can i wakeboard or anything with my boat (also in rookie are

[mylespe]

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hey,
i am the proud 17 year old owner of a Fletcher Arrowsprint 13ft speedboat. I have spent a year and ridiculous amounts of my money (i havent been able to buy cds even....beer just about fits the budget tho [what age laws?]). i digress sorry

i have a two-stroke 25hp Mariner and she got up to 43.5k/h (GPS) on the Thames...slightly breaking the 8k/h speedlimit. She is a deep-V - do a search on google there are loadsa pictures of her sisters!

Question is will wakeboarding/skiing be feasible once i get (damm expensive) a ski pole on the boat? I can get more top end speed by taking the battery, amp, subs (no really!) and better hole-shot and planing by getting a decent prop and trim tabs.

what speed do i need? what kinda height should thte line be? i just want to know if this boat will work with watersports before i buy any boards etc.

she is rated up to a 40hp and i know skiing is possible with that on. deal is she is a ski not a wakeboarding boat - will wake be ok but i figure wakeboards are easier to pop up,

christ so many questions - sorry im ridiculously proud of my boat. better than the car i coulda had.....

myles

[Tower_boy]

Hey,

First off, the boat is a little short and skinny in the beam - but it will do. i started behind a 14ft dory so don't worry about it too much.

You are really going to have to lose the engine, its just not powerful enough! you could just about wakebaord behind it but you'll have to (excuse the term) rag the t*ts off it. and lose the whole interior!

Try and pick up an old 40 hp, or even better 50hp (its over the limit but who gives one! lol, its not exactly going to rip the transom off) (at least i hope not :lol: )

The priority... as with all boats is obviously the stereo - don't even dream of kicking that baby out - loose seats before you sacrifice it! so long as you have sufficiant battery power (maybe think about a higher rating alternator and a 2nd battery) its all good. 8)

I know it will cost you hard money.. but you need that bigger engine, otherwise the boat just won't be able to do the job. try part exing your 25hp in for a bigger one - then just fit it yourself, its pretty simple, steering cable, throttle and electrics (but for your budget i'm guessing that a pull start will be more in sight so forget the electrics) however, it would help hugly if you could get an engine with power trim... that would make a huge difference!

Trim tabs you don't need to worry about - they will cost you as much as the boat, its not worth it :wink: but hydroplanes are for sure, you bolt them onto the lower block on the outboard and they will help with getting out of the hole and keeping the bow down (especially with a bigger engine)
total cost for them - about 15 quid

Also look into getting a higher pitch prop on the new engine, it will mean you lose top end speed (like 2mph) but gain in the initial pull, this is critical if you are pulling boarders and skiers with such low power. you can pick a second hander up for like £80... but this is a neccesity.

With the above setup, you can wakeboard and ski, don't expect a huge wake but it will do, so long as your techinique is right. under no circumstances - whatever anyone says should you load the boat with a stack of ballast to increase the wake, it'll sink! if you need a bigger wake, do not put more then 300lbs and 2 people in it. otherwise your engine will be way too stressed and the boat won't plane. (it won't even move with the 25hp)

Speed should be about 19mph with your boat (but anywhere between 18-23 is pretty normal).

for wakeboarding get the line up high - consider a wakeboard pole, but don't go with a full 7ft (std height) because the boat will get pulled over, its not designed for that kind of pull - you'll need to either build one yourself (no more then 5ft MAX!) or modify one (cost you £295 inc delivery and £3 for a hacksaw blade!)

for skiing a low down pull is fine, hook up a ski bridal (7 quid) on the two rear d rings (either side of the engine) and tow from there.


I really hope you have a good time with the boat, it would be awesome to see some photos of her, for a first time boat its pretty impressive.
Now go buy some boards and skis!!! 8)

Later

Mike

[mylespe]

hey,

as regards the other post - she didnt float when i got her! well leaked like a sieve. i had been rowing past it (used to row) for years looking at it going thats a shame it got no cover has potential for years went and asked and THAT DAY they were taking her to the dump! lucked out.

will shove up some pics later - half way thru on interior have my cupholders and cooler and seats in have to finish off the carbon fibre trim throughout but its ace.

dont tell me about installing remotes...bunked a whole day off school last friday to get them in ready for a party that night on the river (turn up in style). took me 9 hours and 500 quid in parts. im still shuddering at the thought of the overdraft! the engine was tiller steering and everything needed an adaptor. one lousy bit of metal cost me 50 hours work. my dad (who has had boats all his life) told me when i started, 'this will be a hole in the water in which to throw money. Damm he was right but i love it!

the trim tabs i found are called Smart Tabs - get em in the states thru my sister who is a pro sailor out there so gets discounts. they are automatic and only 50 odd quid, everyone i have talked to reckons they are better than hydrofoils as a) no hole in your cav plate b) they stop giving lift eventually so you dont end up with too much lift and bow ploughing. check em out Nauticus Smart Tabs. seemed impressive but any second opinions are welcome! http://www.nauticusinc.com/index_1024.html

as regards prop pitch, engine trim etc my prop is a piece of **** - dented and bent. need to replace asap incase it ****s up engine as might no longer be balanced.

from what you guys have said i will stall on the 'performace' stuff i.e. the tabs or hydrofoil, raising my transom so engine is at right height (way too low at moment) thats a big project until everything is done.

am painting her once my As exams are done - dark blue will look beautiful i hope. lots of prep work though....! making the sub enclosures tonight! am considering leaving the amp out for a bit until i can afford to add an alternator onto the engine.

for ringoing i probably can get away with setting the boat up with speed prop rather than power pitch or am i wrong...doesnt the inflatable just sit on top so no pull outa water problem ya know.

maybe for the moment will just shove a couple of those 20 dollar D ring towing eyes into the transom and wil come back to poles at a later date.

thanks,
myles

p.s her parents love me already...first get the parents on your side right! in fact they told her brother he should be 'more liek myles' ouch!! poor guy

[mylespe]

as regards the power trim...it sure would i was playing with the manual trim damm i wish i could do that on the move!

40hp is years away - she is getting used 5/6 times a week on the Thames as i live there so a 25 is best to ward off car-sized fuel bills!

eventually i plan to get my old 8 (off my avon - first boat but its not a REAL boat is it?!!) which has an alternator and set that up for river chugging and have a 40hp for real fun. problem is the 8hp has no through tube for the steering cable. more adaptor parts.....!!! the list goes on

how do i post a picture?

[Tower_boy]

The tabs lok rpetty good - they will be better then hydrofoils for sure - I thought you were looking at like 500 dollar bennet tabs!

Even though tubes sit ontop of the water they still drag like anything.... kneeboarding would be the best thing by far. you can pick a ne wone up for like 60 quid

Good luck, keep us posted.

Mike

p.s uplaod the photos at photos.wakeboard.com then just link to them