Boat guide buoys (foam)

[Tuney]

The course on our lake is open to the public and there is a number of inexperienced drivers so our boat guide buoys get slashed open when the boat gets pulled out of the course.

 

Ive tried google and been relatively unsuccessful... what are some places a guy can pick up foam boat guide buoys (or other type that can handle the odd prop slash)? I'm in Canada so that makes things slightly more difficult.

[mwetskier]

when i lived in maine we bought them here - http://www.easternmarine.com/5-x-11-bullet-nose-crabbing-float-yellow

[Edbrazil]

For starters, try: www.skiertoskier.com There are other alternatives, I think, such as Wallyskier. On skiertoskier, go to Misc Supplies.

[Edbrazil]

Hmmm...don't readily see that item at SkiertoSkier, but try contacting them. I know that they used to carry this item.

[GAJ0004]

Overton's sells the spongex foam buoys. I have been using the same set for six seasons in PA.

[lff]

This is the best place I've found yet:

http://www.reddenmarine.com/catalogsearch/result/?q=spongex

Last time I checked skiertoskier stopped carrying them and only have the inflatable plastic ones. I bought a few and they are ultra durable but at $14 per were too much.

 

 

[Edbrazil]

Atlantic&Gulf www.atagulf.com has them. Their item # is: FLTBT4O That's the 7" dia by 15" long orange Spongex buoy, for $7.44 each. Fishing supply place in the Miami, FL area. Good service, and they are somewhat familiar with selling products for waterski purposes. Phone is 800-327-6167. You need to rig a way to attach them. I used to use PVC endcaps with a hole drilled thru them, and stuffed in tight with some PVC cement.

[Deke]

Does anyone use this type of buoy on a semi-permanent floating course? Would the Spongex buoys need to be weighted in order to sit deep enough? My situation is the same as @Tuney but the course is floating.

[GAJ0004]

The course on my lake is an accufloat with the pipes and cables. They should work on a portable as long as the cable is tight.

[A_B]

We use the spongex bullet buoys on our Accufloat, for about 20 years, or whenever they came out. I can't remember the last time we bought any. We just replace gates and skier balls.

 

The key for proper floating is make sure your lines to the pipes are all pretty close to the same length, even skier and mid-course buoys. We have never needed bricks to weight them down.

 

[GAJ0004]

The key is to have the buoys float 6 feet above the cables and pipes. I use mason string on our course to make it idiot proof. If a tuber or jet skier goes through they buoys just break off protecting the course structure. I have magnets for perfect pass which are 2-3 feet below the surface. I measured my line wrong when I put them in this spring. The course had a bend in it for a week. I was able to tighten it up by shortenting the strings.

 

[Deke]

Are these the 5" x 11" or 7" x 14" Spongex's?

[Tuney]

thanks for the suggestion guys

[Johnbrad]

You can visit Aluminum Boat Guide to find the best aluminum boat with the best features for your boating needs.

[Ed_Obermeier]

Plenty of places to get the foam bullet buoys at what appear to be decent prices but what you'll likely find is that the shipping on them is the killer. I can get and sell the Polyform inflatable boat guides way lower price than I can the foam by the time you figure in the shipping, which I suspect is the same issue with Skier To Skier not handling them any more. Just a little FYI.

[gregy]

I just started using plastic bottle for boat guides when I had a course on a public lake. Mainly old radiator fluid bottles, but really what ever I could find, there free and plentiful.

[Ed_Obermeier]

Empty plastic 2 liter bottles work well for boat guides.

[Wish]

@Ed but do they actually last in the sun or do they split.

[BraceMaker]

easy to test... good enough for 3rd world sunlights.

 

Do you pour some old latex paint into the bottle and roll it around to color them up? or are they visible plain

[Ed_Obermeier]

I don't have my own permanent course site (unfortunately) so I can't say with any authority what kind of service life to expect. We used some green one's on a portable for awhile back in the day cause they were the right price. I doubt you'll get paint to stick to them but a couple of rings of colored duct tape might work?

[BraceMaker]

That's why I was thinking a bit of paint poured into the bottle then rolled around till it coated the inside.

 

If it chunked or peeled you could always pour more into it.

[gregy]

The bottles with some color seemed to last longer. We had radiator fluid bottles that lasted for years. Course was a home made floating course.