key west

[missnmountains]

By the way, nice boat you have there. We're starting to look into getting a jet ski... Would you recommended the Yamaha? We like the looks of the new Honda PWC's, but we don't have much input from jet ski owners. Any advice?

We love the Yamaha. We haul it around on the swim platform of the 48 with little trouble. The thing runs great and is 4 stroke. It is a nice cruiser, but we get max 55mph on flat water.

 

[dobson]

yes yamaha's are great. since you are looking more for stability i would take a look at the fx high output cruisers. they also do between 55-60 on flat water

 

[chuck1]

Just one more nice thing about starting/stoping on Lake 'O' is you get to have all that fresh water to flush and clean your boat.

 

[sprink56]

sprink56- so if i were to ship it to the east coat, ie cocoa beach, how long does it usually take to hit the keys from their? im am starting to like this idea better so that i can hit key largo easyer and other places.

bushway9172- you said you were beginning to look at jet skis. if you are looking for power, i would look at the new sea doo's or kawasakis newer models. if you are looking at better gas milage and better handling and stability look at yamaha's high out put cruiser(i have one rides great). i also have a kawasaki 1500f 2006 and it gets out of the water very fast and is good for jumping the wake

Your ETA will depend on wheather you run "inside" or "outside". If you run "outside" from Sebastion Inlet,,,just South of Melbourne...figure a layover in Miami and you can make Key West the next day. If you do ICW double that.

If you do this in the Winter, you have a 50/50 chance that seas will be 3~5+ off shore and 2~4 near shore. I have however seen days in February where the seas outside and Biscayne Bay will be slick enough to water ski...and I have done it. The water is NEVER under 70 deg from West Palm south because of the Gulfstream. The Gulf will have 10 deg cooler water south of Sarasota and temps in the 50's north of there. I have run 3~5 head seas in my 390 for about 4 hrs at 20~22 kts. For me it got to be old after about 2 hours. You can run 2~4 all day...no problem. If this is a Winter trip...figure on hauling to North Palm Beach and work out of Palm Beach Inlet. That will knock a day off and give you more time to relax. There are some great marinas all the way down to Key West and if you dive, Pennecamp at Key Largo has the best diving in the US.

Hope this helps your thinking.:thumbsup:

John F.

 

[Nacho Boat]

We love the Yamaha. We haul it around on the swim platform of the 48 with little trouble. The thing runs great and is 4 stroke. It is a nice cruiser, but we get max 55mph on flat water.

We own a pair of Kawasaki STX-12F's (2005) - For price, features, and depability, they cannot be beat. Great acceleration and handling. The Yamaha's are a bit more stable (wider), but not as responsive (the HO Cruiser is a great ski - but was a little more than I wanted to spend).

 

[bushway9172]

We own a pair of Kawasaki STX-12F's (2005) - For price, features, and depability, they cannot be beat. Great acceleration and handling. The Yamaha's are a bit more stable (wider), but not as responsive (the HO Cruiser is a great ski - but was a little more than I wanted to spend).

Thanks for more great advice.