steering have zero effect on direction. Everyone was shocked even though I had just told them.

Sold both the stand up & GTX to a friends buddy almost 20 years ago, I think my buddy still uses it at his dad’s cottage.

Then a few years later around 2006 I found someone selling two Sea-Doos, one a GTX three seater and a Sp “two seater”. I was the only one that liked the Sp, it was really a one person deal and very tippy when at idle or not running. AND a big pain for an adult to get in it in deep water. When my then wife was pregnant I knew they wouldn’t be used for a few years so I sold them.

So my advice:
Try them - see how Stable they are while floating and how hard they are to get on in deep water. The Sea-Doo three seaters were great for this. I bought a tiny rope ladder for the GTX but I never needed it.
I would get another Sea-Doo.
Condition is everything. I was super lucky to find the ones I bought in immaculate well cared for condition.
And be super cautious with them. Think of them as 50 MPH chain saws.
 
Talked to son about them. He thought $2000 would be a good deal for the whole rig. Hard to sell those this time of year. He is likely going to sit on them all winter unless he wants to sell cheap.
 
Talked to son about them. He thought $2000 would be a good deal for the whole rig. Hard to sell those this time of year. He is likely going to sit on them all winter unless he wants to sell cheap.
thanks, i was thinking the same

was there anything he said i should look for...especially if i cant get them in the water?
 
Compression is the big thing. The jet pumps can also be an issue. If you flip them over on a side and take the intake grate off you should be able to grab the driveshaft. It should be tight. If if flops around, bearings are shot.

I wouldn’t buy unless I could ride them or have a professional mechanic look at them. They are like a car, you can’t tell much from idling. Just because it revs up on the trailer, doesn’t mean they will run in the water.

Engines, as a rule, cannot be rebuilt by amateurs. Most buy engines from some place like SBT for about $1000. Usually large core charges. Air leaks from seals is what happens very often on old skis. No oil in air from leaks so bearings and rings burn up. Ethanol gas degrades old hoses.

They are kind of like working on a Jaguar. Not bad once you learn but, very different. Parts & tools are expensive. If he has newer motors & pumps / wear rings they might be ok. If they are original I would run away. They look nice and clean, but watercraft are often clean.
 
My buddy is a guru on them, Ill pass this to him for a looksie. I take a pic of one on a trailer and he can tell me that model it is.
 
My buddy is a guru on them, Ill pass this to him for a looksie. I take a pic of one on a trailer and he can tell me that model it is.
Thanks

Could you ask him is these would make good starters for me and the boy?
With him being 10, I'd rather not start him on something hemi-like
 
Guru says 1500 for the lot is good. 91-92's maybe and the rotax 2 strokers are illegal in many lakes around here and the cdi ignition are N/A now. If they run, great. But parts are rare. Check pwctoday.com for info.
 
I think 10 is too young to drive one alone in some states. Check your local laws.
 
I think 10 is too young to drive one alone in some states. Check your local laws.
well, that puts a damper on things, under the age of 14 it is a solid no
14 and older, they need a boating safety certificate

bugger
 
They can drive if you ride along. Lots of fun.....for them. My son would drive like a maniac & I could barely hold on.
 
Past 2 mos. Used Jet skis were selling within the hour they were listed in New York. Bad motors, no motors, no trailers. Gone!!!! The new ones cost as much as a car. Dealers are not budging on anything as they are on backorder. One family ordered new sea doos in March and weren't delivered until the following August. A friend just bought (2021) 2 new sea doos and 2 new snowmobiles from the same dealer, 60k later, Zero discount. Taking orders for 2022 already! Hes a doctor so money is no issue.
 
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