Tis the season for water sports again. So soak it up! This is my project stand-up jet ski, a 1996 Kawasaki 750 sxi. We got this thing as an absolute busted disaster for 650 bucks. High on hopes & dreams, we then spent most of last summer repairing hull damage & getting the ski ready for paint. That more-or-less catches us up to speed. So it was time for Hydro-Turf. I got the Hydro-Turf straight from Blowsion, as I was already going to them for a bunch of other odds & ends pieces. A lot of the guys at Blowsion are also gear heads. I bonded with one of the dudes over CRXs & early 90s awesomeness, and he convinced me that yellow turf with a purple Blowsion logo would set the Kawasaki’s fresh ‘Sea Foam’ paint off perfectly. And boy am I glad I followed his lead!
When laying Hydro-Turf…
You’ll want to grab a gallon of this Weldwood Contact Cement. Home Depot, etc should have it. Oh and also grab a pack of cheap paint brushes.
While ordering the Hydro-Turf from Blowsion…
We also got one of their kick plates for the back of the ski. When it comes to the Weldwood Contact Cement, you brush it onto BOTH the surface of where you’re gonna stick it, AND to the backside of the Hydro-Turf. Then, let it set. Don’t get impatient during the setting process; set-time is key. You have to wait until it almost looks dry/absorbed. Maybe 5 minutes or a little more… then stick ’em together.
Next came the tray padding… also from Blowsion.
Think of it as a yoga mat. It just gives a little more cushion to the ski.
Then it was time to install the new Yellow Hydro-Turf into the tray.
Blowsion sells their Hydro-Turf as pre-cut kits depending on the jet ski model. So the pieces are already cut for you, with a little extra for good measure. The kit is super helpful.
We taped the sides of the jet ski off…
So that we could then install the yellow Hydro-Turf up each side of the tray without spilling any glue on the new paint. Danny (the guy in the pics), had enough extra BLACK Hydro-Turf to wrap around the sides of the jet ski at the bond seam, so we pulled a last-minute audible, and went with black instead of yellow on the bond-line (aka bumpers), just to break up the bright colors & tie into the pole.
Finally… we turfed the top of the pole for safety.
Then it was time to get the Kawasaki 750 back in the water! We’ve got about 10 months on the Hydroturf now. No issues! Just be patient in the prep, and this stuff will look great & hold up for a long time.
