Ignition System | 1.0

In the spirit of all things PJS I’ve decided against going with the MSD option and opt instead for the rarer still, PJS Type II total loss ignition with Titanium Flywheel.

These things were ridiculously expensive back in the day and priced most rec-racers out of the market immediately.  Naturally Jeff Jacobs ran this system in his Pro-Mod winning boats too. But what was available to him, wasn’t always available to the public – even if you did have the coin.  It was often the case that they’d develop modifed one-off’s to give him the edge over the likes of Victor Sheldon and Chris Fischetti. And, well, as history tells us… It worked!

• Here’s a little reference regarding price; Back in 1988 a JS440 retailed at around the US$1,999.00 mark…  Now a PJS Titanium Type II Ignition System in the same year ran for… wait for it… US$1,295.15!!!    WTF did I hear you say?!!!   Yeah, no shit they’re expensive!  But hey, as they say ‘speed isn’t cheap’!

Below is an excerpt from a PJS Catalogue that I thought you’d all like. It’s the usual corny rev-head hype typical of the 80’s era that holds no shame in their fluro colours, high-waisted bikini’s, mullet hair cuts and dirty mustaches; but I looooove it!  Have also scanned a copy of it in the pics section below for you all to enjoy;

“CD System II is full race. Totally state-of-the-art, it produces the same spark energy as used in Formula 1 cars. Unlike traditional systems, where spark decreases as RPM increases, the PJS system fires at the same intense level regardless of RPM!

Combine this with the precise timing possible with our Hall Cell crank position sensor, put it in a race built ski – and hang on! Smoother, cleaner and stronger power all the way through the RPM range. Greater spark means greater performance, it’s that simple, and this system produces the greatest amount of spark you can generate – period!

Both systems are complete with our senor plate/rotor kit that adapts to your existing flywheel. Or go all the way with the added strength and durability of a lightweight PJS hand crafted aluminum or titanium flywheel”

Next steps will be to include getting the elec box all polished and ready to send across to the States for John at JetSkiSolutions (www.jetskisolutions.com) to work his magic.

I was first introduced to John by Mark Gomez and he subsequently did some work rebuilding/restoring my round-bodied 38mm Mikuni race carbs. Folks, I cannot speak highly enough of this bloke!!!  He’s the epitome of professionalism in every way; I have to admit, I can be pretty demanding as a customer because I expect the job to be done right, but nothing was ever too much and the quality of his work is second to none.  You’ll see what I mean when I write up the post on these race carbs.  They’re totes ridic!

Anyway, stay tuned for more updates on the ignition system as it gets restored. Not really sure what operational state it’s in considering she’s over 25 years old either 😐   However, I envisage the next instalment to be a few months off yet, as I know John’s flat out with the US summer season fast approaching full-swing and I’ve got a whole heap of other areas to attend to on this build myself in the mean time. So until then, keep wrenching…

**Below are some of the ignition options available as an aftermarket upgrade; They range from the basic KV, the ever popular MSD system and one of my favourites, the exotic, twin spark units made by Westcoast;

      

The Move

Moving into an apartment comes with the challenge of ‘where the hell to store everything’? This is usually followed by leanings toward common sense when the thoughts of ‘maybe I should sell the lot?’ begin to creep in.

“Blasphemy I say…!!!”

At the end of cancelling out nearly all the options available to me, like; the parents place and all the more formal storage solutions; of which would have, mind you, cost me literally an arm and leg!  I ended up finding a gem of a location, close to the city and with storage fees of next to nothing for a practically new 20ft shipping container 🙂 …Always good to have a sharp set of negotiating skills by leveraging your ‘long term plans to stay’ :p Winning!

So with that, I enlisted the help of the old man and we set about ‘The Move’ one fine Saturday afternoon and what was expected to take around 4 to 5 hours ended up finishing at 4am in the morning, Gah!  We were so hammered but needed to get the job done because we’d only hired the truck for the day.

• A word to the wise at this point for any of you thinking of fitting a double garage’s work of gear into a space half the size; ‘take the time to make it all accessible!’ – I think if we’d just chucked it all in there I’d still be hesitant to open the doors and even less likely to find the parts I need for the build itself.  Definitely worth the extra few hours!

**Here are some pics from ‘The Move’ and what I like to think is an Aladdin’s Cave worth of JetSki treasure!

   

The Garage

It’s every guy’s favourite place to be on the weekend or after a long days work; its a refuge for mates to gather and enjoy a beer, but most importantly it provides the launch pad for all things ‘build’ related!

This is what use to be my man-cave and where it all began back in 08′ when I bought my first ski, a 1990 JS440…  I say “use to” as unfortunately when you move into an inner city apartment you just can’t take the beloved work shop with you.

The blog starts here and will follow the build process that brings together all the parts and expertise gained over a period of 5 years.

**Below are some pics of my garage and all the gear I’ve traded, bought and hunted down over the years.  Its a combination of two JetSki shops inventories from R&R JetSki’s in Cronulla – NSW and Southern JetSki’s in Springvale – Victoria, as well as countless ebay and forum one-off buys.

Enjoy…