I'm going to buy a Wakeboat...

[robm3]

We're into wakeboarding in my family and up until now we've used my Four Winns H240.

But it doesn't have a wake tower nor any of the dedicated technology such as Powerwedges, Surfgates, Ballast tanks, Apps etc..
You can't surf behind it either due to the Sterndrive set up.

So a new boat is on the cards.

Here's the Malibu VLX I'm looking at:



There's a lot of tech in there now, including touchscreens, rider presets etc...



Off to dealership this weekend...

[Effjay]

I'm not in to wakeboarding, but that doesn't stop me wanting one of those; nice looking piece of kit!

[markmullen]

That looks well, enjoy.

[smifffymoto]

Me too,I thought it was just pulling some body behind stood on half a surf board.

[KemP]

That is an awesome bit of kit. I have no idea what all the displays on the dash do but i want them

[jep]

Paddy_N_Murphy said:

apparently there is more than a boat in a wake boat....

http://www.malibuboats.com/news/press-releases/mal...

http://www.malibuboats.com/innovations.html

Available from that English wake boarding hotspot.... Crewe.

[robm3]

Right, there's quite a lot of options, bit mind boggling which are relevant and which not...






There's our big boatshow in two weeks so I think I'm going to have a look at all the brands I like, Supra, Malibu and Nautique under the one roof.
Plus there may be some show deals on.

[robm3]

We're really blessed here in Sydney because we get to use the waterways for about 9 months of the year...

Here's about 4 weeks back behind my mates boat (note wetsuit):



And getting our kids (7 & 9) up:





Jetskis are a great way for kids to learn:



Then the Dads have a go:








But..... here's the downside!

http://youtu.be/ixr4sMzXd2M


Note my lovely wife was desperate to jump so we throttled up the boat to around 25mph (very fast for wakeboarding!!).

[toohuge]

They are nice boats... we are into wake boarding too and the tower makes all the difference.

As you get better, the ability to add weight and shift that weight around the boat becomes necessary....

I like the master craft offerings, but are a little pricey and Moomba and Wakesetter offer better value for money imo.

[Disastrous]

I'm a big Nautique fan and ride behind a new G23 regularly (not mine, sadly!).

Highly recommend you take a look and at the surf system is ace.

[NeilB12]

Someone mentioned that it's not possible to wakeboard behind a stern drive due to safety reasons. I've no knowledge of wakeboarding but what do you think of this?

http://www.boattest.com/engine-review/Volvo-Penta/...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xAsyaQ_cxZY

[robm3]

Disastrous said:

I'm a big Nautique fan and ride behind a new G23 regularly (not mine, sadly!).

Highly recommend you take a look and at the surf system is ace.

Right, I love the Nautique G23 and it would be top of my list but.....

We have a stupid law in Australia that vehicles (including trailers) cannot be over 2.5m wide without carrying a variety of safety signs, rotating flashing lights and a permit to travel. Plus these 'wide loads' cannot run on long weekends nor on some roads.

Sadly the G23 is about 2.65m wide

[robm3]

NeilB12 said:

Someone mentioned that it's not possible to wakeboard behind a stern drive due to safety reasons. I've no knowledge of wakeboarding but what do you think of this?

http://www.boattest.com/engine-review/Volvo-Penta/...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xAsyaQ_cxZY

You can wakeboard behind a sterndrive but can't wakesurf (because it's too easy to fall into the prop).

That concept looks interesting however it needs a lot more development work.
The wake they show in the vid is pretty average for both surf and wakeboarding when compared to a modern wakeboat.

Also shaft drive is a lot less hassle than Inboard/Outboard (sterndrives).

[NeilB12]

robm3 said:

You can wakeboard behind a sterndrive but can't wakesurf (because it's too easy to fall into the prop).

That concept looks interesting however it needs a lot more development work.
The wake they show in the vid is pretty average for both surf and wakeboarding when compared to a modern wakeboat.

Also shaft drive is a lot less hassle than Inboard/Outboard (sterndrives).

Sorry, I mean wakesurf - told you I had no knowledge of it
It's not a concept, it's in production and being sold right now although mainly in the US.

[Disastrous]

robm3 said:

Disastrous said:

I'm a big Nautique fan and ride behind a new G23 regularly (not mine, sadly!).

Highly recommend you take a look and at the surf system is ace.

Right, I love the Nautique G23 and it would be top of my list but.....

We have a stupid law in Australia that vehicles (including trailers) cannot be over 2.5m wide without carrying a variety of safety signs, rotating flashing lights and a permit to travel. Plus these 'wide loads' cannot run on long weekends nor on some roads.

Sadly the G23 is about 2.65m wide

Gutted for you! I'm trying to remember what the next smaller model down from that is - the 210? Getting on a bit I suspect, in comparison to some of the others you're looking at. That's a mental law - I wonder if you could get a G23 and some 'creatively altered' paperwork that gave it's beam as 2.5m that you could show any officer who stopped you. I'd lay money he wouldn't have a tape measure handy to argue the toss over 15cm

[z4RRSchris]

Paddy_N_Murphy said:

using a boat to pull you along ?

How quaint......


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C1UXE_ItR-Y

those twins went to my school. random Fact

[robm3]

Disastrous said:

robm3 said:

Disastrous said:

I'm a big Nautique fan and ride behind a new G23 regularly (not mine, sadly!).

Highly recommend you take a look and at the surf system is ace.

Right, I love the Nautique G23 and it would be top of my list but.....

We have a stupid law in Australia that vehicles (including trailers) cannot be over 2.5m wide without carrying a variety of safety signs, rotating flashing lights and a permit to travel. Plus these 'wide loads' cannot run on long weekends nor on some roads.

Sadly the G23 is about 2.65m wide

Gutted for you! I'm trying to remember what the next smaller model down from that is - the 210? Getting on a bit I suspect, in comparison to some of the others you're looking at. That's a mental law - I wonder if you could get a G23 and some 'creatively altered' paperwork that gave it's beam as 2.5m that you could show any officer who stopped you. I'd lay money he wouldn't have a tape measure handy to argue the toss over 15cm

Now you are on to something. You correctly mentioned the 210 because that is under 2.5m wide but the Nautique dealer told me of someone who brought a 230 (not the G23 but still about 2.6m wide) and requested the badging say 210.
This is because police and traffic officers here actually google the dimensions when they stop you!

I may have considered similar for the Malibu 230, allegedly..

Anyhow boat show in two weeks so I'll post photos from there plus the buying process/decision

[robm3]

Well went to the Sydney Boatshow and ordered the Malibu VLX almost identical to the one in the first picture...

October delivery... just in time for 6 months of summer

Going to call the boat 'Chavtastic' too, because I ordered the 1,200 watt sound system.

[Fishtigua]

Good job! New boats always bring a smile to everyone.

Keep it in a marina or on the trailer?

[robm3]

Definitely on a trailer, also having a custom cover made plus clear wrap applied.

Very happy indeed!

It's exactly the same as the show one but build starts mid August. I'm going to the factory to get some photos of construction.