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lukeWhen it comes to buying a new ski boat, you have to do a lot more than kick the tires. You have to be in the know. An informed buyer is a smart buyer. Here at WATERSKI, we want to help you become that informed buyer, which is why we put together this tutorial of details you should pay attention to while shopping for your new ski boat or wakeboard boat. The areas we focus on are size, test drives, trailering, insurance, financing and a final checklist to complete the search for your ultimate water machine. Keep this boat buyers guide in mind as you navigate through our 2012 ski boat reviews, then use it as a reference guide when you’re hitting the dealerships. Trust us, we’re in this with you.
Tige Z3
SIZE MATTERS
At the beach during spring break, all the $5 T-shirts claim “one size fits all.” Well, this isn’t the beach, and it sure isn’t chump change you’re laying down for a new ski boat, so understanding how to pick the right size for you is the surest way to get the best bang for your buck.
This means you need to pay attention to the beam, which is the measured width of the boat at its widest point. Wider ski boats and wakeboarding boats can mean more interior space available, which means more friends can hop aboard. The interior space is also influenced by the hull and deck styling, so a larger beam does not necessarily mean more room. The affect on performance is much more difficult to measure as the beam changes.
The prime length for boats designed primarily for water skiing is about 20 feet or so, and a wider boat will often ride higher, thus displacing less water and providing a smaller wake. On the other side of the aisle, though, the ideal size for a wakeboarding boat tends to be in the 21- to 24-foot range, with at least a 100- to 102-inch beam.
The larger the boat’s surface area, the more weight required to displace water. Because of this, larger boats sometimes sacrifice performance and don’t always make a bigger or better wake.
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Great Article. Jeesh though, 50-80k with payments of $500-$700 a month. I wonder if any company will ever build a simple, affordable, direct drive, boat again, like the Malibu Sportster, Mastercraft Sportstar or Ski Nautique 176… I wonder if these boats just weren't profitable?
I don’t understand how Nigeria could have lost. That was a quick exit. I just believed that they had a pretty decent shot to do well in this years world cup. Maybe it was just bad luck. Maybe its time to jump on the Argentina bandwagon. Looks like Demichelis has already scored. Go Argentina. To turn around my day that was ruined by Nigeria, I have been listening to some funny jokes.. This was kinda funny: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N3j7uSbccSc
Awesome tips! This article was very thorough and really helpful! Thanks for this post!
Geez Waterski Magazine. At least try to do a better job of disguising your own gratuitous posts to your own articles, as someone that actually read the article. Other than one of them that shows posted 4 hours ago (at the time I write this at 9am CST 1/14/2012). The other two are showing posted 50 weeks and 103 weeks ago. A quick google search shows that these "readers" posted these comments to the same article Jan 20, 2010 (" – Awesome tips! This article was very thorough and really helpful! Thanks for this post!"). I'll be shocked to see you post this, but hey, I could be wrong. ——- Austin Lake LBJ Slalom Skier