Universal Wakeboard Towers.

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02-20-2011, 06:10 PM
vvfdfirefighter

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Universal Wakeboard Towers.

Ok ladies and gentlemen. I've been searching for about 2 years for a tower for my '87 Marauder. I think I've finally found it. Every other Universal tower I've seen has looked cheap and I've heard horror stories from friends and fellow boaters about their strength and the rattle and noise they make. Now I've been doing some research and I think I've finally found what I'm looking for. Check it out. Let me know what you all think. Its called the Aerial Freeride tower. It is universal and looks OEM.

http://www.aerialwakeboarding.com/Articles.asp?ID=199
02-20-2011, 06:48 PM
haugy

www.newdimensiontowers.com

That's what I have on my Mariah, and they are awesome.
02-20-2011, 06:52 PM
vvfdfirefighter

I've looked into the New Dimension towers. They look nice, however I, personally, don't like the way they look on the 80 gen Supra's. They don't match the windows :(
02-20-2011, 08:20 PM
haugy

They can do a swoop tower on yours too. Just ask them. It looks like the swoop tower for the other Supra's.

Not to question or nitpick, but I don't see how the Freeride tower will look correct on your boat. Or at least more than the NewDimension's tower. Especially since the manufacturer of New Dimension used to be an OEM tower manufacturer. Just curious, that's all.
02-20-2011, 08:33 PM
vvfdfirefighter

I guess I just like the new age style of it, and since it doesn't swoop and mounts towards the stern i think it would just look better on the boat. Its modeled after the Roswell FCT3 tower offered on the 2009 Super Air Natique 210. Maybe I'm just partial to it mostly because of the sleek look. Not that I don't like others.

http://www.wakepics.com/video/22665/...above-the-rest
02-20-2011, 08:53 PM
vvfdfirefighter

Quote:

Originally Posted by haugy

www.newdimensiontowers.com

That's what I have on my Mariah, and they are awesome.

do you know about how much your setup cost you?
02-21-2011, 12:24 PM
wotan2525

Hah! Aerial are cheap, chinese made towers. They aren't terrible but be prepared to tighten the bolts every time you go out. Any "universal" fit tower will have joints and mounts that require constant attention. New Dimensions can make a tower that fits your boat without requiring all those pivots and swivels.
02-21-2011, 03:41 PM
haugy

Quote:

Originally Posted by vvfdfirefighter

do you know about how much your setup cost you?

With the board racks and tower light it was $2300.

Quote:

Originally Posted by wotan2525

Hah! Aerial are cheap, chinese made towers. They aren't terrible but be prepared to tighten the bolts every time you go out. Any "universal" fit tower will have joints and mounts that require constant attention. New Dimensions can make a tower that fits your boat without requiring all those pivots and swivels.

Yep. I was showing my Supra to a potential buyer yesterday, and he was concerned with price, and mentioned getting a universal fit tower. So while the boat was on the trailer I grabbed the upper part of the tower and shook the boat so hard the trailer was swaying. Not one sound came from the tower. And Wotan is right, I've never had to tighten anything on my tower, and it's dead silent in chop.

Just something to keep in mind. If you do go Aerial, get lots of before and after pics please.
02-22-2011, 08:41 AM
vvfdfirefighter

Quote:

Originally Posted by haugy

With the board racks and tower light it was $2300.

Yep. I was showing my Supra to a potential buyer yesterday, and he was concerned with price, and mentioned getting a universal fit tower. So while the boat was on the trailer I grabbed the upper part of the tower and shook the boat so hard the trailer was swaying. Not one sound came from the tower. And Wotan is right, I've never had to tighten anything on my tower, and it's dead silent in chop.

Just something to keep in mind. If you do go Aerial, get lots of before and after pics please.

Well I held off on buying it as of right now. It was a good deal. MRSP is 2,600 for the tower but it was on sale for 1,000. I am aware of the possible need to constantly tighten bolts and such since its a universal tower. Thought I would just weld up all the joints once I got it on. But since I'm deployed to Korea right now, I held off just incase I ended up not liking it when I got back. I'm still looking into towers since my Marauder doesn't have a ski pylon... Thank you all for your advice. Its very much appreciated. Who knows maybe I'll get this one or perhaps one like it in the future. Either way, I'll make sure to take lots of pictures.
02-22-2011, 08:43 AM
vvfdfirefighter

I would really like to see pictures of towers that other supra owners have put on. Maybe it will give me a better idea.
02-22-2011, 09:39 AM
michael hunter

That is a fine looking tower . Make sure you post pics of it on your boat. I went with the ND tower . When I was looking there were not as many builders as now.

http://i303.photobucket.com/albums/n...Picture009.jpg
02-22-2011, 11:59 AM
87SunSportMikeyD

Some people don't like Monster but I'll never understand why. Some people mount them poorly and the lines dont look very good. But mine is a wider stance that looks much better imo. They are not that expensive and come with a fantastic 5 year warranty and have a full line of accessories with great reviews.

I do have to tighten two bolts every 3-4 times out or I get a little rattle in chop. After I tighten them it goes away.

There are no crossbars to get in your view. It collapses fully flat for storage in garage or under boat lift canopy. If I could do it again I would get the MT2 for extra height.

http://photos.wakeboarder.com/data/3...cture_0381.jpg
02-22-2011, 12:37 PM
haugy

New Dimensions tower - Swoop style

http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y16...praonwater.jpg
02-22-2011, 01:57 PM
Okie Boarder

So far so good with the Aerial Airborne. It doesn't rattle and is really solid. I do check the allen screws ocassionally and find they need to be snugged up once in a while. I'm thinking of welding the joints to make that fit up more permanent. So far, no complaints.
02-22-2011, 05:29 PM
87SunSportMikeyD

Wow Haugy the swoop looks stylin
02-22-2011, 05:58 PM
firstdogriver

Has anyone looked into Samson Towers. The lines on the Edge model go well with the early supras and I've heard they are rock solid.
02-22-2011, 10:37 PM
stinky_1

1 Attachment(s)

I wish I could find the pics of my father in laws 85 sunsport with his tower on it. Its this style in this link

http://www.bigairwaketowers.com/towers/torrent/

I think he paid a bit less than that, but not much. I like that it folds pretty flat. And it is very very similar to the standard tower found on the supras for a long time. It may not follow the blocky windows of the older sunsports, but it does make it looks a lot newer.

I just cant decide if I should go for black or brushed.
02-23-2011, 12:06 AM
BigCity444

1 Attachment(s)

Take a look at the Monster Tower. You may be impressed with how you can expand the product over time with accessories.
02-23-2011, 11:32 AM
vvfdfirefighter

Quote:

Originally Posted by Okie Boarder

So far so good with the Aerial Airborne. It doesn't rattle and is really solid. I do check the allen screws ocassionally and find they need to be snugged up once in a while. I'm thinking of welding the joints to make that fit up more permanent. So far, no complaints.

Okie, You have the Aerial tower???
02-23-2011, 01:00 PM
87SunSportMikeyD

BC444 that is the MT2 right? Looks great imo
02-23-2011, 02:26 PM
vvfdfirefighter

Quote:

Originally Posted by BigCity444

Take a look at the Monster Tower. You may be impressed with how you can expand the product over time with accessories.

How solid is that tower?
02-23-2011, 05:18 PM
87SunSportMikeyD

On my Monster I have four wakeboards, pair of KMT6 tower speakers (20lbs ea maybe) and a bimini top attached to mine. Gotta be close to 80lbs hanging from it. Still no noise in chop. It sways a little on really rough days if it's weighted this heavily.
02-23-2011, 07:05 PM
chrisk

I have the Aerial Airborne on my Sun Sport and I love it. I think the joints look very professional and even though you do have to tighten them once in a while, it's really easy to do if you buy bolts with knobs on the ends of them. I did this halfway through the season and it was a great addition. I bought my own last summer, and since then Aerial has started selling their own-knobbed bolts on their website. This eliminates the need for allan wrenches.

I have two speakers on mine and I've had four wakeboards on the racks at one point and the thing is super solid. It's also nice to be able to fold it down flat for shore station storage or garages.
02-23-2011, 07:07 PM
chrisk

here's mine...

https://forum.supraboats.com/album.p...pictureid=1306
02-23-2011, 07:37 PM
ditchsnake

Don't know about the other aerial

I had an aerial assault tower on my last boat and it sucked bad. Wobbled side to side bad. Sucked so bad I sold it and bought a supra. Good thing! The set screws had to be tightened twice a day. Had a lot of weight on it with a light bar, a pair of pro 80's, a pair of pro 60's and a bimmini. Really didn't like the way the universal mount worked. There are two 2" round mounts that bolt to the outside of the hull (on the sides). Crownlines have thick glass and I reinforced behind the glass with 1'2" ply. You could still see the side flex. Even got two small stress cracks in the gelcoat(yes I reamed the holes well). The only good things I can say about aerial is they are cheap, look good and they do have good product support. I really don't know about the other towers though. If I were looking for an aftermarket tower I'd look for one that has a larger mounting flange on the sides.
02-23-2011, 07:50 PM
stinky_1

I ran a canadian home made job for the last 2 years. It only rattled on the washers that were not locked down. After I siliconed them in place I never heard another sound.

I have seen guys build these things out of 2" electrical conduit, and even PVC pipe. They claim they worked just fine.

I think we all think they are under a lot more stress than they really are. I like to over engineer things a LOT more than needed. I have seen factory towers that the welds break off after only a couple years. I wonder if we are holding the bar too high for what we think a factory unit is like?

I have my eye on a cheap Chinese brand. Not because I cant afford something more expensive, I just am not convinced I the other ones offer more for the money.
02-24-2011, 01:32 PM
87SunSportMikeyD

Well stress cracks can be easily avoided by anyone by making simple backing plates out of plywood. Doesn't even need to be marine grade. We made ours 9" x 5". Pics in my sig gallery under Monster Tower Install
02-25-2011, 08:56 AM
jsandy

one word. LOCTITE! a little of there blue compound on the threads of the bolts and i promise they wont get loose.
02-25-2011, 12:28 PM
dshaff24

http://pic20.picturetrail.com/VOL132.../389698599.jpg

http://pic20.picturetrail.com/VOL132.../389698605.jpg

Mine is a krypt tower. its got 2.5 inch fat tubeing and so far ive had for almost 2 years with out any issues.. no stress cracks.. no loosing of bolts.. seems pretty solid to me with out any noise unless its banging off some serious july forth wakes from entirly to many people on one lake!
02-25-2011, 08:00 PM
ditchsnake

Problem with loc tite

Quote:

Originally Posted by jsandy

one word. LOCTITE! a little of there blue compound on the threads of the bolts and i promise they wont get loose.

It isn't a problem with the set screws backing out(which loctite fixes). Most set screws are pointed on the set end which actually digs into the tower tubing. It takes a while for them to do this. Constant retightning, at least for a while.
02-26-2011, 06:53 PM
drc007

Quote:

Originally Posted by stinky_1

I wish I could find the pics of my father in laws 85 sunsport with his tower on it. Its this style in this link

http://www.bigairwaketowers.com/towers/torrent/

I think he paid a bit less than that, but not much. I like that it folds pretty flat. And it is very very similar to the standard tower found on the supras for a long time. It may not follow the blocky windows of the older sunsports, but it does make it looks a lot newer.

I just cant decide if I should go for black or brushed.

This is the exact one i am looking at for my 86 supra..
02-26-2011, 06:54 PM
BigCity444

Quote:

Originally Posted by vvfdfirefighter

How solid is that tower?

Very. Many have approached me at the pump and docks with the same question. I barefoot from it! It's quiet when when in use and not. It does tear down easy when not in use so it has to be tightened before you go and use it.

I have one that usually loosens up but the others stay tight.

Mikey, thanks as well. It is a MT2.

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