1990 SNSJ Freestyle build...my first

lamar311 · 01-11-2010, 10:05 PM

Hi guys let me first start off by saying I have never done anything like this before so all comments and help are more than welcome. Here is the story... I picked this ski up for $500 off craiglist. It had a 650 motor, stanless prop, and was in pretty good shape. I rode it a few times and absolutely loved it...however as with all PWC guys I thought...hmmm what would it be like if it had a 701 and was set up to freestyle. I have always enjoyed freestyle riding but never had the right boat to do it. I come from a 650 sx that was a total turd but a good ski to learn on. So here I am.

What has happened so far....I have sold the 650 motor. Turns out it had a milled head and was at about 185 compression per cylinder. It had a pretty good amount of low end so I am hoping I will still feel a big difference when I drop in the 701.

I bought a 701 motor from a 1994 waveraider and have it sitting on my garage floor. It has dual 38's or 44's .. i not sure... whatever was stock on that year. I made my own footholds and have torn everything out of the hull and painted it. I plan to keep this boat stock (for now) with the exception of maybe chopping the pump cone myself and a few other little things. I want a super reliable boat with good low end for freestyle but good top end to keep up in groups. I will most likely get a pipe in the future but as I fried the top end oo my last ski trying to tune for a pipe I am a little hesitant.

So my only problem is the stock exhaust on the motor faces the wrong direction. I am guessing I can just flip it 180 degrees?

Here are pics so far.

lamar311 · 01-11-2010, 10:13 PM

Painted the waterbox.. I used high temp paint for the base coat then did a gloss black on top. Kinda pointless as its behind the gas tank but with the engine compartment looking so fresh I couldn't put the old beaten oil and rust stained waterbox back in.

Painting the engine compartment ...sucks!!! Took so long and so many coats. I also found about a 2 foot crack that had been repaired under the rail but not fixed with Fiberglass on the inside. I did two layers of glass on it and sanded it quickly than painted. I am not that proud of how the compartment came out... I got tired of it and moved quickly through it half *ssing a few things. I plan to do a full paint job using my new paint gun ... again something I have never done.

Let me here your thoughts gents...

p4ljets103 · 01-16-2010, 08:28 PM

How did you paint that? with a brush or an airbrush? i am thinking about painting mine, but i have no idea what paint to use or how to go about doing it.

ATSAaron · 01-16-2010, 08:43 PM

Looks AWESOME.

Does that 701 have a 62T cylinder or a 61X cylinder (it should be stamped near the top and the middle of the intake side. I don't think you can just swap the exhaust, you need either the earlier style exhaust or ideally an aftermarket exhaust.

Aaron

lamar311 · 01-17-2010, 12:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by p4ljets103

How did you paint that? with a brush or an airbrush? i am thinking about painting mine, but i have no idea what paint to use or how to go about doing it.

I painted it with a foam roller and foam brushes. It takes a few quotes. Use rustoleum paint and rough the compartment up with a palms sander before you paint. I also cleaned the compartment with purple power to remove any grease before painting.

lamar311 · 01-17-2010, 12:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ATSAaron

Looks AWESOME.

Does that 701 have a 62T cylinder or a 61X cylinder (it should be stamped near the top and the middle of the intake side. I don't think you can just swap the exhaust, you need either the earlier style exhaust or ideally an aftermarket exhaust.

Aaron

Well I really don't know the difference but it is a 62t. And why can't I just turn the exhaust around? I am replacing the exhaust hose that goes from the exhaust to the waterbox. I haven't really looked at it yet but it seems like it would work......

lamar311 · 01-22-2010, 10:33 AM

What is a better motor 61 x or 62 t?

ATSAaron · 01-22-2010, 12:05 PM

For freestyle the 61X is better.

Aaron

lamar311 · 01-22-2010, 01:44 PM

Well I kind of want this to be a hybrid. I want top end.... it has dual carbs for that. But I am doing footholds and hand hold ect. I was told to ditch the dual carbs and slim it down to one 46mm or 44mm for low end pop. Your thoughts?

I really want this to be super reliable. So I kinda want to leave the pipe alone. Any bolt ons to get me that low end grunt? Chop the pump cone maybe?

lamar311 · 01-22-2010, 01:46 PM

So one of my foot holds needed some work it needed to be glassed around the exhaust tube. Still working on that but will post some additional pics soon. Stripping the rest of the hull to prepare for paint. I am still creating a concept for paint so will post a pic once I get it up and going.