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RESTO 97' SPX resto: $250 purchase

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blackNyellow787

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Well I've finally got around to working on the 1997 Seadoo SPX i bought back in October 2013. I picked the ski up for $250 without a trailer. Drove an hour to get it, the problem stated is it wouldnt turn over...So, I figured:
A) the battery
B) corroded battery cables
c) bad starter
d) motor seized up

Either way, I knew I was going to purchase it for a parts ski at the bare minimum and knew I could part it out worst case scenario and get my money back plus some..

Sooo, i get it home and immediately start tearing into it. I tried turning it over real quick again once I got it home and nothing besides a buzz sound. Next thing i did was pull the pump off sense i knew i was going to be going through that anyway along with everything else. Well that was as far as i needed to go to figure out the issue..I could see that the o'ring on the nose cone was pinched and not seated correctly. Pulled the cone off and sure enough it was rusty as all hell and not one drop of oil in there :facepalm: So i proceeded to pull the driveshaft out of the pto. Next i tried to fire it up and sure enough after a couple minutes of on and off cycles she fired up!! :) She was idling a little rough of course being that it sat for 2 years but i didnt care because i knew i would be going through the entire fuel system anyway. Shut her down, pulled the plugs and went to dig out my compression tester. Turned the gas off, held the throttle to the bars and turned her over and sure as shit i was getting 150psi per cyclinder !!

I was super happy with my $250 purchase to say the least. I know you guys wanna see some pics so here ya go:
97spx.jpg97spx2.jpg

So as you can see the outside is rough but thats ok, its gonna get a lot of love...so i started getting all the old decals off.
wetwae.jpgzsdgaweg.jpgdfgawrgwe2.jpg

I will be updating this thread frequently as i go. Plan is to have it completed end of March! I will be going through the fuel system, oil system, jet pump, driveline, rave valves, rebuilding starter, pulling stator off to inspect. The motor will not be torn apart being that it has good compression (150psi). It will be getting alot of cosemetic goodies and a few aftermarket goodies (prop, grate, etc ) Feel free to comment and make suggestions! Long live the 2 stroke! X4 junkies for life!:coolgleam:

PS: I plan on making the pictures larger for future posts
 
Thanks nick, Can't wait to keep pushing forward, I'll be sure to keep this thread updated.


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Nice snag. Sometimes you are the bug and sometime you are the windshield.

Congrats on the purchase.
 
Looks nice manolocross! I have most of my cosmetic stuff ready to go on to make her pretty, I'll be posting pictures once I get there.


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nice score !

Time to bust out the sandpaper and a 6 pack !

if you haven't tried that Meguiars trick on the hood, you'll be pleasantly surprised on the quick & easy results.
 
What's the 'Meguiars' trick? What product? I've a faded hood myself.

I'll be watching this thread for advice. I just picked up a '96 SPX and will need to do most everything you are doing. Please post lots of pics
 
I got the old crappy mats drilled out and takin off today on my lunch break. I will be sealing the holes with silicone.
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Here is what I did with my mats... It had hydro turf on it and it was bad... Dry rot and mildew and peeling up on edges. There is a big debate on the blacktip mats vs hydro turf and which one is better but overall I think the blacktip are a better value. Plus I don't think they will dry rot.
 
Started to wetsand today, and this is gonna be a long process for sure..:started out with 220 in order to remove the yellowish tint it has.
126.jpg

And after about 2 n half hours i got tired of sanding so decided to move onto something else and give my arm a break lol

Next I decided to get my head inside the hull. Removed the waterbox and head. I wanted to see what the pistons and cylinders looked like and I was really pleased in what i found.
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I am having my buddy powder coat the head, waterbox and nozzle all the same color. And possibly other pieces on the engine as well for a little eye candy under the seat.

I also removed the vts because I will be going with a manual cable pull setup.
129.jpg





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Next I proceeded to pull the carbs off: they will be rebuilt using oem mikuni kits and also the screws will be replaced with the stainless Allen head bolt kits that I purchased off of jetskigoodies!

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Thanks Matt, and your right the screw kits are great, JSG takes all the guess work out of it and he keeps it simple and clean by putting labels on the outside of the baggies with what's inside. Thanks again JSG


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Looking good, white is the worst to get clean. I have over 20 hours in the deck of my HX, plus another 6 in the hood and probably another 4+ into the hull. Stick with it, it's worth the pay off but it's a bitch getting there. I actually went to a "fine" rectangular foam sanding block from Home Depot on the white then worked my way back up. Keep strong the project looks great.
 
Ya this white is crazy. Can't believe I'm still seeing the yellowish tint, I'll be sanding away again tomorrow. I'll pick up some of those 3M foam sanding blocks and see how they do racerxxx


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