Big Kahuna
Administrator
- Location
- Tuscaloosa, AL
Had no idea..... last lawyer i would ever call... if he wins, his clients get pennies on the dollar.
Thunderstruck ! Counter to the Blunderjet thread
- Thread starter WFO Speedracer
- Start date
WFO Speedracer
A lifetime ban is like a lifetime warranty !
- Location
- Alabama
When you get in the middle of something like this plans change , plan A goes out the window and you have to go to plan B , C or D , that is what happened here, I cut the bond line loose in the middle , the hull was still racked, it still didn't fit , so I cut it loose from the hull , it got better , then I had to take some off of the hull, it then actually fit , in the end I ending up cutting a whole section of the bond rail off so I could get it seated correctly , it now appears that the bond line should pull together and clamp down everywhere without using a ton of glue , most likely I will c-clamp the two halves together , put duct tape on the upper deck and remake the new bond line for the bottom with everything in place , that way I know that when I get done that it will fit perfectly , it is already looking worlds better that it did when it left the factory.
I am most likely going to glass the two bond lines together after it is bonded , I do not like the way the factory did the bond line at all , totally unacceptable and shoddy workmanship .
I am most likely going to glass the two bond lines together after it is bonded , I do not like the way the factory did the bond line at all , totally unacceptable and shoddy workmanship .
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WFO Speedracer
A lifetime ban is like a lifetime warranty !
- Location
- Alabama
A few more examples of the fine craftmanship on this ski , the backing plate for the handlepole bracket is 1/16 aluminum , no washers of course , it this were a Kawi it would be a cast plate or at the least 3/16 thick aluminum , there is no way that this is not going to stress crack around the handlepole mounting area , it has no support , second up , no washers on the nuts holding on the gas cap, nuts going right into the glass, classy fo sho !
No plate under the front hood hook , just a couple of washers , what were these guys thinking ?
Fuel selector valve appears to be steel . not stainless, stainless doesn't rust , also notice the back up plate for the rear hood latch, again 1 /16 aluminum plate , nice to see no expense was spared !.
Luckily all of this is easily fixable and it will be fixed I assure you .
No plate under the front hood hook , just a couple of washers , what were these guys thinking ?
Fuel selector valve appears to be steel . not stainless, stainless doesn't rust , also notice the back up plate for the rear hood latch, again 1 /16 aluminum plate , nice to see no expense was spared !.
Luckily all of this is easily fixable and it will be fixed I assure you .
Attachments
WFO Speedracer
A lifetime ban is like a lifetime warranty !
- Location
- Alabama
I promised weights today so here you go , bottom hull 28 lbs , it does not have the through tube for the pump or pump and ride plates inserts yet so that will go up a bit
Top deck is 38 lbs with that handle attached, that is throttle , handlebars, start stop switch pretty much everything except for the chin pad .
I weighed the engine insert with the bulkhead separately , it weighs 2 lbs without engine mounts attached .
All of this was measured on a fairly accurate scale like the ones you would see in a Dr's office.
So the bare hull and complete handlepole 68 lbs total ,not too shabby .
Top deck is 38 lbs with that handle attached, that is throttle , handlebars, start stop switch pretty much everything except for the chin pad .
I weighed the engine insert with the bulkhead separately , it weighs 2 lbs without engine mounts attached .
All of this was measured on a fairly accurate scale like the ones you would see in a Dr's office.
So the bare hull and complete handlepole 68 lbs total ,not too shabby .
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WFO Speedracer
A lifetime ban is like a lifetime warranty !
- Location
- Alabama
I have talked a lot about the crap parts on this ski so here are some of the good parts , PJS waterbox 1.75 " diameter inlet and outlet , aluminum bilge fitting , no more breaky breaky plastic junk like on stock skis , Camco fab bed plate adaptor , no telling how old this thing is , it is probably one of the first ones to come out , a nice stainless steel bilge hose bracket , stock chin pad , Aluminum engine bedplate, this one was modded for the adaptor plate to fit and will most likely be sent out to be power coated , look how thick that thing is !
I also have the original throttle , handlebars , steering plate , sub plate and start stop switch .
I may not use the start stop because I like to have a safety lanyard on my skis I am probably buying a Wax switch housing for this one unless I can figure a way to add a lanyard to the stock switch.
I no longer have the stock tank, the one in this ski disintegrated , I may run a Ty 550 tank in it or I may run something else , honestly I will have to try a few different tanks and see how they fit, I know the four gallon Flambeau plastics tanks like the one in my Squarenose do not fit that well in this one, we will get to that much later on.
I also have the original throttle , handlebars , steering plate , sub plate and start stop switch .
I may not use the start stop because I like to have a safety lanyard on my skis I am probably buying a Wax switch housing for this one unless I can figure a way to add a lanyard to the stock switch.
I no longer have the stock tank, the one in this ski disintegrated , I may run a Ty 550 tank in it or I may run something else , honestly I will have to try a few different tanks and see how they fit, I know the four gallon Flambeau plastics tanks like the one in my Squarenose do not fit that well in this one, we will get to that much later on.
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WFO Speedracer
A lifetime ban is like a lifetime warranty !
- Location
- Alabama
As stupid as this may sound a 650SX tank fits in there very nicely, it also has a nice flat wide area just below the stock fuel filler cap location so I could possibly hook that back up and it gives me a good place to mount the MSD where the stock oil tank was located , still weighing my options .
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WFO Speedracer
A lifetime ban is like a lifetime warranty !
- Location
- Alabama
I was looking at tanks and Flambeau doesn't list the 4 gallon tanks anymore , so I looked at US plastics and they still have some in stock .
www.usplastic.com
Flamebeau does have some 2.5 gallon tanks in stock though, but I will have to get a price quote, they don't list prices .
flambeaufluids.com
Polaris SL 650 aluminum fuel pickup retainers fit these tanks, I have used a few of them in the past.
I am going to test fit a Superjet tank, 300SX tank and several more I have here before I make a decision one way or the other , I do like that black 2.5 gallon tank , I may have to order one just because.
4 Gallon CARB/EPA Natural Tank with 2.25" Neck (Cap Sold Separately) | U.S. Plastic Corp.
These tanks meet the CARB (California Air Resource Board) and U.S. EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) requirements for evaporative emi...
Flamebeau does have some 2.5 gallon tanks in stock though, but I will have to get a price quote, they don't list prices .
2.5 Gallon CARB/EPA Tank - Flambeau Fluids
flambeaufluids.com
Polaris SL 650 aluminum fuel pickup retainers fit these tanks, I have used a few of them in the past.
I am going to test fit a Superjet tank, 300SX tank and several more I have here before I make a decision one way or the other , I do like that black 2.5 gallon tank , I may have to order one just because.
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WFO Speedracer
A lifetime ban is like a lifetime warranty !
- Location
- Alabama
The hull is prepped and ready to go , I am thinking a few steps ahead here , the white stuff is foam underlayment for a vinyl floor , I cut it into strips and contact cemented it to the hull , I am using this to take up some space so I will have room to glass and reinforce it from the other side later , these bond rails are super thin and I probably want to double the thickness , at least on the rear 2/3 of the ski.
Then I covered the foam with two layers of gorilla duct tape , what we are doing here is reforming the newly cut out rub rails in place , that way there won't be any more problems with it fitting together , on the sides I have plenty of room to take up anyway so that won't be an issue there.
The last pic is of the prep on the bottom so the new glass will bond to it , it would probably stick to the gelcoat just fine but it's not the proper way of doing it and I just don't like doing it that way.
Then I covered the foam with two layers of gorilla duct tape , what we are doing here is reforming the newly cut out rub rails in place , that way there won't be any more problems with it fitting together , on the sides I have plenty of room to take up anyway so that won't be an issue there.
The last pic is of the prep on the bottom so the new glass will bond to it , it would probably stick to the gelcoat just fine but it's not the proper way of doing it and I just don't like doing it that way.
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WFO Speedracer
A lifetime ban is like a lifetime warranty !
- Location
- Alabama
It's all laid up , I have about four layers of glass in there , it will take more than that but most of it will be done from the inside which is much easier.
I covered it with parchment paper it holds down some of the loose edges and makes the finish fairly smooth.
I doubt it will finish curing today ,it's probably best to leave it alone until tomorrow morning .
I covered it with parchment paper it holds down some of the loose edges and makes the finish fairly smooth.
I doubt it will finish curing today ,it's probably best to leave it alone until tomorrow morning .
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WFO Speedracer
A lifetime ban is like a lifetime warranty !
- Location
- Alabama
I popped it out of the ( mold ) early this morning , she gave me a bit of a time getting it loose but it popped out clean and it turned out really well , it should be ready for another round of glass today after it warms up some , the newly reformed part came in just a bit lower than the rest of the ski ,which leaves room for another 3-4 layers of glass , exactly how I had it planned out.
I am gauging this thing by stiffness and deflection to see where it needs more glass added , the hull bottom is fairly shallow and reasonably stiff especially from the bulkhead area back , the main areas that need stiffening are the side walls of the upper deck and the bond rails , you can push the sides in quite a bit with your hand and the bond rails are a bit too thin for my tastes , I don't plan on ever taking this back apart.
With me riding this ski I doubt it will ever see much abuse so I don't need overkill here , it's basically going to be a boat chaser -wave jumper and used in flat water .
I am thinking a couple of layers of glass and a maybe layer of carbon fiber mainly for looks should do the trick , I feel the shape of the nose adds a lot of strength there so not worried about that area quite so much , I will probably beef up the handlepole mounting area and make a much stronger back up plate for it .
The CARBON FIBER pump tunnel added a lot of stiffness in the lower deck, I will probably do a layer of glass and a layer of carbon fiber on the lower deck inside the engine compartment and call It good..
One other thing , I may try to do the pump mounting nuts like the 440-550 Kawis where they go under the mat , the new pump tunnel is larger and the floor of the tray now sits almost directly on top of it, if I can tie the two together either by through bolting , gluing or both when I put the ski back together it will add a lot of strength to the whole ski.
I am gauging this thing by stiffness and deflection to see where it needs more glass added , the hull bottom is fairly shallow and reasonably stiff especially from the bulkhead area back , the main areas that need stiffening are the side walls of the upper deck and the bond rails , you can push the sides in quite a bit with your hand and the bond rails are a bit too thin for my tastes , I don't plan on ever taking this back apart.
With me riding this ski I doubt it will ever see much abuse so I don't need overkill here , it's basically going to be a boat chaser -wave jumper and used in flat water .
I am thinking a couple of layers of glass and a maybe layer of carbon fiber mainly for looks should do the trick , I feel the shape of the nose adds a lot of strength there so not worried about that area quite so much , I will probably beef up the handlepole mounting area and make a much stronger back up plate for it .
The CARBON FIBER pump tunnel added a lot of stiffness in the lower deck, I will probably do a layer of glass and a layer of carbon fiber on the lower deck inside the engine compartment and call It good..
One other thing , I may try to do the pump mounting nuts like the 440-550 Kawis where they go under the mat , the new pump tunnel is larger and the floor of the tray now sits almost directly on top of it, if I can tie the two together either by through bolting , gluing or both when I put the ski back together it will add a lot of strength to the whole ski.
WFO Speedracer
A lifetime ban is like a lifetime warranty !
- Location
- Alabama
I freehand cut the bond line with the oscillating tool , then I pulled the parchment paper and put the halves back together , the parchment paper all pulled off easily and left a very nice surface finish that I could easily sand to remove the blush and spray with gelcoat. , it the back you can see the gap , which is what I was looking for .
The duct tape pulled most of the foam with it , what little bit was left was easily removed with a drill and a wire brush.
The duct tape pulled most of the foam with it , what little bit was left was easily removed with a drill and a wire brush.
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WFO Speedracer
A lifetime ban is like a lifetime warranty !
- Location
- Alabama
There were a few voids in there which is to be expected , glass doesn't like to do sharp curves, I knew up front where the bond line meets the side was going to be an issue , which is why I am glassing it from both sides instead of just one.
I also went through in a couple of places with the flap disc , no biggie at this stage I backfilled it with epoxy and ground fiberglass , normally I would use Cabosil but I don't have any , they sell milled fibers which are just ground up fiberglass bits that have been run through a screen , ground up glass fibers work just fine and they are free if you have a broom.
I used a knife blade to work it down into the voids , pulled more filler over that then I taped everything down with duct tape to cut down on the sanding time later , now we are back to letting that cure .
I also went through in a couple of places with the flap disc , no biggie at this stage I backfilled it with epoxy and ground fiberglass , normally I would use Cabosil but I don't have any , they sell milled fibers which are just ground up fiberglass bits that have been run through a screen , ground up glass fibers work just fine and they are free if you have a broom.
I used a knife blade to work it down into the voids , pulled more filler over that then I taped everything down with duct tape to cut down on the sanding time later , now we are back to letting that cure .
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Myself
manic mechanic
- Location
- Twin Lakes AR
I can't believe how poor fitting those two halves were!!! People paid real good money back in the day for a POS hull!!
WFO Speedracer
A lifetime ban is like a lifetime warranty !
- Location
- Alabama
Crappy hulls and poor workmanship make for crappy boats , I can't do anything about the crappy molds , the workmanship part I can defiantly step up to where it should have been or way better.
I think this one may have actually gotten the upgraded bulkhead as it is pretty damn thick, about 1/2" to 3/4' in some places of course there is no way to measure it against one of the earlier models but since they supposedly doubled the thickness so that makes sense doesn't it , obviously they didn't put out skis with 1 -1 1/2' thick bulkheads .
I put this in the Highroller stunt hull category except it handles way better and is probably lighter , this is just a good starting point to build a really nice and unique ski , in my opinion it was one of the best looking standups ever made , too bad they dropped the ball literally everywhere else , a lot of guys loved those PJS 550 engines , frankly that motor even though it was a reed valve engine it just wasn't my cup of tea , I preferred the 550SX engine over the PJS engine hands down.
I probably did a good thing selling off that PJS engine and exhaust pipe even though I got peanuts compared to what they are worth today, I think at the time I got around $800 or $900 for the engine and the pipe and the jet pump , I sold the hull brace , ride plate and intake grate later and netted more another $150.00 - $200 all off of a $300 investment and got to keep the ski , not too shabby .
I think this one may have actually gotten the upgraded bulkhead as it is pretty damn thick, about 1/2" to 3/4' in some places of course there is no way to measure it against one of the earlier models but since they supposedly doubled the thickness so that makes sense doesn't it , obviously they didn't put out skis with 1 -1 1/2' thick bulkheads .
I put this in the Highroller stunt hull category except it handles way better and is probably lighter , this is just a good starting point to build a really nice and unique ski , in my opinion it was one of the best looking standups ever made , too bad they dropped the ball literally everywhere else , a lot of guys loved those PJS 550 engines , frankly that motor even though it was a reed valve engine it just wasn't my cup of tea , I preferred the 550SX engine over the PJS engine hands down.
I probably did a good thing selling off that PJS engine and exhaust pipe even though I got peanuts compared to what they are worth today, I think at the time I got around $800 or $900 for the engine and the pipe and the jet pump , I sold the hull brace , ride plate and intake grate later and netted more another $150.00 - $200 all off of a $300 investment and got to keep the ski , not too shabby .
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WFO Speedracer
A lifetime ban is like a lifetime warranty !
- Location
- Alabama
Kind of a funny story , but I didn't find it funny at the time , so this morning I was test fitting some stuff in the bottom half of the ski seeing how the driveshaft would line up , I had the Mach 6 driveshaft here and I was holding it up against the engine coupler to see how it all lined up.
To make a long story short it didn't fit at all , the driveshaft was coming in way too high in the back , I distinctly remember checking all of this when I put the jet pump in years ago and was wondering what had gone awry , then I noticed the engine mount insert rocked in the ski and had some large gaps front and rear .
I pulled everything back out . lifted the insert out and found the rubber dampener laying in the bottom of the ski holding the insert off duh huh !.
To make a long story short it didn't fit at all , the driveshaft was coming in way too high in the back , I distinctly remember checking all of this when I put the jet pump in years ago and was wondering what had gone awry , then I noticed the engine mount insert rocked in the ski and had some large gaps front and rear .
I pulled everything back out . lifted the insert out and found the rubber dampener laying in the bottom of the ski holding the insert off duh huh !.
Myself
manic mechanic
- Location
- Twin Lakes AR
I agree, good looking hulls. I'd like to find one and glass in the bottom of an old Seadoo hull. I have a couple 580's complete on hand. One of them nicely ported, milled head, Westcoast intake, etc.
WFO Speedracer
A lifetime ban is like a lifetime warranty !
- Location
- Alabama
I spent most of the day test fitting , no glassing today , I ran into an issue with the driveshaft lining up with the housing and engine placement , if the bearing housing lined up the engine hit the hull , the 650SX shaft wouldn't work , so down the driveshaft rabbit hole I went.
I kept thinking I needed a longer driveshaft shaft (don't we all ) , it turns out what I really needed was a driveshaft with the bearing housing seal surface moved closer to the coupler , I just happen to have said driveshaft here .
I installed the shaft and bearing housing and all of that was good , now the motor doesn't line up with the bed plate adaptor , I tried flipping it 180 still no dice , I tried reversing the bedplate and every combination available , still no dice.
I removed the PTO coupler and put a 550 coupler on it , that was the magic number and everything lines up now, bearing housing is centered on the driveshaft seal surface and the engine doesn't hit the hull, I claim victory ! The bonus here is it moved the engine forward , I am not sure how much , maybe an inch , maybe two at most .
The STX coupler is the wrong size , it is 100mm diameter but a STX900 coupler is 85mm with 24mm threads that fit the STX shaft , so that is the final piece to make it all work , the awesome part is the insert ended up almost exactly where it had been planned out to go.
The 650SX tank is still the best fit here , I tried several others , I even fitted a Superjet tank , the Superjet would work but this one has already had drop tube fittings installed and where they are at will not work on this ski , It would if I ditched the stock fuel filler which I may just end up doing.
I kept thinking I needed a longer driveshaft shaft (don't we all ) , it turns out what I really needed was a driveshaft with the bearing housing seal surface moved closer to the coupler , I just happen to have said driveshaft here .
I installed the shaft and bearing housing and all of that was good , now the motor doesn't line up with the bed plate adaptor , I tried flipping it 180 still no dice , I tried reversing the bedplate and every combination available , still no dice.
I removed the PTO coupler and put a 550 coupler on it , that was the magic number and everything lines up now, bearing housing is centered on the driveshaft seal surface and the engine doesn't hit the hull, I claim victory ! The bonus here is it moved the engine forward , I am not sure how much , maybe an inch , maybe two at most .
The STX coupler is the wrong size , it is 100mm diameter but a STX900 coupler is 85mm with 24mm threads that fit the STX shaft , so that is the final piece to make it all work , the awesome part is the insert ended up almost exactly where it had been planned out to go.
The 650SX tank is still the best fit here , I tried several others , I even fitted a Superjet tank , the Superjet would work but this one has already had drop tube fittings installed and where they are at will not work on this ski , It would if I ditched the stock fuel filler which I may just end up doing.
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WFO Speedracer
A lifetime ban is like a lifetime warranty !
- Location
- Alabama
The last time I went to SBT in Clearwater they had a fully restored F14 sitting in their showroom.
Myself
manic mechanic
- Location
- Twin Lakes AR
I hate having spare parts taking up room in my shop and sitting around the backyard.......but it sure is nice to just have what you need on a build like this!!
WFO Speedracer
A lifetime ban is like a lifetime warranty !
- Location
- Alabama
My game plan is to start tagging and bagging everything so I know what I have then I have a massive barn that I will be using for parts storage , then I will get an Ebay store and start selling it off .
BTW I tried the old wax trick on the stuck coupler yesterday and it came right off , I wasn't sure how well it worked but apparently it does.
So today I looked into fitting a 750 pump since I have one and it sure is easier to change out impellers in one., since the pump tunnel is not finished out yet this is totally doable , I will have to fill in and redrill the mounting holes but I have the pump fitted in there, I also installed a Solas toploader I had laying around. That intake grate fit as snug as a bug in a rug.
So I flip it back over and start test fitting again, it is going really well right up to the point where I tried fitting the exhaust head pipe, no go , a stock pipe might fit in there but a Coffman won't and I don't want to run a stock pipe , so the engine still has to go further forward, probably a couple of inches , the 550SX shaft measures 6.25 inches from the center of the seal surface area to the coupler , I am almost 100 percent sure I do not have one here , but looking at the measurements I think it can work .
BTW I tried the old wax trick on the stuck coupler yesterday and it came right off , I wasn't sure how well it worked but apparently it does.
So today I looked into fitting a 750 pump since I have one and it sure is easier to change out impellers in one., since the pump tunnel is not finished out yet this is totally doable , I will have to fill in and redrill the mounting holes but I have the pump fitted in there, I also installed a Solas toploader I had laying around. That intake grate fit as snug as a bug in a rug.
So I flip it back over and start test fitting again, it is going really well right up to the point where I tried fitting the exhaust head pipe, no go , a stock pipe might fit in there but a Coffman won't and I don't want to run a stock pipe , so the engine still has to go further forward, probably a couple of inches , the 550SX shaft measures 6.25 inches from the center of the seal surface area to the coupler , I am almost 100 percent sure I do not have one here , but looking at the measurements I think it can work .
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