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chickenshit |
I own two Yamaha Waverunners. They are the FX HO model which is not turbo or supercharged but a simple 1.8 liter 4 stroke engine. The wave runners have an 18 gallon gas tank which is quite nice. I can spend a day on the water and when the tank is low so is the sun! The research I did indicated that the wave runners were (in 2015) slightly more reliable than the competition but I would trust any of the major manufacturers. I was advised to stay away from supercharged and turbo charged models as the 1.8 liter engine would provide plenty of oomph. I am 6'3" and weigh about 205 (give or take) and my garmin gps registered 65 mph when I opened up the throttle on Saturday morning. (Calm lake conditions) Having owned the wave runners for just over three years I can tell you I am very pleased. They are easy to maintain and I have had no problems with them. (I bought them new in 2015.) ____________________________ Yes, Para does appreciate humor. | |||
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thin skin can't win |
Once the manufacturers agreed to cap top end, the power increases have gotten them to quicker and quicker acceleration times. For a guy who rides rockets like the OP, more will be better I suspect! If possible you should ride a couple before you choose. With how they've progressed I'd choose the most comfortable and stable hull that also has the power and handling you want. In my experience Sea Doo has led that area, but it's a thin difference in any category. You'll be tempted to get the most radical option you can afford. Let me offer some perspective - we currently have a Sea Doo RXT-X. It's a three seater and is of the era when this was "only" 255HP. Top end is amazing, but in anything other than pretty calm water - useless. The acceleration is mind bending. Think of the quickest arm-stretcher bike you've ridden, then imagine that on water. Their 0-60 time is sub 3 seconds, the pump technology has gotten pretty amazing to be able to get that sort of traction out of the hole. It is literally instant like an electric motor. Oh - the new ones are 300HP. Handling is also beyond what any mere mortal can manage, with even the luxury models handling more precisely and quickly than the very best performance models of a decade ago. The RXT line is a little wallow-y under 25-30, but once at that speed it is on rails. On rails in a way that requires some experience to be able to manage without throwing you and passengers off. While fun, doing that after the first couple times will get old and at the speeds and reaction times/angles you're dealing with the opportunity to actually get hurt is up there. For additional perspective our first was a '97 Sea Doo GTX, 110HP. Very nice ride, handled decently and was nearly flawless for the 350 hours we owned it. I gave it to a neighbor, his grandkids still use it to this day. Between the two, I'd almost choose that experience over the RXT-X. For motoring around on long rides the less radical recent models are far more accommodating, and still have plenty of speed, acceleration and handling. You will scoff at things like "cruise control" until after you've held your thumb/finger at just the right degree of throttle for 30 minutes.....  You really can't go wrong with any of the major brands, just make sure you get decent service records if buying used. A lot of folks do nothing but ride and gas these things, and like and vehicle that's not good. It's a blast, as you have discovered. You only have integrity once. - imprezaguy02 | |||
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Member |
Been many years, but when I was younger we had both. A 1995 SeaDoo SPi like below  And a 1994 Yamaha Waverunner VXR like below  I'm sure a lot has changed since these, as they had about a 45mph top speed. But, the majority of our time was spent goofing off & trying to get thrown off of them. With that in ming, I enjoyed the SeaDoo much more. As I recall, it had a much deeper V hull & Was a lot easier to spin & play around on. The Yamaha had a flatter hull & would turn as hard as you could lean it until the engine outlet was out of the water (you could also 'drift' it across the water). IMO, the index finger throttle on the Yamaha was less fatigue inducing than the thumb throttle on the SeaDoo. More recently (2007ish) a friend has a couple newer 1.8 liter 3-seater SeaDoo with something like 150hp. Easily ran just shy of 65mph with 1 rider on smooth water & low fuel. But, they weren't nearly as fun to play on with all of the stabilizer fins & such on them. Great for A to B transport, quickly, though. The Enemy's gate is down. | |||
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Member |
You are not joking. On the final day of a house boat trip on Lake Cumberland we needed to burn off some fuel in our deck boat. (Less weight to haul back to Ohio.) It was mid morning on a weekday and the lake was dead calm. No one else wanted to go with me. So I was just doing hot passes around the house boat while they drove back to Jamestown Dock. Took a little bit of lake and a lot of trim finesse. I was able to top it out at 53mph on an early Magellan GPS. IT. WAS. TERRIFYING. But, a lot of fun. Never got it back up over 50 since as my dad has a tendency of running the prop aground. I can't even imagine riding at 70 mph on something that could turn on a dime. Nick "I cannot imagine any condition which would cause a ship to founder. I cannot conceive of any vital disaster happening to this vessel. Modern shipbuilding has gone beyond that." -Capt. Edward Smith | |||
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| Official forum SIG Pro enthusiast  |
Thanks for all the input everyone. I appreciate it! I’m scouring Craigslist & Facebook market for a used Sea Doo or Yamaha. Anyone here ever own a Yamaha GP1300R? A 170hp Two stroke triple sounds delightful. I’m also considering a 1999-early 2000s Sea Doo GTX since they are cheap and I could probably get a decent example for next to nothing. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The price of liberty and even of common humanity is eternal vigilance | |||
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| Lawyers, Guns and Money  |
+1 My brother also has two of these at the Lake of the Ozarks. They are a lot of fun and easy to maintain. Plenty of power. "Some things are apparent. Where government moves in, community retreats, civil society disintegrates and our ability to control our own destiny atrophies. The result is: families under siege; war in the streets; unapologetic expropriation of property; the precipitous decline of the rule of law; the rapid rise of corruption; the loss of civility and the triumph of deceit. The result is a debased, debauched culture which finds moral depravity entertaining and virtue contemptible." -- Justice Janice Rogers Brown "The United States government is the largest criminal enterprise on earth." -rduckwor | |||
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| thin skin can't win |
In the pre-owned world, I would definitely get a 4-stroke and one with a closed cooling system. Way easier maintenance and use. Not sure when they changed over.... You only have integrity once. - imprezaguy02 | |||
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| Official forum SIG Pro enthusiast |
It would be a second ski so friends and family have something to ride. I plan on a newer 4 stroke and a older two stroke. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The price of liberty and even of common humanity is eternal vigilance | |||
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| Member |
Motorcycle powersports dealer here. On my third personal Yamaha Waverunner, a 2015 FX SVHO, have sold all brands. Generally speaking, most every rental ski is a Yamaha, and there's a reason for that, especially in non-US islands. Goes like this: 1. Yamaha 2. Kawasaki 3. Sea Doo Sea Doo pours on the features and eye candy, but they are shit units with far less reliability than the Japanese OEM's. They've always made a good preforming boat, just not one that holds together long term anywhere near as well as the others. IDPA ESP SS | |||
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| Member |
I have Yamaha, but I'm close friends with the local dealer and he sells both. Whenever I drop by there are 3 sea doo's in for repairs for every Yamaha. And my friend tells me the yamaha's outsell the seadoo's 2:1. FWIW. “So in war, the way is to avoid what is strong, and strike at what is weak.” | |||
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Member |
^^^ George is offering you some very good insight into personal watercraft. He's dead-on; suggest you read it again closely. There's a reason I haven't dumped our '96 GTX, even though I hate 2-strokes. | |||
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| Member |
How many miles on average can you travel on one tank of gas on a jet ski? | |||
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| Troll |
Quick story regarding speeding on a jet ski. A buddy had a really, really fast one. At 75 miles per hour he came off his. Result: Tore off all his clothing, jewelry, violently jammed water into his eyes, ears, throat and he came close to dying. As soon as he was able he sold it. | |||
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