boats

[mudpuppy_94]

hey guys. i started to get into wakeboarding last summer. a friend of mine has a malibu wakesetter. im starting to look for my own boat and quickly realized they are a bit out of my price range. plus i like to do some fishing. i would like to know what boats you would recommend since the malibu's, moomba's, etc are a little pricy. and which would be best to get my fishing fix in. wakeboarding comes 1st though

 

[wifisher]

Re: boats

well, what is your price range? Remember what boat stand for:

Bust
Out
Another
Thousand

 

[sickwilly]

Re: boats

Look for a stingray 190 fx or 195 fx. find a 19 foot version, with the 4.3. With a 4 or 5 blade prop it will hold a good plane at boarding speeds with a fairly good wake for such a light, 19 foot stern drive (yeah, I know its not the same as a v-drive's wake), and still has options making it a fish-able boat. Stay away from the 3.0, 135 horse version, though.

 

[ThreeMileBayWaker]

Re: boats

Obviously a new inboard ski boat is out of your price range, try looking for a used model a few years old. Like early 2000's should be in the low 20's...

I would love a $70k wakesetter myself... but instead I bought a new 21' glastron fully loaded.

 

[mxfever]

Re: boats

Obviously a new inboard ski boat is out of your price range, try looking for a used model a few years old. Like early 2000's should be in the low 20's....

Agreed! If I had to do it all over again I would have bought a v-drive or direct drive. An older one of course. Getting on plane is my biggest issue with our boat. Plus the outdrive just makes me nervous. Don't get me wrong I love our boat but it's one of those "if I had to do it all over again" statements.

 

[ThreeMileBayWaker]

Re: boats

Agreed! If I had to do it all over again I would have bought a v-drive or direct drive. An older one of course. Getting on plane is my biggest issue with our boat. Plus the outdrive just makes me nervous. Don't get me wrong I love our boat but it's one of those "if I had to do it all over again" statements.

I don't have the water depth late in the season to have a v-drive, if I bought one my boating season would be only 3 months long... hell even now its only 4 months but its a month I cherish. Lol...

Late April..

First week in september..

Our dock would have to be 100' long to make it a longer season... not do-able, other wise I could have bought a V-drive.

 

[sickwilly]

Re: boats

But he specifically said he wanted to fish out of the boat too, which to me would rule out a V8 direct or V-drive. You could not trim it up to get into fishing spots. Also you would be firing up a v8 every time you needed to just move the boat a few feet.

Stingray, Bayliner, Glastron, and I beleive 4 winns all have IO versions set up for fishing too.

In the stingray, there is a live well. There are convertible sections that allow a fishing seat to be used. There is also a trolling motor option which would allow you to fish a spot all day long without firing up the engine.

IOs are no v-drive nor direct drive. However, if propped correctly, and if you ad a foil or smart tabs, they can hold plane at wakeboard speeds, and still have a decent wake to learn on.

If after a couple years he is ready to move to the next level with wakeboarding, then get the v-drive. There is an equal chance he might move even more in the direction of fishing, versus wakeboarding or water sports.

Thus, the best compromise seems to me, IMHO, to be an IO fish ski set up.

 

[bradtw191]

Re: boats

what is the price range? 5k or 20k lol i boarded behind my boat for the first time on friday. loaded down with people it threw an awesome fat wake, way better than what i expected. she is a 1990 sea ray 180 4500 bucks its clean and runs perfect, you just gotta look

 

[mudpuppy_94]

Re: boats

well. i can put off the boat for now. but by next summer (with the things that came up) i just go by a vdrive and a little aluminum boat with 25 horse or something since ill have the money. thanks for all the advice though

 

[JaseBosto]

Re: boats

Stay away from the 3.0, 135 horse version, though.

I have no issues with my 3.0. I've had 5 people on the boat and myself on the board and she pulled no problem. All in all, I would almost rather have a 3.0. Easier to work on and sips gas.

 

[tgell001]

Re: boats

I got the 180RX as well, 700lbs of ballast and 6 people and I still have no issues getting on a plane with a 4 blade 20p mercury prop. With all that weight I can throw a knee high + wake at 60ft. Plus, I payed $15,999 brand spankin new w/ a 5 year warrenty. But bootstrap, no boat 'sips' gas haha....

 

[JaseBosto]

Re: boats

they really do compared to a v8. My outboard powered Baja 16' w/115 merc guzzled gas compared to this boat.

 

[oldjeep]

Re: boats

You can wakeboard behind just about anything. This is my son behind our Bayliner 195 (4cyl) with 4 skinny people in the boat and no weigh bags of any sort. Anyone can jump off a huge wake, takes some skill to do it off a small one

You don't need tabs or a foil to keep an I/O planed at 13+ MPH unless there is something wrong with the boat or you have some really large people in the back seats

Not sure why you would need a V8 for wakeboarding since you are generally going under 20mph adn don't need a quick pull out of the water.

 

[ThreeMileBayWaker]

Re: boats

my brand new 21' will fall off plane at anything below 18mph and I have a v6. Larger boat, heavier engine... I honestly like being pulled 21-23mph, but learning I know I liked a slower speed and didn't have a driver who could feather the throttle to keep me there....

 

[rallyart]

Re: boats

To get the maximum wake size and shape you don't want the hull fully on plane. That does make it harder to maintain speed, even in an inboard. The addition of a good cruise control system like Perfect Pass will make the driving much easier. Might even save a marriage.
Towing at 20-23 is normally done with heavily weighted boats and 80' ropes. Of course, the speedometer may not be accurate, I know I've seen few without GPS that were great.

 

[linuxusr]

Re: boats

my brand new 21' will fall off plane at anything below 18mph and I have a v6. Larger boat, heavier engine... I honestly like being pulled 21-23mph, but learning I know I liked a slower speed and didn't have a driver who could feather the throttle to keep me there....

I have a 1997 v6 Seaswirl 21ft when I got it I had issues getting it to plane when towing someone. But after throwing on a Stingray hydrofoil stabilizer fin. All issue's planing have gone away. It's like night and day once you install the fin. My little v6 pulls anyone out of the water with no issue's. We also have learned to find the right RPM and keep the engine at that instead of watching the speedometer. It a easier way of keeping the boat at the right speed.

 

[bowler]

Re: boats

You can wakeboard behind just about anything. This is my son behind our Bayliner 195 (4cyl) with 4 skinny people in the boat and no weigh bags of any sort. Anyone can jump off a huge wake, takes some skill to do it off a small one

You don't need tabs or a foil to keep an I/O planed at 13+ MPH unless there is something wrong with the boat or you have some really large people in the back seats

Not sure why you would need a V8 for wakeboarding since you are generally going under 20mph adn don't need a quick pull out of the water.

a picture speaks a thousand words... great shot. 4 cyl and all!!!!

 

[JaseBosto]

Re: boats

It looks like he has a tower...try getting that much air without it...

 

[mudpuppy_94]

Re: boats

do you think a '05 Tahoe 195 i/o will suit me fine? when it comes to wake that is. its a 4.3 L.

 

[sickwilly]

Re: boats

yeah, its going to have a decent wake to learn on. I have a 19 foot boat that is lighter than a Tahoe and can easily clear the second wake but 5-10 feet given the size of my wake, with no extra weight in the boat. With the right prop it will hold boarding speeds and make a decent wake for starting out on.

I just noticed, though, you are in Charleston. Will you be in salt/brackish water? I would really be looking for an outboard versus IO to get my maintenance costs down. I would be targeting a Hurricane deck boat with an outboard as a compromise.

Stingray is on the verge of coming out with an 20 foot deck boat with an outboard that would be sweet, but I am not sure how soon it will be out.