FIRST RUN AFTER MODS

[highflyn]

LOOKS SWEET Wakejunky. Now im even more motivated to add a bit of weight to the SX.
Can't wait for the pic's of the wake.
Do any of you SX owners have experince weighting your boat down? I'm thinking 200-250 in the bow and about 500 in the trunk. A friendd of a friend has a couple fat buddy's, couple side sacks, and a tube that he thinks is 600lbs. He has offered to let me borrow them to find out what works best.
Sounds like a tough day on the lake ...
T

[toyotafreak]

You should figure on adding equal weight to the walkway and the trunk or v-drive lockers. That's a good starting point.

A couple fat buddies maxed out in the v-drive lockers will only need a little weight in the bow, since there's not much weight there. I've run with a pair in the back and none in the front and it's okay.

TOTALLY take your friend up on his offer. Go check things out, and try keeping dome notes for us. Maybe even some pics of the wake(s).

If you're not sure what the bags are, bring a tape and measure them. Measure empty, with length seam-to-seam, then measure width flat - we can turn a flat measurement into an accurate diameter by doubling then dividing by pi.

If you want to get a head start, download my spreadsheet and try some various positions. You could even print the sheet and take it to the lake with you to enter some notes about wake shape or bow rise, or whatever.

Best place to start is 50/50 in the v-drive.

[Bitzco]

Here's a post of mine on this topic from right after I bought my boat.

By the way. The guy I bought it from had owned an X-22 prior to this SX and was only selling the SX because he has started a wakeboarding school here in Utah. He is sponsored by Hyperlite, Supra, and Marine Products and they told him he needed to get a new Supra. He's doin it but sounded pretty bummed about losing out on reliability, gas mileage and storage by making the switch. The guy is a pro freestyle snow skier and knows a few things about inverts. I figure if the Toyota boats were good enough for him at  his skill level, they are well beyond what I need at my skill level. His setup by the way was to fill the factory ballast (about 700#, add 200# of lead in the bow, fill the trunk with two or three of those 5 gallon blue water jugs and drop a fat sack in the cockpit. He said this much weight for him along with 8 passengers is a primo setup in the SX.

That post was actually a little premature because once I got them all out of the trunk, there were actually 5 7-gallon blue jugs in the trunk. With that setup, the ex-owner and crew were doing some extreme riding (at least by his report and I have no reason to doubt him based on the fact that he does inverts with twists and crap on skis with no water below). Anyway, there's another two cents for ya.

[highflyn]

I will be sure to pass on any and all info as soon as I can get on the lake. No holding your breath though. Winter just showed up here in Seattle and there is no sign of it leaving in the near future.
So im after a 50/50 weight distrubution? 
I'v learned how do avoid it in the SX, but when other folks are driving the boat with the  ballast  full it seems pretty easy to take water over the bow when crossing over it's wake at an idle. It would seem to me that if I throw 400-500 in the trunk and the same in the bow it would be dangerously easy to turn my boat into a submarine.
Terry

[festivus]

I think 50/50 isn't what is being recommended, for the exact reason you have given.  You'll want about 1/3 to 1/2 in the bow that you have in the rear.  You can always tweak it out by repostioning rides on any given day.

[phenom_1819]

No powerturning Terry!!

50/50 is what Ski Masters recommends too. I usually end up more like 65/35 because I'm lazy. The 50/50 will give a steeper wake, while the 65/35 will give a rampy wake.? It's all preference.? I think the main reasoning that many have recommended more weight up front is to keep speed more consistent.? Now I can slam it in the rear cuz I'll have Perfect Pass the next time I'm out. so consistency won't matter.

[2000epic]

this months' Wakeboarder Magazine recomends 60/40

[phenom_1819]

60/40's what's recomended in most boats -- ours has been recommended at 50/50 because of the stepped hull in the rear.? Remember too, with a bag in the trunk, it's as if the weight is halfway over the transom.? But if the shoe fits...

[highflyn]

 Tell you what, i'll try 50/50, 40/60, 35/65, and what the heck ill bring the surf board and throw all of it in the back right just to see how big the wake will get. I'll be sure to take some photos and let you know what worked best.
T

[toyotafreak]

Yeah, no power turning. This is what  learned the hard way: when your rider falls, cut thr throttle to idle and turn to the left about 45 degrees. Look back to ensure your rider's kewl. By the time you've slowed to idle speed, your wake will have disappeared. Now, at idle, crank a tight right turn until you're pointed at the rider. Idel up to him, keeping him on your side of the boat.

Don't forget that I'm a v-drive guy recommending 50/50. Don't get confused by them d-drive guys' advice on how to weight a d-drive. With much lighter weights, it doesn't matter so much, but if I kept my 750 in the trunk and put only a 300 fat buddy in the walkway, both bow rise and speed control would be poor at best.

Your boat's prior owner loaded up with a lot of people, so that changes everything. Most of the time when I'm heavy, it's because of ballast, not people. You'd definitely be having guys sitting in the bow if 2/3 of your ballast was in the rear.

Remember that the whole 60/40 thing is a general guideline, and there's no way that boats with such large CG differences as between the X22 and SX should both be given the same ballast recipe.

ON THAT NOTE....I need to add the various stock ballast options to the ballast calculator. Anybody know where that TOYOTA balaast operator manual's at?

[Bitzco]

Its in the "how to" section under "tower and ballast owners manual."

[toyotafreak]

Thanks dude.