RESTO 96 XP Resto

[spxx]

So... I decided I needed yet another project and stumbled across a relatively clean, bone stock 96XP on Craigslist about an hour away. After $700 and a sketchy two-hour drive on mediocre wheel bearings, we made it down to Tablerock.

The wear ring, carbs, raves, fuel lines, were rebuilt/replaced/cleaned last weekend. I thought about trying to save the original graphics, but the edges are torn near the foot wells and the entire ski could stand to be wet sanded and buffed, so the graphics will probably have to go one way or another. Here's where I need some opinions. I was really hoping to hold out and find a clean 95 XP800, but couldn't pass up on this ski. I'll likely end up throwing on a single gauge hood (probably painted since the yellow 95 hoods are difficult to find) and plan to stick with a new yellow seat cover, but was curious if anyone had ever seen 95 XP800 graphics on a 96 XP. I'm about to pull the trigger on the 95 XP800 graphic set from PWC graphics, but wonder how the lower hull graphics will lay out without the pink gelcoat on the back of the ski like the 95's. Anyone have experience with this? Good idea or bad?

Regardless, I'm looking forward to bringing this one back to life. I'll plan to update this thread throughout the process, but updates may be a little slow in the near future since I travel quite a bit for work.

 

[etemplet]

Good luck with it. Keep the pictures coming.

 

[spxx]

So, a little update. I reached out to Mike at PCWGraphics about doing a set of custom graphics (essentially 95 XP800 upper graphics with 96 XP style lower graphics). I've heard good things about his graphics sets and look forward to hearing a little more from him.

As a side note, if anyone has a lead on a decent single gauge hood, please feel free to let me know. Color doesn't matter a lot since I'll likely paint it yellow.

 

[emspjay]

Following. Mike from PWC is great to work with and his product is awesome.

 

[spxx]

Following. Mike from PWC is great to work with and his product is awesome.

I should have the graphics on Monday. Started wet sanding with 800 grit today, hoping to finish with 1200 Sunday and get it buffed out early next week. I’m amazed how much easier the yellow gelcoat sands compared to the white gelcoat.

 

[spxx]

Figured I’d throw a quick Christmas Eve update out. I had originally planned to paint the faded SP single gauge hood I found on eBay, but after a few minutes with the heat gun and Soft Scrub, it turned out to be almost mint. That hood will end up on the 96 SPX I’m working on in the background, so back to the drawing board there.

Has anyone ever had issues removing old reg numbers? The vinyl peeled right off but left behind a dark gray “residue”. It isn’t tacky or sticky at all, and didn’t fade all that much after wet sanding with 800 grit. I’m fairly certain I can sand most of it out, but don’t want to risk sanding through the gelcoat. Any thoughts?

Happy Holidays to all!

 

[mikidymac]

Gelcoat is very thick, keep sanding.

 

[etemplet]

If it left "residue" Id use a heat gun or blow dryer and "Sticker Remover" and a plastic scraper. There are a few brands on the market. I had some Turtle Wax version of sticker removal and there is also, "Sticker Shock" that works pretty good.

If you sand over the residue you will still have a high spot because the material will be removed from the gelcoat. Been there a few times. So... I'd focus on residue removal first.

I've done a lot of sanding and prepping of all sorts of situations. I don't know the best things to do but I sure know what "not" to do. LOL Remember too that your new numbers will HIDE some of the old stuff so don't try to make it perfect. Good Luck !!

 

[etemplet]

I have a whole jet ski that was repainted an it is getting milky yellow. I can't polish it back because the color isn't there. The graphics look good and I like them so I am stuck in limbo and there she sits. I have all sorts of go fast parts for the ski and it will ROCK. I keep an eye out for a good body but I think in the end I'll prep the whole ski and paint it.

Add to the go fast parts and the effort, not many people knew enough about the XPs to know the difference or even care. It would be personal preference only. Not trying to take over the thread just sharing. I hope your success encourages me.

 

[spxx]

I have a whole jet ski that was repainted an it is getting milky yellow. I can't polish it back because the color isn't there. The graphics look good and I like them so I am stuck in limbo and there she sits. I have all sorts of go fast parts for the ski and it will ROCK. I keep an eye out for a good body but I think in the end I'll prep the whole ski and paint it.

Add to the go fast parts and the effort, not many people knew enough about the XPs to know the difference or even care. It would be personal preference only. Not trying to take over the thread just sharing. I hope your success encourages me.


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I think “residue” was probably a poor word choice. It’s almost like the adhesive burned itself into the top surface of the gelcoat, as it’s not sticky to the touch (you can’t differentiate the gray area the decals were from the adjacent gelcoat now that it’s been sanded). As Mikidymac suggested, I plan to go back and hit the area with 800 grit again just before I finish up with 1000 and 1200 grit. That should take care of it.

I’ve been tossing around the idea of adding an aftermarket head, pipe, carbs, etc. to this ski but I think I’m just going to keep it stock for the time being. I do have a good UMI setup I may throw on to correct the shitty steering geometry, but it looks decent with the pro taper bars on the stock stem for the time being. I still need to find a good VTS button housing at some point, but that’s low on the priority list.

Also… the custom graphics courtesy of Mike at PWCGraphics just arrived. I’ll post a photo shortly, but first impressions are great and I’m very happy with the quality of the decals!

 

[spxx]

@PWC_Graphics knocked these out of the park and I'm incredibly happy with how they turned out. I know I may get a little hate for putting 95 style graphics on a 96, however I've been a big fan of the original 95 XP800 graphics for a long time and figured I'd try something new. I meant to have Mike replace the "800" with "787" but it slipped my mind when ordering. My fault there.

Now to find the time and motivation to finish wet sanding and get the hull buffed out..

 

[Lee.Harrison]

wow that looks great, will be ordering some for my 95 xp 800 soon.

 

[spxx]

Despite fighting the snow, ice and zero degree temperatures we've been having lately, I've made a little progress. Finished wet sanding the hull late last week, installed the graphics, and even got a portion of the Hydro-Turf installed on the rub rails before the arctic blast set in.



I did manage to pick up a 94 SPX as a parts ski for a whopping $20, complete with a solid single gauge hood and a decent seat with newer foam. The hood will get painted with a Krylon Fusion yellow rattle can, while the seat will probably get recovered and put to use on my 96 SPX in the background. I hate to toss a perfectly good hull, but seeing as it's not an X4, it'll probably get sent to the jobsite dumpster unless someone snags it beforehand.



Next up for the XP is installation of the Hydro-Turf mats, painted hood, and wrapping up the turfed rub rails. I need to grab the old hump seat I've got at the shop next time I'm back home - I was fortunate to spend most of the month of December working from the lake, so I was able to put quite a dent in the ski before the busy season starts to pick up. The finish line is close, but I'm thinking a UMI setup would be icing on the cake for this ski. We'll see what I can put together in the coming months.

 

[emspjay]

Nice work! I think somebody in the past said the Krylon John Deere yellow is a perfect match. I like the turf on the rails might have to do that to mine.

 

[spxx]

Nice work! I think somebody in the past said the Krylon John Deere yellow is a perfect match. I like the turf on the rails might have to do that to mine.

I saw that somewhere along the lines, it may have be Lou Doo suggesting the Rustoleum farm & equipment paint was a good match? I initially had concerns with regular old enamel paint bonding with the hood plastic, but seem to recall everyone having decent success with it. Looks like I'll have to do some searching before I decide on Krylon or Rustoleum.

 

[etemplet]

I don't have the paint number but I think I used Porche Yellow in Base/Clear. Matched really well.

 

[spxx]

I don't have the paint number but I think I used Porche Yellow in Base/Clear. Matched really well.

Home Depot doesn’t sell Krylon, and Lowes was out of stock in the Yellow Fusion. So, we’re going to give the Rustoleum JD Yellow farm & implement paint a shot with a good bonding primer and clear coat. I’ll post up pics when it’s all done.

 

[Lee.Harrison]

Home Depot doesn’t sell Krylon, and Lowes was out of stock in the Yellow Fusion. So, we’re going to give the Rustoleum JD Yellow farm & implement paint a shot with a good bonding primer and clear coat. I’ll post up pics when it’s all done.

Used that on one of my single guage hood and comparing them with a non painted yellow one they are spot on.

 

[Lee.Harrison]

Also you should try and get a hump seat for it, would look great on it with those graphics!

 

[spxx]

Also you should try and get a hump seat for it, would look great on it with those graphics!

I have an SPX hump seat at my shop that I’ll grab next time I’m over there. I’m kicking myself because I forgot about that hump seat and have already ordered a non-hump Jettrim seat cover.

 

[Lee.Harrison]

I have an SPX hump seat at my shop that I’ll grab next time I’m over there. I’m kicking myself because I forgot about that hump seat and have already ordered a non-hump Jettrim seat cover.

Make the hump seat like the factory 95xp800 would look really good with the yellow hood and stencil the black seadoo logo as well. I will be doing it tomorrow for my 95 xp800 if you want me to send you some pictures on how to do it.

 

[spxx]

Ran into a few issues painting the hood this week. In my determination to get this thing knocked out, I failed to take photos during the process. Long story short, everything went fine until I went to apply the Rustoleum clear coat. The bonding primer and 3-4 topcoats laid down flawlessly, so I let it fully cure out for about a week. After giving it a quick wet sand with 1000 grit sand paper and cleaning it up, I began spraying the first tack coat of clear coat only to have the topcoat below immediately crack, bubble and craze across the entire surface area of the hood.

Frustrated, I let the hood sit for a day or so before resanding and repriming the spots where I had to sand through down to the bare plastic. Needless to say, I'm very happy with the end result, but a little conflicted as to whether I should go ahead and clear coat this thing again. If I do, I'll likely be switching to a different clear to hopefully avoid the crazing issue I had previously.



A few small imperfections are visible on the back side of the hood near the steering stem, but it'll do. This ski will see a lot of use this coming summer and I'm sure it'll end up with quite a few battle scars by this time next year.

I still need to put the pump back on the hull and replace the bailer lines. The originals were packed with a calcium-like buildup and had to be cut out of the ski before I could pull the pump. The aftermarket starter works just fine, but I plan to pull it off and replace with an OEM unit. For whatever reason, the starter will spark during the first few revolutions after sitting for a while, which is obviously not good. I plan to check the grounds and make sure they're tight before yanking the starter, but it'll likely get replaced regardless for piece of mind when out on the water.

I've also been putting off ordering the Hydro-Turf mats since I can't make up my mind on the direction I'd like to go. My original thought was to match the black cut diamond pattern on the rub rails, but part of me really likes the two-tone yellow and black cut diamond pattern. Decisions, decisions.

 

[emspjay]

Looks great in the pictures! If you are happy with the shine I wouldn't bother with the clear. Today's rattle can paint's hold up very well.

 

[Lee.Harrison]

When I did mine with the same paint, I had issue with the clear coat as well, same story would start getting really bad imperfections so I sanded down and repainted then sealed it with some wax and it kept its shine all the way up to when I sold it. About a year.

 

[spxx]

Not a lot to add today. Waffling back and forth on installing the UMI steering I have sitting here. I don't love the turkey neck look of the stock stem, but it's not a deal breaker either.



The Jettrim seat cover sitting on it is actually for my 96 SPX.