Baller jpattigr Posted March 27, 2014 Baller Posted March 27, 2014 Pretty sure the "Buyer's Guide" is paid Ads now.....
Baller_ Wish Posted March 27, 2014 Baller_ Posted March 27, 2014 Hasn't really been informative since the 90s. Besides, you get honest opinions..most of the time... right here on BOS and a whole lot sooner. Much better source for getting to know the ins and outs of a boat of any year.
Baller rodltg2 Posted March 28, 2014 Baller Posted March 28, 2014 Maybe it wasn't finished in time for mag
Baller Fine409 Posted March 28, 2014 Baller Posted March 28, 2014 @jpattigr - agreed...what happened to actually rating the wakes...giving 0-36mph times, etc! I notice the same things in snowmobile magazines that "review" the sleds. Nothing but good things to say about each model. The funny thing is that when the next year models come out, then they actually start stating things they didn't like about the past models and how the newest one fixed those issues
Baller Edbrazil Posted March 28, 2014 Baller Posted March 28, 2014 Back when, some 20 years ago, I was "Chief of Testing" for the Mag. For several years. As the years went on, we got better and better at evaluating boats. Maybe 400 boats over the years that I drove for the skiing parts. And never chomped out a gate buoy, even with some really goofy boats, even a deckboat. Anyway, we got into assigning ratings. Such as "Tournament", "Training", etc. Meanwhile, the reviews that I wrote up got more and more edited to remove any negative things. The last year that I worked the Tests, I recall that we had boats that would start in gear or remain in gear when you moved the shift/throttle lever to neutral. We had an outboard boat from one of the big manufacturers that needed for you to continually turn the steering wheel just to go straight. Without a skier behind. And, that ended up getting a good rating in the Guide. We would see brand new boats that had problems, such as spray at shortline, and different with supposedly the same hull. I think that it was the 1994 Tests that was my last year. When the Guide came out, I expressed my objections to several of the ratings. And, that was the last year that I was invited to work the "tests". Moral of the story: these Guides now are just a bunch of advertising, and nothing like real tests. Maybe Horton needs to take up the challenge and do real tests?!?
Baller Stickman Posted March 28, 2014 Baller Posted March 28, 2014 Ed, I still have most of those Buying Guides from the late 80's up till around 2000. I really appreciated your evaluations, and looked forward to receiveing those issues back when ski boats were thoroughly reviewed. I could tell back then that words were chosen carefully, but if I read between the lines, I could understand what you were really saying. Thanks for your efforts.
Baller_ MISkier Posted March 28, 2014 Baller_ Posted March 28, 2014 @Stickman, I know what you mean. Older review: "The recreational skier with all-around watersports interests will love this boat" Translation: "I won't" Also, somewhere along the way, all boats suddenly had "low, buttery-soft wakes" - even those that didn't. The worst slalom equipment I own is between my ears.
Baller_ Jody_Seal Posted March 28, 2014 Baller_ Posted March 28, 2014 Real testing would mean buying the boats off the showroom and evaluating the end product. I have been involved with towboat testing over the years but like most here I too believe they now are no more than glorified photo shoots. Magazines are reliant upon add dollars and no way are they going to print anything that is negative nor put in any kind of rating system to show strengths and weakness from one product to the next. But of course if Horton wants to imbibe upon towboat testing I would be more then happy to lend my limited expertise to the cause!
Baller ForrestGump Posted March 28, 2014 Baller Posted March 28, 2014 I will assist with the BOS towboat tests. You need my ergonomics expertise in validating the plus and minus of where the manufacturers place beer holders. I mean cup holders.
Jdubs Posted March 28, 2014 Author Posted March 28, 2014 BOS Boat testing. I second that. Oh but wait - didn't Horton get a new Carbon Pro? Not sure you could get a real unbiased opinion. Even though I - just like most of you know that the Boat Buyer's Guide pretty much all pros and no cons... I still like going through it.
Baller swc5150 Posted March 28, 2014 Baller Posted March 28, 2014 I loved the buyers guide back in the 80's...page after page of new 3 event boats, and you could easily infer what the good ones were, like @MIskier pointed out.
Baller Dacon62 Posted March 29, 2014 Baller Posted March 29, 2014 @Edbrazil doing some REAL boat tests with @Horton on his lake. That is stuff I would take stock in!
Baller PatM Posted March 29, 2014 Baller Posted March 29, 2014 I found the best way to test how a boat skis is to ski in a tournament. That's how bought my last two boats and very happy with the choices.
Administrators Horton Posted March 29, 2014 Administrators Posted March 29, 2014 @Dacon62 trying to get banned? Connelly ★ Goode ★ HO Syndicate ★ KD Skis ★ MasterCraft ★ PerfSki Radar ★ Reflex ★ S Lines ★ Stokes ★ Baller Video Coaching System ★ Wake Lending Become a Supporting Member or make a One-time Donation
Baller 6balls Posted March 29, 2014 Baller Posted March 29, 2014 What about a thread with user comments about honest likes/dislikes? I really love both of my vehicles and my boat as overall packages...but if you asked me what I don't like I have answers. Sometimes this stuff is not apparent at purchase, but only after living with it for a bit. Could be a thread "What I love/don't love about my CC200". Post about the best features, and what could be improved or what it lacks that another brand might feature. There could be a thread for the latest offerings as well as a thread for the hulls that preceded them. I have a TSC1 Nautique with GT40 power. I could tell you right now the best aspects of this boat as well as where it comes up short...doesn't change the fact that I love it overall but I think this kind of thing is what prospective buyers would want to know.
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now