First time on PWC ever today!

[marcusknight]

Well i have had my 1994 SP Seadoos for over a month and I finally had the chance to take them out today. Never have been on one before! Some observations: 1. The Seadoos sit awfully low in the water compared to my 16 foot Starcraft boat. I see how it can be a challenge to keep the dock from scratching up your hull. Fortunately I had come prepared for that. I attached two fenders that say they are designed for PWCs. They seemed to help keep a buffer between the dock and the hull, though not perfectly. 2. These things are tippy! Kind of curious how they compare to newer ones. 3. Once I was out on the water it was a lot of fun. Not as much water as I thought hitting my face once I was up on plane, that was nice. 4. I opened up the throttle maybe 3/4 of the way at most today. Given how tippy these things are, I didn't want to overdo it the first time. 5. These things seem to idle pretty fast. It was very tricky coming back to the dock on these. I wanted to coast in the last few feet before i reached the dock so I killed the engine. But what happens is the Seadoo will turn either to the left or right depending on what direction the last motion of thrust was pushing you in before cutting the engine. In other words, it's hard if not impossible to keep the unit going perfectly straight at idle to effect coasting into the dock after shutting the engine off. 6. Related to the last point, how would I know if the machine is idling too fast? There is no RPM gauge on this machine and I wonder if the machine is idling too fast which is causing it to be harder to dock the machine when I am done. See pictures.

 

[Scott Danforth]

unless your seadoo is newer with the small fins that move for coasting, you cant cut power and coast as you have no steering without the jet running

yes, unless you get to the much larger PWC's, they are tippy. especially with 2 people

put a tach on the motor at idle, there is an idle spec

usually you learn to come in pretty hot and coast the last few feet.... I tend to toss it in reverse just prior to the dock to scrub speed, or simply step backwards and hop off.

 

[alldodge]

They do idle faster, somewhere around 1500 rpms. The older models like yours are ones which can be spun around and then dive itself into the water. Did like the older ones, the newer ones have a deeper Vee and weight more. Newer goes faster and ride smoother in chop, but the older where a blast to run

 

[strokendiesel002]

I've a 96 Polaris SL750 (similar to yours) but I bought my wife a 2001 Virage 700 for the reasons above(larger deeper v style, 3seater, more stable at low/no speeds). I like throwing it around and coming back out of breath and exhausted and soaked from head to toe. My wife enjoys cruising around leisurely and dry. I don't have reverse on the 96, so either do​ what Scott does, or I'll whip a tight 180 at the dock and shut her down. The 01 has reverse and I train everyone to use that before they leave so they don't ram the dock upon return

Glad you had a great time! Here's to a great summer!

 

[SeaDooSam]

Here is my .02 regarding your post
1) Yes, those machines do typically sit low in the water, especially when loaded with two people. They are really more 1 person skis in my opinion. The three seaters are the same way, they are perfect with two people, but with 3 they can get tippy.

2) The smaller and older two seaters are noticeably more tippy than the newer ones, or the 3 seaters. For example, my 97 GTX is drastically more stable than our '94 XP. Our 2007 4-tec is very stable as well.
3)PWCs generally are much better in every way when up on plane.
5) The idle should be around 1000-1500 depending on the engine. It should be online somewhere for your specific one. It is just a simple screw most of the time, but you would need a tach as said before.
6) Docking just takes some time to get used to. Does the SP have reverse? Our skis range in idle speed anywhere from 3-6 mph.

 

[eavega]

I have the same basic hull with a slightly more powerful power plant (657x engine vs 580cc) Yes they are tippy, but that is half the fun of these little boats. You can whip them around in their own footprint, just hang on or it will throw you. Mine does just about 50 mph on flat water. Once you have them going straight they are very stable, but again they are light and whip around pretty quick, so manage your throttle and weight distribution as you turn. Note that if you get thrown on one, getting back on is a bit of a challenge. Practice it in shallower water before you find yourself floating out in the deep stuff.

The specification for these small two cylinder two strokes are idling at 3K rpm on the trailer, 1500 rpm in the water. If you dial down the idle speed screw (different than the idle mix screw, mind you) to that 3K rpm, you'll be pretty close on the water. I set mine with my timing light which also has a tach. They do have rev limiters, so its not like you are going to blow them up by over-revving as long as they have a load on them.

To answer SeaDoo Sam's question, the small two-seater boats do not have a reverse, and you have to be running them to be able to steer.

Rgds

E

 

[WaterDR]

Everyone has already covered a lot of ground but a few pointers.

- if the machine has a reverse, then all you need to do is throttle the reverse as the machine is idling and you can easily dock it. So basically, pull on the reveres but not all the way....this will decrease the idle speed. You can even effectively put it in neutral this way.

- if no reverse at all, the you can keep tapping the ignition. You do this was quickly starting and stopping the machine.

If you were to try a new machine, you will see how much easier they are to maneuver especially with things like no wake control and electronic reverse.

Don't be afraid to open it up but make sure you are comfortable