Another weighting question...

[Okie Boarder]

We've been experimenting with surfing a little this year using a friend's board and either people weight to list the boat or borrowed bags. We may try to go out again in a couple weeks and I wanted to try something. Here is the current set up for weight (typically for wakeboarding)

400# bag in ski locker in back
400# bag under rear seat
350# bag down in front bilge belly (basically right under the cooler)
250# bag on the floor between engine cover and cooler

Note: These all only fill to approximately 90% full.

A friend has 3 350# bags that we may try using next time out.

My thought is 2 of them in back next to the engine and one up in the bow all on the surf side. Thoughts?

This would definitely be a LOT of weight. We tried two of the bags before like I described and moved the 250# to the bow seating area on the surf side and the wave seemed pretty good. Just thought it might be interesting to experiment with just a bit more weight.

[87SunSportMikeyD]

Basically I would start adding those sacs to the rear until you feel like the wave is too 'steep' and you have to keep your foot on the brakes (ie lean back all the time) to stay off the platform. That is when to add bow weight.

Personally I think it's kinda important to keep the bow weight to one side. This make the bow list as well, which makes the deep vee 'keel' of the hull cut through the water at a different angle.

More surf pics!

[Okie Boarder]

I may try two 350's in the back next to the engine or up onto the rear seat and see what it's like and take a few pictures. Then, maybe I'll try a third, but I'm pretty nervous about that. The last time with the two in back and moving the 250 to the bow, the back end of the boat just about had water coming OVER the rub rail and the bow was up pretty high. Seems like I want to get the bow down with more weight up there, no?

Basically it was riding like this except the nose was up in the air more.

[/QUOTE]

[87SunSportMikeyD]

THAT is NOT your boat, buddy.

Jk Jk I dunno some people swear by no weight in the bow, but I think our unique hull shape (super deep vee) makes a difference in how to weight it.

Basically moving weight rear to front is a tradeoff between wave height and pocket length. If you get too much bow weight, the size takes a big drop off.

Wake plate up?

[Okie Boarder]

Yeah, definitely not my boat, but I'm sitting almost that low in the water in the back but way higher in the front.

I have the turnbuckle style plate and it is set a little above horizontal.

[jet]

Keep ALL weight center and to the right. If your rear locker weight and rear seat weight go all the way from one side to the other..stop! That off sets the other side so Its a waist of weight. All weight has to be center and right or center and left. Big mistake a lot of people make. try and get as much weight to the side and rear. i would start out with a 650 rt side of engine and then start stacking sacs on top of the rear seat and over the rear locker if possible until TERRIFIED that the boat will roll over. That makes a big wake. LMAO

you have to start getting close to the 1500 lb and up to start seeing a big wake. Good luck and take pic's. Jet

[87SunSportMikeyD]

Sorry JET I disagree with ya there... Rear weight across the back makes the overall wave size much bigger than just weighting the surf side. The engine provides the weight in a Vdrive.

I have stacked 1600lb all surf side and the wave had a nice curl but it was not as large overall as when the rear is weighted across both sides AND the surf side was weighted. You can have TOO much weight on the non-surf side for sure.

Just my IMHO though, I dont think there is a right or wrong here really.,...

[jet]

Gotcha..I can picture that in my mind..but I have only seen it add white wash to the wave though in the boats I have been in.

[Okie Boarder]

Thanks for the feedback. I'll try to get some pictures and see how it goes. Ideally, I'd like to keep the weight set up across the back in the ski locker and under the rear seat, as well as the bags up front in the middle that are normally there for wakeboarding, then add from there.

[Okie Boarder]

I'm going to try two things and see what works better.

1. Have all the normal wakeboarding bags full (Ski Locker, Rear Seat, Bilge Belly up front and Bag on Floor above bilge belly). Then fill all three of my friends bags. Two bags will go next to the engine and the third will go up in the bow. That puts 1050# all on the surf side, 600# up front in the center and about 700# in the rear across the whole width.

2. Drain the Ski Locker and Rear Seat bags, but leave everything else the same as above. I might even try putting all three bags next to the engine if it seems like I have too much front weight.

I'm interested to see how it goes. Here's a couple pictures with option 1 and two of the bags next to the engine.