So you can cruise all day on 20 gallons with an engine that burns 12-15 gallons an hour at cruising rpm?  At 1000 rpm, you'll burn 20 gallons in 8 hours...

Please share your secrets.  I'd love to know how to save some gas on my twin 454 setup that burns 35 gph if I go easy on it.

Horsefeathers.

I learned to ski behind a 16' california river boat with a 250 hp outboard.

That thing would rip your arms out of the sockets. There was no waiting to get on plane.

An I/o will allow you to trim up and get into shallow areas a little better.  More maintenance though



Stay away from a outboard for your needs.   A swim platform with a hidden prop is a godsend for a young family.  

You don't need a 100k mastercraft to have fun.   A crownline or chaparral will do just fine and meet your budget

Outboards typically plane fastrr than inboards and much faster than I/O's.  They usually are most efficient as well.  The downside is the placement of the outboards if you want to ski, tow, or use the swim platform.  Also, they are probably the most expensive per horespower.

Mastercraft and Nautique are great boats, but aren't cheap. Ski/wake boats also drink lots of fuel. Plan accordingly. 

This! x87,000!

Sounds like a driver problem, not a boat problem.

TC

It goes both ways.  Where I ski, a small handful of fishermen park right in the middle of the one good line that people have been skiing for the past 30 years in my memory.  There's a whole other 80% of the lake where nobody ever skis and is perfectly fine for fishing.  

I go out of my way to be courteous for fishermen and I never create wakes unless I'm pulling a rider but if they are going to strategically place themselves to give me no good place to go, then I guess we'll just have to suffer each other.

Believe it or not, most skiers just want to mind their own business and be left alone as well.  It is what it is, both activities are equally valid and both take up space and you can either choose to avoid each other or not.

And for the record, Jet Skis are the second hand smoke of the water.  

Where are you getting that data?  That's going to change a ton depending on if it's a 454MPI or 7.4 MPI (different HP ratings) , weight of the boat, shape of the hull, drive gear ratio, drive type.......ect, ect.

Now...you know that most people don't just cruise at 30mph all day...right? That would be pretty damn boring.  They stop, swim, pull tubes, stop, pull wakeboards, stop swim some more....ect.  Total engine on time....probably 3 hours during a trip to the lake.  I'm really surprised by the efficiently of the setup...I'm sure the dual-prop Bravo III has something to do with it.....but yes, I go through anywhere from 15-20 gallons per day tubing, boarding, hanging out all day.   If I drove WOT all day....yes, it would guzzle the fuel.  The boat holds 60 gallons of fuel, I'm usually a little over 1/4 tank after a full weekend of boating.

Point being....a bowrider with a fuel injector inboard/outboard is going to be much more efficient than a wakeboard boat every day of the week.  They are not set up for cruising efficiently, they are set up for plowing through the water and making the largest wake possible....you can't do that and be fuel efficient.

Ah I do plenty of Maintenance on my own boats, which is plural and other vehicles.  Sorry to burst your bubble.

For a "family" boat.....something like this...

2010 Cobalt 24ft Bowrider

is going to be a better use of money vs. something like this.....

2008 Mastercraft Wakeboard Boat

And the bowrider will have more room, handle rough chop better, be more fuel efficient, go faster, and hold it's value better than the wakeboarding boat.......

That is a sweet boat at a good price too!

WAT?

No way.

bahaha no they are not.  An 22 Ft Tige, or a MC, Nautique, Malibu with the standard v8(indmar raptor etc) puts out 400+ FT LBS of Torque they are made for the hole shot and for towing.  


The downsides of the inboard is
1: Cost,  A new boat will start around 70k and you can spend 200k depending on models and options.  But they keep their value

2:  There is a learning curve to drive an inboard.  Speed is maneuverability as they have a rudder.  You need to spend a few hours learning how to drive one as they do not have steering in reverse, they will "walk" to one side.  But once you get used to it it's awesome and you can do literally 360's in the lake.

3:  If it has a traditional ski boat profile, as most do profile boat then don't expect to go out on a rough day, everyone will get wet.  They traditionally ride pretty flat in the water, most models will have the option of trimming the boat out with a tab on the back of it, but its not like trim on an I/O.  To stay dry on a rough say you would be looking at one of the deep hulled inboards.  The Nautique G series, Tige RZX series, MC X25,30 etc, these are the most expensive boats and i don't know of one under 115k new.

4: They Draw, most 2ft plus at the prop.  And if you have ever priced out a new Acme prop they are 400+ bucks a wack and a bad ding on a fluke can make the boat vibrate.

5: They all have a top speed of around 42-46mph(depending on the prop) as they are geared towards towing, think of them as a water tractor.



All of that said, there is nothing like a true inboard for water sports and i personally wouldn't think twice

QFMFT!  We call them mosquitoes around here.  On busy days they'll follow the damn cabin cruisers just to jump the wake, cutting people off in the process. 

No argument on your last point, but I'm getting my data from boat-fuel-economy.com, which if anything is a little on the conservative side of fuel burn estimates.  A 454 usually is run at 3000-3300 for optimal cruise.  12.5-17.5 gph for a single engine.  At WOT, you're looking at 28.5 gph.  It doesn't matter what boat it's in, if it's set up correctly, that's what it burns at that rpm.  I guess it depends on what you're doing and your AO on how that works out for the day.  Generally I run about half an hour to get to somewhere we want to anchor.  If you're pulling a tube 2 minutes from the ramp, you can probably get by without burning much at all.

Never knew about that website.  It's spot the fuck on for my Mercruiser 5.0 MPI's.  10 gph per side at 3500 rpm.  They are in a Chaparral 280 Signature cabin cruiser.

Colbalts are great boats but you're out of your mind if you think they hold value better than a mastercraft or nautique. It's probably prety close but most bow riders depreciate faster than they burn fuel.

No.  Price out a tow boat, they hold there value like you wouldn't believe

LOL

the best ski boat? thats easy!!










your neighbor's.

Lol right....because most people can drop over 100k for a boat no problem.

When I was a water cop, any lake with JetSkiers almost always provided me with plenty of solid stops out on the water (with me riding my Wave Runner).

There was one local club that rode stand-ups that was actually really good at self-policing, though.  They also were very good about communicating with the Sheriff's Office if there were any real major issues on the lakes that we needed to take care of.

I've seen several $100,000+ wakeboarding boards on CL and boat sites selling for $50-65,000.....and they were 3-4 years old, with a ton of hours.

Sure they hold their value....nothing like losing $50k in 4 years....

what models?  How many hours?

You guys and some of the hate for inboard outboard boats..........

I think they are fine. Lord knows I've done a shit ton of skiing behind old bayliners.

Now granted, it doesn't look as awesome as that hundred-thousand-dollar wakesetter.

Best advice I can give you op is do some really hard thinking about what you really want. Do you foresee yourself beaching the boat very much? Do you plan on doing any amount of fishing in it at all? Will you run in shallow water?

Just about all of the inboard or V-drive boats are a huge pain in the ass to beach in my opinion. So what usually happens is they just stay out on the water all day long. And that's cool I guess, but sometimes it's fun to get out on the sand and hang out there.

Not to mention the cost of some of the higher-end Boats, Plus the fact that you have to swipe your credit card 3 times to fill it up......lol....

Unless you are just shiting money, I think buying a newer wakeboard or skiing boats is nuts. You can find them just a few years old for damn near a third to of half of the price of new.

I was down on the river last week, and I seen a couple of new boat and new truck setups sitting there. Did some quick math and realized that there was damn near 200 grand sitting in each one of those outfits.

If you have the means and desire go for it and don't look back. They are a lot of fun. Just plan on buying all of the fuel and beer yourself.

Honestly, if you have a chance to go out and rent a couple of boat types I would do that.

I'll never forget how excited I was the first time I rode in an inboard boat. When the day was over, between not being able to beach the damn thing, how fucking rough that thing rode when the wind came up, and the fuel usage, I can't say that I went home super impressed. Not that it wasn't great, it just wasn't all up I think they are cracked up to be. Pulled like a mofo though.

If you're chasing big waves, a V-drive and a ballast system is what you seek.

One thing I will agree with you guys that are fans of the inboards and the v drives o is the safety for the swimmers. You shouldn't have the motor running when those people back there anyways. I actually know a guy that lost his leg in a boating accident like that with a Stern Drive setup.. It was a very tragic situation. However, a little Common Sense goes a hell of a long ways in that department. It's sort of like loaded guns, don't Point them at your head and pull the trigger and you probably won't get shot. Well boats and propellers to me is the same idea.

If you're in mostly good water conditions, you never Beach it, you're never in shallow water, you want a wide and large boat to strictly pull wakeboarders and protop dog skiers around, then yes those types of boats are definitely what you want.

If you are looking for a boat that you can Beach, pull skiers, wakeboard (if your ok with not being as cool or tier 1 river god), go in the ocean, not lose your teeth fillings when you're out on a big lake in an afternoon in the wind comes up, and looking for the Swiss army knife of boats, I think an open bow sterndrive is the way to go.

I know that the sterndrive that I've spent the most time with burns about 15 maybe 20 gallons on a good long hard day. Where all the other guys are burning 40 to 50 gallons.

Find the ones that fit your needs the best and go have fun.

Believe me, I'm aware, I bought a used Mastercraft. Buy once, cry once.

I've got a 2006 Chaparral 210 SSI with 5.0 MPI Mercruiser and Mercury REV 4 Stainless prop.

50 gallons will last me almost the entire boating season.

My kids like to swim.

This.

Can get a kind of hybrid like the Sport Nautique that will also have a great ski wake if you want, but I would definitely look to something that can throw a wake when you want it. Start wake surfing and you might stop skiing when you realize it's easy, fun, and never hurts when you fall, but it gives you the option of a world class slalom wake if hitting the water at 30 mph is your thing.

Seriously though the Nautique line is the tits. Quality is top notch and you won't be constantly having to fix shit.

But yes, it comes at a premium. People have already mentioned but they hold their value like crazy. In fact, my dad bought one a few years ago 3 years used and sold it for more than he originally paid 18 months later.

I've been spending my days on the lake in this bad boy (I've replaced the missing letter since this picture):



Holds 8 people pretty comfortably, generally burns about 15 gallons a day (I don't know why people are saying 50?), has a great wakeboard wake, great ski wake, throws a great wake for surfing (I added additional ballast bags though), and has GPS cruise control for all of the above.

More importantly, it has practically no problems. I installed a second battery to make sure I don't get marooned, but other than that, I'm 180 hours in and have had to do nothing but oil changes and winterizing stuff.

You can buy solid, inboard tow boats for 20k and up all day long. Of course, if you have to have the latest and greatest, all digital, built in surf system, massive wake tractor you're going to spend some serious coin, but that's not required to have a GREAT quality boat that will last if you take care of it.

For the money I'd rather have a used Mastercraft, Nautique, Malibu or Sanger over any new I/O bowrider I could get for the same price. It's not even close.

Just go check out onlyinboards dot com to see what's out there. Agree on another posters recommendation to buy at the end of summer if you can, you'll save a ton of money as that's when a lot of people start dumping their boats to avoid storage fees and the like if they are moving onto some other boat or hobby for the next year.

Also, be really sure what you want to do with your boat before buying. If there is ANY chance you'll want to wake surf an inboard is your only option. Surfing behind and I/O is risking becoming a darwin award winner.

15 gallons on the lake in a Nautique is good. The 50 gallons was from my quote with a 22' Crownline SS, it was rather easy to do. Again stay away from inboard/outboards. They are the reason people say, " BOAT stands for break out another thousand". I've been there and I'm not going back. Inboard all the way for me.

LOL, Yamaha a twin engine jet ski, no thanks.

A Bennington with twin 250's.

10' and 2-300's

Ever been on one?

I'm sure you can have a ton of fun on one, probably pretty well built, but I prefer to stick with the trusty V8.

I did a similar thing two years ago.  Not wanting to break the bank, I went with something comparatively old. Ended up with a 04 tige 21i.  Yes it's a direct drive and not a v drive. But it is in great condition and runs like a top

As mentioned, it does drink gas. But that's what you get with a tow boat.

Worth every penny for me and the kids. My friends enjoy it too.  

Other than the normal maintenance it has been trouble free!

I just looked at a new Malibu last week...$120,000!

very good choice

My ski boat. Purchased it a few months ago. 2001 Prostar 190 with the 330hp LT1 motor. 319 hours stored in a boat house on a lift the entire time. Hull and vinyl look new. In fact I am always getti g compliments on it.

What about an older 18'ish outboard checkmate for a family of 4 with two little kids tubing and goofing around?

Nice. This thread is going nowhere since the OP has gone MIA.

The most stable one that holds a decent speed at the rental company.

Surprised that after all the recommendations made prior to this post, no one said Hydrodyne...

Now a days, Dyna Ski is the name for a similar hull.

Depending on model and configuration, anywhere from a single 75 to triple 350's are possible.  Pull 1 to 30 skiers at a time.  Maneuver like a F-16.

Yes, they are a joke. Have you been in a real boat?

Nice boat

Tige' make nice ski boats.  

Ski nautique owner here.....

I had a Mastercraft when I was much younger.  Low hours, like new, bought it for $10,000.  If I were getting a boat for my family I'd get a boat that is comfortable for size family you have.  Unless you're really into skiing and having the ultimate ski boat, I'd get a boat that's bit enough for everyone to be comforatable on and powerful enough to pull a skier up easily and quickly.  Whether you have the lowest wake or ability to pull up multiple skiers at once wouldn't be a concern if I were in your situation.