Which 550 to buy?

[waxhead]

Thanks Wax!
No I did not realize.
I am flabbergasted that it is lighter than the 550.

How would you describe the handling differences between the 550sx and the FX-1 ?

The fx1 will kill a 550 in the dead flat but as soon as it roughs up the fx1 starts getting twitchy bad. The thing is the fx1 normally is way over powered because its easy to with a 701 platform in there. I was out practicing on my one today and it was lots of prop spin off the corner and no drive then suddenly some hook up and tearing off down the straight at a speed you didnt want to go at in the rough

 

[WFO Speedracer]

Regretably the FX1 has the same problem the 550 does, the pump sucks, an FX1 with a 144 pump swap is a very nice ride.

 

[kevbo]

The kawasaki 140 pump barely fits an FX1 hull. Yamaha pumps need a lot more hull work before they work right.

 

[bored&stroked]

If I paid more then $1k for a 550 I'd be in the ultra depressed mind set.
Acutally if I owned even a free 550 I'd be depressed. But seriously, thats some crackhead 550 pricing.

 

[WFO Speedracer]

The kawasaki 140 pump barely fits an FX1 hull. Yamaha pumps need a lot more hull work before they work right.

No idea how much work is involved I know I have ridden one it it was a huge difference

 

[Sparkplug]

Had a few fx1. Imo the 144 swap isn't worth is. Definite improvement. But you have to hack a ski up that is getting harder and harder to find. And you can still do more on a 650 superjet. The hull is much more stable.

I wouldn't ride a piston port if it was given to me. Gas is 6 bucks a gallon. Idk about other people but the baddest 550 on the planet isn't enough fun to warrant that

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[Big Kahuna]

Piston Port Vs Reed Motor. Reed every time....... Yes, there are builders like Tim Tynan that can build a PP to run like a raped ape but that is a full blown built ski that the average person cannot maintain.

 

[OtherDonnieGuy]

Had a few fx1. Imo the 144 swap isn't worth is. Definite improvement. But you have to hack a ski up that is getting harder and harder to find. And you can still do more on a 650 superjet. The hull is much more stable.

I wouldn't ride a piston port if it was given to me. Gas is 6 bucks a gallon. Idk about other people but the baddest 550 on the planet isn't enough fun to warrant that

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I'll disagree. 650sj can't do anything better than an fx1 if you are a capable rider. Heck I would ride a stock fx1 (well with footholds of course) any day over any full length superjet regardless of mods, unless we are talking about chasing buoys or something lame.

 

[WFO Speedracer]

Piston Port Vs Reed Motor. Reed every time....... Yes, there are builders like Tim Tynan that can build a PP to run like a raped ape but that is a full blown built ski that the average person cannot maintain.

I'll disagree. 650sj can't do anything better than an fx1 if you are a capable rider. Heck I would ride a stock fx1 (well with footholds of course) any day over any full length superjet regardless of mods, unless we are talking about chasing buoys or something lame.

I prefer the FX1's handling over the Superjet for sure, one of the most ridiculous skis I have ridden was a Dave Gordon worlds finals Westcoast ski, I have no idea what trickery was done to the engine, I do know it had every bell and whistle that Westcoast had plus massive porting and total loss, the engine torqued so bad it was damn near unrideable, if you did get it straightened out and moving when you let off the gas it was like you had a spring under tension and the ski would flip you right off of it, I did manage to wrangle it enough to get a good test ride out of it, the owner I delivered it to could not ride it . it was fun watching it pitch him off repeatedly though fo sho !

 

[Sparkplug]

I'll disagree. 650sj can't do anything better than an fx1 if you are a capable rider. Heck I would ride a stock fx1 (well with footholds of course) any day over any full length superjet regardless of mods, unless we are talking about chasing buoys or something lame.

To each their own. I liked the fx1 for its nimbleness. It was flickable for sure. But the anemic pump and intake area hurts the low end hardcore. Does awesome at high speed if you got the balls to ride right, and lean over the pole in wot turns.

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[kevbo]

The FX1 is a slippery hull with a horrible pump. They are much more popular than they should be. If you like riding an FX1 then a 750sx would be heavenly.

 

[Big Kahuna]

I prefer the FX1's handling over the Superjet for sure, one of the most ridiculous skis I have ridden was a Dave Gordon worlds finals Westcoast ski, I have no idea what trickery was done to the engine, I do know it had every bell and whistle that Westcoast had plus massive porting and total loss, the engine torqued so bad it was damn near unrideable, if you did get it straightened out and moving when you let off the gas it was like you had a spring under tension and the ski would flip you right off of it, I did manage to wrangle it enough to get a good test ride out of it, the owner I delivered it to could not ride it . it was fun watching it pitch him off repeatedly though fo sho !

Need more details on this? When, Where, ETC!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[WFO Speedracer]

A few years back, I am working up at my place and it starts raining cats and dogs, a guy comes buy and tells me he has had a ski shipped in from Cali to Real Island Marina on Lake Martin, it's a Dave Gordon world finals ski , it has totall loss and has no spark , the guys at Real Island don't have a clue , can I go get it and check it out.

Sure I can so I go to Real Island and pick it up , the ski was put back together by some guy on PWCToday, name of the business was Back in the Day jet ski repair or something like that. he put the two halves of the electrical box back together and piched the wiring, this smoked the ignition coil, so I put a coil in and go water test it, it runs like total crap.

I had something similar happen on my Westcoast dual total loss and knew where to look, first thing I found was resistor spark plugs in it , a big no no on Dyna total loss setups , I replaced those , then I started looking at the nice pretty RED coil wires, also resistor wires, I replaced then with some ho hum looking black Tractor wires, they are solid core copper no resistance , then I check the spark plug caps, also resistor, I used some MSD spark plug caps and headed back to the lake with it.

It did not run that well out of the gate but after a few minutes of carb tuning I had it dialed and it ripped way harder than I ever thought was possible on a 550. I wrapped it up and delivered it to the customer at his aunts place on the lake, I backed it in for him and watched him, I don't think he ever actually rode that ski but it rode him like bucking bronco, quite fun to watch, I watched till I started feeling guilty and left.

 

[Scorn800]

The 550 reed motors run much smooth than the piston port motors. I like still own and like both of them.
The old saying is "if you can ride a 550 you can ride anything"
That saying can't be more true. Riding a 550 well takes balance and skill you can't just buy.