Jeff's 1998 Ski Nautique Restoration

[chief351]

Amazing job! You have inspired me to buff my 05 SN and put new decals on!

[NautiqueJeff]

How bad was it replacing the throttle control mechanism?

What problems were you hanging with the mechanism? Stiff and binding as you tried to throttle it?

It wasn't bad at all. I already had the upholstery piece off of that area, so it was just four more bolts to drop the throttle mechanism down. Then you just switch the cables over and reinstall. Took about 30 minutes, plus the time to mount the upholstered piece around the throttle arm.

Mine was just worn out. It has over 1,900 hours of use, most on a private ski lake, meaning there was lots of throttle action over the years. Now it has a new throttle cable, new throttle mechanism, and even a new throttle connection at the engine. It is smooth as can be now.

[NautiqueJeff]

Here's a shot from today. I am deleting the cup holders on the engine box, but I am still waiting for the SeaDek pieces that will cover the holes up. Also still waiting on the dash to come back from Nautique.

[keithh2oskier]

Have you got a chance to ski behind it yet?

[NautiqueJeff]

No, not yet. My wife won't drive it until the dash is installed. Something about wanting to know how fast she's going or something...

[Muzzys99]

Thank you! The trailer is actually pretty bad. I will probably have Ram-Lin make a nice dual-axle trailer for it in green with electric brakes sometime this winter. The current trailer is a $600 special that the local dealer just happened to have on the lot. It is functional, but that's about it.

Are you considering selling that trailer? I have an '82 Ski Nautique 2001 that is sitting on the original Correct Craft trailer. It was refurbished back in '95, and it's in pretty rough shape. Debating on rebuilding this trailer or buying a new trailer from Ram-Lin.

[NautiqueJeff]

I am not sure. Possibly. It might be a little while though, and it really isn't the right size for a 2001 anyway.

[hondaprlud]

No, not yet. My wife won't drive it until the dash is installed. Something about wanting to know how fast she's going or something...

she's no fun. lol

[swc5150]

Is it louder while driving with the Seadek versus carpet? It looks great!

[NautiqueJeff]

Maybe a little bit. Not much.

[keithh2oskier]

NautiqueJeff do you have a handheld GPS or something she can use to give her speed. What about another friend. I would be begging, borrowing, or stealing a driver to pull me after doing all of that work!

[NautiqueJeff]

Yeah, I have a GPS speed app on my phone. Maybe I'll try that.

[wakejunky]

Jeff,

I decided to do the same on my 03 SAN, I've got the carpet all up and I'm now in the process of scraping all the glue off. I'm wondering how you leveled the floor. I'm finding that the floor is pretty uneven. I'm thinking of floating resin on the floor to level things out. I'm not too sure about using bondo and then resin because I don't know how the bondo will hold up.

[NautiqueJeff]

I think the resin is a good idea. Mine wasn't too bad, so we didn't have to really do much to level it. There is one spot in front of the observer's seat that is not even, but you have to know it is there and look for it or you would never notice it.

[swc5150]

How hard of a job is it to take out the carpet?