hemlock

In Canada, we just check for the state of the water. Liquid is good.

Nice to see a rare skier with left foot forward and left palm up. I ski that way too. :)

I sometimes think about selling my 03' SSLxi, you know... for the new boat smell, shiny new trailer etc. etc. Then I slap myself.

To the OP, forget about wakes. The color, or comfort features, or drive throttle, or cup holder will out weigh what the wake will actually give you pleasure in. Any direct drive boat you buy will have decent wakes. Look for other stuff.

From the user manual, it would appear you need to increase Ball 3 settings. Ball One – This setting primarily controls the Ball One Time. In the event your ball one times are consistently on the slow side, try moving this value higher by about 5 points each time until your Ball One Times are nicely balanced. (The factory setting is about 8.) Ball Three – This setting controls the speed from Ball One to Ball Three. In the event your Ball Three Times are consistently on the slow side, try adjusting higher or if fast set lower. (The factory setting ranges from 50-64) Ball Four to Exit – This setting controls the speed to exit. Typically most boats can start to back off as less rpm is required in this section. The higher the value, the faster the time in the final section of course. (The factory value ranges from 23 to 35) Ex: If you see consistently fast times in the final part of the course, you can lower this value and more rpm will be taken away. Or would doing that bring in surging half way through the course?

+1 on the outer bunks. I used the inner bunks for my 03' Sunsetter, but from your pic I think my bunks aren't as close as the ones in your pic. Must be a different hull design.

Great video, I wish there were more walkthroughs like that for all models and manufacturers. And don't show me a skier carving around a buoy. Show me where the oil filter is. :) I love that Mastercraft is keeping the teak swim grid. I'm not a fan of touch screens. Even in my truck or car I don't like it. I prefer a dial joystick knob to navigate the "info center". (I find my eyes are less focused on what my finger is pushing when I use the dial knob) Thus, more focus towards the windshield overall. JMO. Fantastic boat. Can't wait to hear how the new tracking works out. Looks awesome.

The settings are probably fine at 32 mph. I believe these are the official tolerances.

Take pride in opening the hatch more. You have a sweet engine. Gaze at it for a few seconds, then close.

I would save up and go straight to stargazer. That way, you aren't mixing older servo's with newer stargazer modules, and cabling that has been installed and ripped out. A new system is $1389 US. The upgrade from an older system is $699 which really only includes the module and display. (Add zbox and you are looking at $1629 US) Ask for early Christmas present if funds are low. :#

Yeah, I know. :) It's been broken for years, but thought I would finally take a stab at trying to fix it. I'm hoping the sensor might be something I can remove from underneath and replace, but not making any bets about it.

Anyone with an early 2000 Malibu that had issues with the lake water temp not showing correct temperatures? My 2003 SunsetterLXI is showing the lake temp in the digital display as around 100 to 150 F. Obviously not correct. Could this be the sensor? I have a paddlewheel and a depth sensor, but then I have this weird thing, (which I think is the water temp sensor). I don't believe my water temp sensor is in the paddlewheel like other boats, but not 100% sure. Sorry for the crappy dark picture. This is just to the bow side of my bilge pump and very close to the pilon. It looks like two wires are set into a small hole in the hull, and then it looks epoxied to keep it water tight. I remember seeing some kind of sensor under the hull that looks like a quarter size black plunger with a small tube on it. I've always assumed this was the water temp sensor. Anyway, any tips on how to fix the issue? Can I replace just the part under the hull, or do I have to replace everything including new wires back to the dash? Thanks.

I have bought ropes from both, and both are excellent. I like the masterline handle as you can customize it with size and signature engraved. In-Tow will also customize your rope and I did that last year by ordering an all white rope with slide loops to 39.5' off. Very cool. Brenda is amazing. Both ropes are spot on accurate to measurement.

@GaryJanzig Water is both shallow and deep. For example the front of our lift has the legs at zero extension, and the back are almost full extension. So a big drop off about 16' from the shore water line. Thanks for the link, will check them out. We have an EZ-dock and shoremaster supplier in town so those were the first two to look at.

I'm looking at upgrading our home made wood floating dock to shoremaster. Shoremaster seems to be partnered with a company called Polydock that sells floating docks. Any feedback on these products? Thx!

Thanks for the feedback. I think I will contact domednumbers and get a quote. This seems to be the correct decal for my 03' Sunsetter. (but without the sun) Hopefully they can remove that part. It would be nice to get a fancier shadow line too.

Any tips to repair the side boat decal? Can scratches be polished out? or is it just best to order new ones? I've got some dock rash across the side. I'm not even sure if these decals are available. I've heard of domednumbers too. Anyone use them to replace the main decal on their boat? Thanks.

I test drove one in 2002. At that time, my Dad and I drove down 7 hours to go check it out, and we had hype that this was going to be awesome. We were very excited, it was a cool looking boat, and it had crossover capabilities. After the test drive, my Dad and I drove back to the hotel in silence. It had a horrible ride, the driver seating position and driving focus was uncomfortable, and the boat just overall was awkward. If you can find a top 3 tier boat for the same price, I would suggest that course of action. Plus there is a lot more help online for those 3 manufacturers of boats if any issues come up. To continue the back story, we ended up with a 2003 Malibu Sunsetter LXI which I will be de-winterizing in about 3 weeks. :)

If I were in your shoes, get the 3 event. Then zbox later if you tournament ski. This will likely be the best bang for the buck. Yes, the latest 9 version from PP is really good.

Same video from a Pro would help.

I'll admit, I'm a sucker for looks or graphics of the ski. It's likely easier to test drive several trucks, vs test skiing several skis, so to me it's a lot harder to choose a ski brand because you can't "test ski" all of them. At least in the geographic region I live in. Do pros influence my decision buying? Of course they do! But budget and the looks of the ski make the final decision. And to @SlalomSteve , my drum kit is old and crappy. But it looks cool. I purchased it without any influence. (except it looked cool) My 25 year old guitar however, was purchased with a little influence. (but mostly looks) And even after several modifications over the years with pickups and other components, those decisions were again influenced by famous guitar players as well. (I could not test those parts before buying) Do I have any regrets? None what so ever. Perhaps I'm naive, but don't most pro skiers *align* with a ski manufacturer that makes a high quality product, and pays them the most? I'm guessing this is the case with most pro athletes in all sports. At the end of the day, when I'm ready to buy, I will research the hell out of it if I can. But like I said, I'm a sucker for looks. :)

+1 for the Carbitex Vapor. Very comfortable and stable. Expensive, but well worth it.

The skier on the left page of the magazine looks like he has a nice angle to the next buoy. Why is there a red stealth bomber barely skimming the water on the right page? Oh wait, is that a tow boat? :)

If you are going to ski in a course, definitely get the latest 3 event version. The surging has been fixed in the latest software from PP. Contact PP and they will help you with the upgrades. Your Dad's display may need to be upgraded, but that should be it. They send you a little plug-in chip that is used to upgrade your master module and your good to go.

If a tow boat driver keyed up RHCP while I was skiing, I might have to slap them. Sorry, driver.