2006 Speedster 155 as a first boat

[knfevg]

Hey All.
Started thinking about getting a first boat for some family fun. Found this nice 2006 155hp Speedster with 100 hours on it for a reasonable price.
1. What should I look at when going over to see it? Should I measure the engine compression? How much should it read?
2. How good such a boat as the first attempt is water sports? Mostly cruising around the lake, learning to wakeboard on it, etc.
3. Is it good only for lakes? Can I take it to sea? Whats the downside of taking it to salt water?
4. A friend has a 2014 Monterey 184. How would the Speedster measure against it?

 

[Stevie White]

Hello, I bought a 2007 speedster, with 120 hours on it, so far its been a great first boat;

1. Out of water: - Inspect hull for damage
- Make sure all seats are present including arm rests and are in reasonable shape.
- Make sure all compartments open and close properly, there are 4 of them.
- Make sure radio/CD player/speakers work.
- Make sure 2 front lights and mast light works.
- Make sure bilge exhaust fan works
- Make sure bilge pump works
- Engine compartment, look for coolant/oil/gas in bilge may indicate a leak.
Check oil/coolant levels
- Inspect mooring cover
- Check Jet Drive and Reverse gate linkage for tight connections.
- Check boarding Ladder
- shine a light down jet drive, look for foreign objects and scratches on wear ring.
- Check towing mast.
- You should have 2 Key FOBS and a tool to open the gas cap.
- If a trailer comes with it, check that as well.

1. In the water - With 2-3 adults you should get to at least 35MPH, under this could indicate Impeller and
Wear ring issues.
- Engine should start easy, if not there could be battery/starter/engine issues.
- listen for high frequency whining, this could be cavitation in the impeller/wear ring requiring replacement.
- Check responsiveness of steering wheel, FWD/NTR/REV shifter, throttle shifter.

2. Pulls 3 kids on a tube with a spotter, or water skier No Problems.

3. GREAT for small to medium lakes. swells over 2' cause hull splashing, passengers will get wet. don't know about great lakes and oceans.

4. With just me in my 150 speedster, I can reach 43MPH tops. The speedster jet turns on a dime! unlike most props.


I'm sure there are much more knowledgeable posters, but i just went through a purchase, so hope this helps!

Good Luck!

 

[JetPro2Fly]

Hello - I just purchased a 2005 Sportster 155 with 150 hours as a first boat and it's great for what we need it to do - haul 2 adults, a nine year old and the occasional friend or couple around our lake. We have used it already for tubing and wakeboarding and its more than adequate for us. I've clocked 49 mph by myself on the GPS and 45 mph with 4 adults and a 9 yr old.

Definitely, give it a good test drive, and make sure all of the components work as expected. Steve's check list is spot on, try to check off most if not all them. I was fortunate to test drive my boat for almost 2 hours and run it through the paces. Install a good GPS app on your phone and bring it with to check out the acceleration and top speeds.

It's proving to be a relatively easy first boat to work on if you like tinkering and are somewhat mechanically inclined.

Hope this helps!

 

[Stevie White]

Hello - I just purchased a 2005 Sportster 155 with 150 hours as a first boat and it's great for what we need it to do - haul 2 adults, a nine year old and the occasional friend or couple around our lake. We have used it already for tubing and wakeboarding and its more than adequate for us. I've clocked 49 mph by myself on the GPS and 45 mph with 4 adults and a 9 yr old.

Definitely, give it a good test drive, and make sure all of the components work as expected. Steve's check list is spot on, try to check off most if not all them. I was fortunate to test drive my boat for almost 2 hours and run it through the paces. Install a good GPS app on your phone and bring it with to check out the acceleration and top speeds.

It's proving to be a relatively easy first boat to work on if you like tinkering and are somewhat mechanically inclined.

Hope this helps!

jetPro2Fly, were the wear ring and impeller replaced? My speedster gets to 43MPH tops with one person in it.

 

[JetPro2Fly]

jetPro2Fly, were the wear ring and impeller replaced? My speedster gets to 43MPH tops with one person in it.

I will have to find out from the seller, but I don't believe it was, maybe just the wear ring, if at all. From what I know, it doesn't take but one time sucking in debris to alter performance from the wear ring or impeller. I'm looking to do a wear ring and impeller replacement by Solas maybe over the winter that will give it a top speed bump and possibly a mpg bump at cruising speeds. I'm planning on talking to someone today or tomorrow about what is the best model to achieve that, and also find out more about the difficulty of the job to swap them out. Could be worth the extra expense and effort. Maybe someone else with experience with installing a Solas impeller can chime in on this thread?

My home lake is only 368ft above Sea level, so maybe you're higher - topping you out at 43mph? I've heard that makes a lot of difference.

 

[Stevie White]

Thanks, please keep us informed.