2007 20V wakeboard setup

[g-man]

My 20V is new to me this year and I have questions about setup for wakebording. With the taps and all I think it's so versitile I'm having trouble getting dialed. I had the taps at 7 or 8 this weekend with no additional wieght except 5 adults. The observers side was curling over and washing out. We tried a setting of about 6 and it still seemed inconsistent. I also had to bring the line in to ~55 ft to make clearing wake to wake manageable for intermediate riders. It was a little breezy Saturday so it was difficult to really evaluate how good the wake can be.

What is your favorite set-up for the wakeboard and what length are you riding at for a 20V?

[dogbert]

Two suggestions, put a couple of your adults up front in the bow and make sure you balance the boat (side-to-side) from a weight perspective.

Then use TAPS to adjust the wake so that it just begins to washout behind where the rider would cross the wake.

[g-man]

yeah i'm usually pretty good about balancing side to side, but didn't try front to back. Do you have experience with the 20V's and a taps starting point?

[dogbert]

Start at 4 and work your way up or down

[Jason B]

If I have all my adults in the far back in my 20V the wake gets washy. I try to keep everyone as centered in the boat as is comfy. Mine is also very sensitive to l/r balance, be sure it's as even as possible side to side.
I ussually have Taps 2-4 ish and I took out 1 section of line--sorry, nt much help since I don't remember the length of the rope.

[g-man]

Thanks 4 the tips.

Next outing I might try W-2-W toeside and healside for each taps point and just go through the whole set-up from 1-8. See what happens.

[dogbert]

Actually, you can just tell by looking at the wake. We're always adjusting it depending on rope length and boat occupants.

[wakeOC07]

g man- in this little boat i have found that the more weight in the front and center of the boat, it is very, very sensitive with side to side weight! buy 260lb of lead and have in on the floor against the back bench and slide it where needed.if you put weight only in front you lengthen the wake at slower speeds.

all in my boat= 07 20v

for my wife, she rides at 22mph, 55 feet, taps at 3.5 and about 500lbs in the front
i ride at 22mph, 70 ft, taps on the front of the 4, kinda like 3.75 =fully loaded boat

my buddy rides at 24.4 - 25mph, 85ft, taps at 3.5 =fully loaded down boat

in my 20v i have a custom 800lbs sac in the front and 800lbs in the rear + 1000lbs of lead spread out + 2-5 people and a 10.5 pitch prop!

[helmut]

Lets see that wake. I am between a 20v that will fit in the garage and a 22v that will not. I have heard on this board some negative stuff about the 20v and the wake etc which had me thinking if I have to stay in that range I may have to look at another brand. Thanks guys.

[Waterski-Rebel]

helmut - I am a waterskier, and just learning how to wakeboard, so my vote probably doesn't count. But I think the 20V has a great slalom wake, and have been told by some wakeboarder friends, my wakeboard wake w/ TAPS at 8 the wakeboard wake is amazing. This is without a ballast and 3 adults + 3 small kids in the boat.

I love the fact I can put the boat into my garage, and work on it whenever I feel like. This is saving me $100 a month for storage, and also gives me the freedom to have the boat here when I want it here.

There is enough room for 2 families (4 adults/5 kids) to spend the whole day on without beaching. Another plus.

The larger boats are larger, give you more room, weigh more (fuel economy while driving and towing goes down), and they probably give you a larger wake. For us, the smaller boat is better, and serves all of our needs. We feel our boat is (almost) perfect for us. It would be perfect if the bow drained into the bilge, and the back hatches opened up without having to open the engine cover first.

[g-man]

I'll work on the balance and maybe cooler placement...

Here are pics from last weekend of the surf wake (no ballast) and a beginer WB rider at 19.5mph with Taps at ~6. Seemed a bit small and wide. At my speed (21-22mph and eight) the wake was curling over on the observers side.

Was able to surf without any ballast no problem. Mostly I'm into the WB though. We'll try to adjust the wake on the fly with the taps as decribed in this thread. I just thought "8" must be the right setting. Trying to go big. Need to think quality not quantity...

Coming from a relatively small but nice wake of a 87 prostar.

[dogbert]

I'll work on the balance and maybe cooler placement...

Here are pics from last weekend of the surf wake (no ballast) and a beginer WB rider at 19.5mph with Taps at ~6. Seemed a bit small and wide. At my speed (21-22mph and eight) the wake was curling over on the observers side.

Was able to surf without any ballast no problem. Mostly I'm into the WB though. We'll try to adjust the wake on the fly with the taps as decribed in this thread. I just thought "8" must be the right setting. Trying to go big. Need to think quality not quantity...

Coming from a relatively small but nice wake of a 87 prostar.

Good job cleaning up the wake!

Ok, so you got the quality part down, now let's work on your quantity. The thing you have to keep in mind is that your Tige's hull is like a giant rocker and that TAPS merely adjusts the attitude of that rocker. So, if you start weighing down the front, it forces the front part of the hull and the deepest part of the rocker (naturally) deeper in the water. This creates a longer wake. If you start weighing down the rear, it again forces your hull deeper in the water, but it's the rear (and not the rocker). Because a shorter part of the hull is in the water, the wake is shorter and taller/steeper, which generally will cause it to fall over at wakeboard speeds. It will also limit the ability of TAPS to allow you to adjust the angle of the rocker in the water because you have to have a larger surface area to overcome the weight.

Your 20v is at a slight disadvantage because it's bow is shorter anyway (kinda snub-nosed). So, you want to start adding weight up front and then start balancing it beyond a certain point in the back. On your boat, it's a 60/40 (front/back) that will probably work the best. With that weight distribution, you give your TAPS system the most impact on the shape of your wake.

V-Drives are naturally back-heavy boats. Direct Drives have a more even distribution. That's why you'll generally see the weight distribution recommendation for them be 50/50.

That said, you've got a great boat and with just a little knowledge about how your hull actually works in the water, you'll be able to experiment and find that "just right" weighting for you and your riders. A lot of this depends on who's in the boat, so be prepared to ask people to move around. If they are riders, they will appreciate this.

My son started competing last year and he's always whining about how the competition boats never seem to be set up quite like the way I set up our boat. I wonder how many drivers actually understand the dynamics of hull design.

[Guest]

Thanks for the input and lessons since we are going thru thhe same learnin curve with adjusting the wake and TAPS.

As advertised econom is great. With fuel at Marina's at $4.32 a gallon we are able to play with out taking out a new loan.

[wakeOC07]

Ill post pics of my wake and surf wake saturday night after riding on saturday. Ill show pics of a 20v with 3000# in it. I love my new prop, with a 260# man (my buddy) riding, he pops out the second i hit it, its so cool!

[xpjim1]

Ill post pics of my wake and surf wake saturday night after riding on saturday. Ill show pics of a 20v with 3000# in it. I love my new prop, with a 260# man (my buddy) riding, he pops out the second i hit it, its so cool!

Looking forward to the pics. I want to see the low rider slammed with 3000#