Thread: Jet Ski

Hey guys

Being that this forum has so so much info on allsorts of random shit i thought ide put a post up

Thinking i need a new toy for summer, Was thinking a mini jetboat but thinking a jetski might work out better as i will spend more time in the ocean then fresh water,

Used will be fucking about
Towing people around
maybe some fishing
sightseeing etc
2 person ish

Then i found they do supercharged ones because why wouldn't you

Have about 20k to play with so thinking new ish low hours as opposed to smaller new one.

Any input? or ones to stay away from?

cheers
Shane

For regularly carrying two people you want a three seater.
Different makes have different cooling (raw vs closed loop), there are pluses and minuses to each.
When I got mine about 12 years ago they all did about 100kph max, as that was the law in the US where they were made, so supercharged models didn’t go any faster, they just got to top speed quicker. They can be modified though (different impeller).

Originally Posted by 199p

Hey guys

Being that this forum has so so much info on allsorts of random shit i thought ide put a post up

Thinking i need a new toy for summer, Was thinking a mini jetboat but thinking a jetski might work out better as i will spend more time in the ocean then fresh water,

Used will be fucking about
Towing people around
maybe some fishing
sightseeing etc
2 person ish

Then i found they do supercharged ones because why wouldn't you

Have about 20k to play with so thinking new ish low hours as opposed to smaller new one.

Any input? or ones to stay away from?

cheers
Shane

All jet skis.

If you want reliability and less maintenance get a naturally aspirated engine.

Hondas- polaris etc stay away

Seadoo are closed loop cooling ,na and supercharged models. Personally a 130-155 is more than enough fun and economical for fishing etc

Yamahas are good reliable skis, raw water cooling so need to flush well and salt away for winter

Kawasakis seem to have issues in the higher end/supercharged models and the lower spec models are noisy for not much poke IMO

Yamaha are very reliable, and stable.
Seadoo's closed loop cooling is great for sea use, and they have probably the best riding hulls out of all brands. Simple pump system with wear rings that are easily changed when you lose thrust over time.
Kawasaki's are pretty reliable too, but basic ones are big and underpowered, and not as easily serviced.
I would stay away from supercharged ones, one more thing to cost money, and they tend to need more servicing.
However if you want to deep water pull big people skiers and wake boarders you'll want more than 150hp.
You need a three person one, they're bigger obviously but much more stable for water sports and better in rough water.
Five of my mates and I all bought jet skis about five years ago for exactly what you're looking for one to do, diving and fishing and mucking about with family. They are great for all those activities. They're simple to launch, light to tow.
We used to fish over at Stewart Island quite regularly. We'd get there much faster than a boat, and in rougher weather with ease. You get soaked though, we'd just wear wetsuits. Spent hours on the lake skiing and on ski biscuits etc.
I had a Seadoo, mates had Kawasaki's and Honda. They could not keep up on a long run, the Seadoo's stability and ride was superior in my experience.
Probably what will sway you will be dealer and servicing back up - who is closest to you and has a good rep. Down here there was virtually no-one, I did all my own servicing.
If I were buying again I'd probably go Yamaha for back up and long term reliability. Most rental places in the states run Yamaha because they do huge hours.
Like any thing, you look after it and it'll give you hours of hassle free service.
I sold mine to finance into a 3.3m jet boat which I sold after a year to buy a Stabicraft as I moved back coastal.

$20k will buy a pretty decent boat for fishing....

Originally Posted by JoshC

Yamaha are very reliable, and stable.
Seadoo's closed loop cooling is great for sea use, and they have probably the best riding hulls out of all brands. Simple pump system with wear rings that are easily changed when you lose thrust over time.
Kawasaki's are pretty reliable too, but basic ones are big and underpowered, and not as easily serviced.
I would stay away from supercharged ones, one more thing to cost money, and they tend to need more servicing.
However if you want to deep water pull big people skiers and wake boarders you'll want more than 150hp.
You need a three person one, they're bigger obviously but much more stable for water sports and better in rough water.
Five of my mates and I all bought jet skis about five years ago for exactly what you're looking for one to do, diving and fishing and mucking about with family. They are great for all those activities. They're simple to launch, light to tow.
We used to fish over at Stewart Island quite regularly. We'd get there much faster than a boat, and in rougher weather with ease. You get soaked though, we'd just wear wetsuits. Spent hours on the lake skiing and on ski biscuits etc.
I had a Seadoo, mates had Kawasaki's and Honda. They could not keep up on a long run, the Seadoo's stability and ride was superior in my experience.
Probably what will sway you will be dealer and servicing back up - who is closest to you and has a good rep. Down here there was virtually no-one, I did all my own servicing.
If I were buying again I'd probably go Yamaha for back up and long term reliability. Most rental places in the states run Yamaha because they do huge hours.
Like any thing, you look after it and it'll give you hours of hassle free service.
I sold mine to finance into a 3.3m jet boat which I sold after a year to buy a Stabicraft as I moved back coastal.

What was yours and others like on Fuel Josh ?

Just buy a skirt and save some money

As someone who has done a shit load of jetski fishing over the last 5 years, I'd say a boat is a better option for what you have in mind. Once you get more than one person onboard and try and load it up with a load of crap, you'll get frustrated pretty quickly. Storage and space are limited. A ski is good for a single person to get fishing offshore and back quickly. As for hooning around just for the sake of it, that gets old pretty quickly. Just my opinion. If you're still set on a ski, go for the biggest model available, Yamaha FX HO or Sea Doo Fish Pro. Most jetski fishos avoid supercharged models as they burn through more fuel and engines are slightly less reliable. You'll find non-supercharged models plenty powerful enough.

Cheers guys

Got a Sea doo / kawasaki dealer in town and yamaha bike shop opening soon dont know if they doing watercraft or not tho.

Cheers Josh just the information i was after, Got a couple of mates with boats so just go with them for that stuff plus want more of a fun toy then fishing boat.

Appreciate the input guys

If 'fun toy' could be extended to this mode of water transport, you could have a more flexible 'fun' platform. Not as fast as a jet ski, but just as light, goes more places and frugal on the fuel use.

https://www.nzhuntingandshooting.co....boating-63302/

Or a boat that thinks its a jetski....

https://www.trademe.co.nz/a/motors/b...6?bof=zxtAgY5s

Originally Posted by timattalon

Or a boat that thinks its a jetski....

https://www.trademe.co.nz/a/motors/b...6?bof=zxtAgY5s

Got a mate with one of these just running an outboard on the back, very handy for diving and setting nets, useful but i want more of a toy 1st

Originally Posted by timattalon

Or a boat that thinks its a jetski....

https://www.trademe.co.nz/a/motors/b...6?bof=zxtAgY5s

That IS nice!

Smart waves are rad!