My 1996 SPI Resto

[Seadoo Tuner]

Finally got the idle set screw to move a week or so ago, although barely, after dousing with PB Blaster for days on end. Had to use pliers and got it to move a 1/4 turn which stopped the stalling at idle. It is a bit rough though when idling, doesn't seem like the engine making noise though but a pump/impeller vibration.

One question I have is if the idle set screw is turned in/clockwise to raise idle then the oil pump mark also moves which will theoretically increase the oil use going to the engine then correct?

 

[mikidymac]

Correct, anytime you adjust the idle you need to reset the oil pump adjustment also.

 

[Seadoo Tuner]

Late 2020 update on the SPI :

First the good - Idle and oil pump adjustment done and pretty close to perfect.

Now the bad : Was riding with my buddy first week of September, we entered a very narrow stretch of the lake with me leading and suddenly my lanyard popped of. Buddy was following directly behind and in my wake, not able to turn out of it so he killed his engine and yelled. I turned around and saw him coming, lifting my leg up as I knew impact was coming. He hit the back left of my SPI below the seat with the front of his GTI and then it went down the side and hit my ankle as he went by and crushed it against the Seadoo , impacting also by the front left mirror which flew off. Felt like a sledgehammer hit my ankle, was bleeding out bad and tissue sticking out. We started the doo's and sped down the lake to the dock and then off to the emergency dept at hospital. Needed multiple stitches and was very lucky nothing was broken. A month off my feet and on my back basically and then started to walk on it again slowly, its about 90% healed now.

The SPI has some impact damage on the two spots where the other doo impacted, a crack under the seat a few inches and stress mark below that. Front area by mirror has small crack and stress mark. Will post pics later.

 

[mikidymac]

That’s crazy. Glad you survived.

 

[Seadoo Tuner]

When the lanyards start to pop off while riding is it usually the lanyard is worn or the post for the lanyard?

 

[etemplet]

Man !!! Glad you are healing up !!! Wow !!!!
An observation on people's reactions in general and experience as a motorcycle rider with a good bit of road race experience and aircraft pilot, people just don't have it in them for decisive action. I think understanding what makes these watercraft maneuver is critical to safety. If you want to avoid something... you gotta hammer the throttle and turn. Max control movement in an instant can save your azz. Use everything available.

 

[mikidymac]

Typically the lanyard not the post.

 

[Seadoo Tuner]

Getting ready for upper hull repair to fix the impact damage from the GTI that ran into me last September. Picked up some Marine Tex, wodering if I need to apply it on the outside and inside or just inside. Here’s pics of the damage, impact was on left rear and then front left below mirror as the GTI went down the side and struck again :

 

[mikidymac]

The inside should really be patched with woven fiberglass cloth and epoxy resin. The outside you can blend in with marinetex. Marinetex really doesn't have the strength for large structural repairs like inside your hull.

 

[Seadoo Tuner]

Will this work for the inside?

 

[mikidymac]

That’s probably just polyester resin. You want epoxy resin like West Systems. The glass cloth is fine just don’t use fiberglass mat as the epoxy won’t dissolve the binder.

 

[etemplet]

I got some outside areas to patch damaged gelcoat (gouges). I've prepped and painted a lot of stuf but never worked with gelcoat.

 

[Seadoo Tuner]

That’s probably just polyester resin. You want epoxy resin like West Systems. The glass cloth is fine just don’t use fiberglass mat as the epoxy won’t dissolve the binder.

Found this locally, is this what I need then?

Description :
"This kit offers the right epoxy, fiberglass and fillers to complete repairs to cracks and holes, gelcoat blisters, delaminated cored panels and more. Detailed instructions show users how to make lasting repairs.

Each Fiberglass Boat Repair Kit contains eight packets of WEST SYSTEM 105 Resin and 205 Hardener, fiberglass fabric, adhesive filler, fairing filler, glue brushes, mixing pots, a mixing stick, an application syringe, three pairs of protective gloves and illustrated instructions for completing a variety of common fiberglass repairs."

 

[mikidymac]

Yes, that is a good kit.

 

[Seadoo Tuner]

Picked up the kit and repairs are done, here’s a couple of pics of first the frontal damage before prepping with a light behind showing how thin this area of the hull is, and a second pic of sanded/prepped seat area before Marine Tex was applied :

 

[Seadoo Tuner]

Pics of the finished hull repairs on the outside (inside was done with the cloth weave and West Systems epoxy resin but hard to get a good pic to show the inside repairs as it blends in) :

 

[mikidymac]

Wow, that looks amazing.

 

[Seadoo Tuner]

Picked up a new non-dess lanyard and safety nut :

 

[Seadoo Tuner]

Looking at an impeller (I have the 15/20.5 Pitch SS) that is optional for my year but not sure the impact it will have re top speed increase and performance as the pitch is one number instead of two(17.7).
Its the optional one in this snip of the chart, if anyone has knowledge and can chime in please do so.

 

[mikidymac]

17.7 would be a straight pitch which is kind of old school now days. Pretty much everything went to progressive pitch in the mid 90's because you get good bottom end and top end instead of one good spot like a single pitch.

Seadoo pretty much did the best at picking stock impellers out of all the manufacturers so there is very little to gain changing the OEM impellers. My suspicion is that they had Skat-Trak make them which is still the best in the business.

 

[Seadoo Tuner]

End of season update on the SPI, last ride was mid September and it was a nice warm evening of dooing, had a bonfire on the beach to close off the season as well.

Refresh on the backstory of this Seadoo : bought from the previous owner in 2018 after he had partially sunk it 3 times the previous summer and it sat out over a colder than normal winter. Previous owner had attempted repair with a solid rubber piece at the driveshaft/carbon ring setup instead of the accordion type that was used on the 96 (he thought it was an older model that used the solid piece, so blew each time he rode it after about 5-10 minutes). Working on it during summer of 2018, first pulled the spark plugs, cranked it over multiple times and blew a cup or two of water out of the engine, then repaired the driveline with proper parts, rebuilt fuel system, and did some maintenance issues.

Worried the crank would be rusted but think what saved it was the oil leaks into the engine slowly past the seals during storage so must have somehow saved the crank from rusting from the bit of water that was in the engine. Have 48 hours on the engine now since 2018 and it still runs strong with a top speed of 46mph. Love this SPI and plan to ride it for years to come!