Low Rider Boats

[TeamAllen]

I got an email from Larry Mann. It linked to a website where he is raising money to build a new prototype boat for surfing. I'm sure some of you got the same thing.

If you are a boating enthusiast, click here to see how a Low Rider Boat changes the the wake "at the flip of a switch".

http://www.lowriderboats.com/

[dogbert]

I got an email from Larry Mann. It linked to a website where he is raising money to build a new prototype boat for surfing. I'm sure some of you got the same thing.

If you are a boating enthusiast, click here to see how a Low Rider Boat changes the the wake "at the flip of a switch".

http://www.lowriderboats.com/

It's a pretty cool idea...makes me wonder if it could be adapted to work in my spray pockets. My trailer might need some adjustments...

[NICKYPOO]

Interesting. I wanna see it work. Larry is a pretty smart guy. I'm sure he'll make it work. I certainly like the concept.

[da.bell]

That is like adding a wedge to a boat from what I see but the wedge is the boat not a metal object.

Hum, wonder if Tige might be thinking about something like this. Could be an interesting idea...

[Jeffe]

I got the same email...

Is anyone going to donate some $$$ to him?

[TJRiver]

An very interesting idea, but he has got to get a full scale demo going to see how well it would actually works. Essentially, the vents in the hull would be acting much like the Malibu wedge when activated. My concern is that you have the water flowing along the entire length of the hull and are then asking that flow to "take a right" into the gate area and out the exits at the rear of the hull. Unlike a jet or jet ski, there will be no pump helping force the water into the system.

My guess is that the Malibu wedge sits well below the bottom of the boat in order to have access to water that has not been flowing along the bottom of the hull. Certanly in order to work at all, the hull design and rocker would have to made specifically for the system and this guy is talking about going out and spending $40K on a boat, presumably to cut up and install this system. Like the Tige TAPS, the hull design would have to be an integral part of the design.

Now, I love the "great American inventor" as much as the next guy, but he is asking for "charity" instead of raising money by getting investors....... Not in this economy brother..... I wish the guy best of luck though !!!

[dogbert]

Actually, I think the effect would be accentuated on a Convex V hull like what you find on most Tige boats, much like that curl you see coming up from the back of your boat. I do think it will require an adjustment to the swim platform because now the water will be exiting at a higher point on the transom. Not an issue on older Tige boats where the platform isn't a long as it is on the newer boats. I would like to see how the wake shapes up with the water taking different paths.

As for the Malibu wedge, I saw something scary this weekend. I ran into a friend, who's a local pro here on Lake Austin, and he was out with some friends of his on their Malibu. The two screws holding the foil to the drop-down mount came off on one side and bent the whole bracket to one side so badly that even when it was up, it was creating a problem. They were really lucky that it didn't do serious damage to the boat. I ended up helping to take what was left of it off so they could enjoy the rest of their day.

[lightning59]

Maybe he can hit up the Feds for some stimulus dollars.

[Jason B]

Yeah...not entirely sure I would have spent the money on a patent before I had a prototype of some sort--at aleast a cad/cam design with some hydrodynamic analysis or something (I'm not an engineer.)If it doesn't work at all, he just wasted that moneny and time for the patent.

I'm going to mail him a bag of coffee beans.

[Tequilasun]

All I can think is the gates to those things better be strong, and the closing method bullet proof. Can you imagine being on full plane and one of those things opening up? If it works like he imagines, wow is that a lawsuit waiting to happen!

[River Runner]

All I can think is the gates to those things better be strong, and the closing method bullet proof. Can you imagine being on full plane and one of those things opening up? If it works like he imagines, wow is that a lawsuit waiting to happen!

Better be wearing your seatbelt!!!!

[jleger98]

Yeah...not entirely sure I would have spent the money on a patent before I had a prototype of some sort--at aleast a cad/cam design with some hydrodynamic analysis or something (I'm not an engineer.)If it doesn't work at all, he just wasted that moneny and time for the patent.

I'm going to mail him a bag of coffee beans.

The smart thing about getting the patent is that if someone (aside from him, and he is a pretty smart guy) figures it out, he already owns the patent.

I agree though, its a really cool idea, but a really cool idea implemented badly can be FUBAR....I mean not that I would know or anything....

[Tanner]

Hell, go to Epic with it. They're like Mikey.... they'll try anythingggg!

[zad0030]

Wonder how it would effect turning...



And like tequila said, the gate and wing need to be rock solid while underway.