Supra 21v Removing Wake Plate

[zking]

I recently purchased a 2012 Supra 21v. I live on a lake that does not allow ballasts or wake plates. Can anyone tell me how to remove the wake plate from the boat? Also after I remove the ballasts will I have to do something to stop water from rushing into my boat if the switch is accidentally flipped?

[Jetlink]

Not only is all of this confusing but I think it is rather stupid and possibly compromises safety. Don't take this as an attack against you but against whatever governing board is responsible for this. The wake plate is and can be used to decrease the wake size if used properly. As for the ballast, just don't fill them, deactivate the pumps and call it a day. If the pump is deactivated and cannot fill the bags, no problem there. Just placard the pumps as INOP and call it a day.

[zking]

Not only is all of this confusing but I think it is rather stupid and possibly compromises safety. Don't take this as an attack against you but against whatever governing board is responsible for this. The wake plate is and can be used to decrease the wake size if used properly. As for the ballast, just don't fill them, deactivate the pumps and call it a day. If the pump is deactivated and cannot fill the bags, no problem there. Just placard the pumps as INOP and call it a day.

Oh trust me I realize how ridiculous it is. The governing board on my lake is absolutely insane. Having said that, I have to remove it or they won't let me put the boat on the lake.

[CJD]

A work around...just trail the hoses into the bilge and put your water there. You'll have the cleanest bilge on the lake!

Do you have a pic of your particular wake plate? It will either have screws to remove, which will have holes you need to fill...or it may have a hinge pin that can be straightened and removed easily, without having to seal anything.

[silvtongdvl]

A wake plate can only make the wake smaller.

Surf tabs can make the wake bigger.

Sounds like you need a pontoon.

[SquamInboards]

Just a thought on removing the wake plate: I actually tried removing mine just as an experiment a few years ago, but mine is an older style ('89) with just manual adjustments. HOWEVER, the boat performed POORLY over about 25 mph(?) without the plate, it porpoised like crazy. So... the plate is actually an integral part of the design of the hull, in that it is required for the boat to drive normally above a certain speed. Side note, the wake was WAS a little bigger at lower speeds - which was exactly what we thought might happen - but it was nowhere near worth the tradeoff of terrible handling at high speed.

Ballast, on the other hand, it depends how the rule is written... as others have said, disabling the pumps would be easy, but is it enough to satisfy the rule?


tl/dr: You might just have a reason to keep the wake plate, or petition for an exception, if it's going to affect your boat's normal performance. Don't unbolt it just yet!

[Swamplandkarl]

It is a TRIM plate and without it you will have a difficult time and your boat will perform horribly, so they don't allow outboards with trim?

[docdrs]

It is more of a trim tab than a wake plate, if you remove it ,the boat will porpoise at higher speeds and be dangerous. There is a ballast pump fuse your could pop so the system is deactivated

[SquamInboards]

It is a TRIM plate and without it you will have a difficult time and your boat will perform horribly

It is more of a trim tab than a wake plate, if you remove it ,the boat will porpoise at higher speeds and be dangerous.

All of the above. Like I said, I actually TRIED it and confirmed how bad an idea it is. Lots of boats have trim tabs... very different from something like the Malibu Wedge.

[Mischief IV]

Where is this lake with the crazy governing board?