east tx skier

I tried nose weighting my 98 and all it did was make it handle horribly at idle and plow the water getting out of the hole. I noticed no difference skiing or driving.

On my 98, the addition of an Acme 422 and the ability to get the spotter to get out of the extremely comfortable corner of the observer's seat made all of the difference in the wake.

I sold my Rawley Vision earlier this year for around $60. It is an excellent mirror. But I needed something a little more compact since I remove my mirror for storage and towing. The PTM is a great mirror.

Worth a shot. I would not have thought they were that different.

I have the original red sunbrella cover for my 98. It has a few pin holes and a couple of unattractive patches and could use some 303 fabric guard, but was in use up until I got my coversports cover. I could be convinced to let it go.

At one point, there was a version of the PP SG software that had a "river" setting in it. You had to specifically ask for this version of the software though. When engaged, it basically cut GPS out of the picture and took the speed input from the paddle wheel. When we are on flowing water, we just guess the speed of the current and run in GPS practice mode with the speed increased or decreased to compensate. This is free skiing though. In the course, it technically doesn't matter as far as speed control goes. In the course, you're timing speed between two fixed points, i.e., speed over ground. So the GPS can do this regardless of current.

Give this a read. I found it helpful when I was boat shopping. tylerskiclub.com/usedboat.html

My favorite from the MC forum was "Why does my boat pull to the right?" It took me a long time to compile that FAQ. At this point, I'm fresh out of ideas.

You can no longer buy OEM skins for a 2000 MC. You might try a company like www.mastercraftskins.com. From what I have seen, they do good work.

@sunvalleylaw, my wife's cousin has a 99 SNOB and I'd say that if you don't mind the step over to the bow, the wake is certainly better than the 1st Gen. 205, if only by a little bit. Tracking is definitely better and you have standard gear reduction t'boot.

Another vote for the TSC1. We will have ours for a long time. And, yes, it does tend to ruin you for other boats, even some that are two and three times the price.

The first generation 205s are head and shoulders better than the second generation (original xstar hull) variant. The tagline "fanatics with families" was earned by that hull. I had no trouble pulling a skier into 35 off at 34 mph. My father in law has a 98 205 and compared to my old 93 205 or my 98 SN, it is like skiing over a curb at 15 off. Still a decent open bow, but not in the same league as the first generation 205s.

Make sure your flame arrestor has been cleaned recently.

Doubt you've ever heard of it, but the medical community is an unusually large % of the economy in Tyler, TX. Three large hospitals serving a community of 100K. Our ski club probably has the least expensive rates in the world with two courses, one on a private (to watersports riders) golf course lake with a helluva view. 80 miles from DFW and great real estate prices. Food for thought.

I think the multiline display is a $200 add on if memory serves. $849 for SG and Zbox if you have the ml display. $1049 for SG, Zbox, and ML display. perfectpass.com/?q=upgradeoptions#bottom

The old course at Buzzard Bay on the TX/LA border with the old boat. And me on a slalom stick for the first time circa 1985. Had to dust off every bit of old equipment to make that happen.

I hurt my left shoulder winching the boat on the trailer after skiing Wednesday. It's all relative, I suppose.

The easiest way to keep a boat looking good is to keep it covered in an enclosed storage space (garage) when not in use. Wipe it down after use inside and out and pop the motorbox to vent the condensation. Wax a couple of times per year and use a protectant on the vinyl. Mechanically, change your oil and transmission fluid at the recommended intervals, replace impeller, spark plugs and fuel filters regularly. Keep your eye on belts and hoses and keep your fuel treated when layups last longer than a week or so. Apart from that, use the boat. Old gas sitting in a fuel tank is no good. You will spend much less keeping a boat running well and looking good than an M3.

@sunvalleylaw, the early 205s were pretty close in hull design to that era of 190. The later generation of 205 was a bit more of a departure from the 190. In 1999, you could get a Sportstar OB (later redubbed the 195), which was a 95--97 ProStar 190 with a bow cut out.

I think adding the timing function to WB pro could be considered an upgrade.

Not sure on your price range, but in the value end of the segment, for under $15K, you could get a TSC1 S.N.O.B. or 92--95 Pro Star 205. Both are excellent slalom boats. I'd probably give the edge to the SNOB.

My old 205 pulled someone through 35 off with no problem. Supposedly, the spray becomes a factor past that with the 1st generation, but I heard no complaints. My cousin (pictured skiing above), just picked up a 99 SNOB. The wake behind that boat is wonderful, but the cabin is a bit cramped because they moved everything back to accommodate the open bow. I'm not sure about the 205s being at a good price point. The MC guys love these boats and pay pretty handsomely for the ones in good shape. When I sold mine several years ago, I got a few thousand more than I paid for it four years earlier. Like anything, the price drops a bit each year. But for these boats, it has flattened a bit. Here is the wake behind my old 93 205 at 34 and 36 mph. As you can see, it kicked up a bit of spray at shortline.

There was never a bad era for the 205. The first generation 92--95 were epically good open bow slalom boats. The second and final generation of the direct drive 205 was not quite as wonderful, but still a very good slalom boat. There was some roll to the turns as SWC5150 mentioned, and it feels like a bigger boat compared to the first generation 205. But it is based on the 95--97 190. The 205 never suffered the 98 190 death star redesign or the 2001 hookless EVO hull shortcomings. It is the original Xstar hull, which isn't a bad slalom boat ... for an open bow of that era. Not as good as the TSC SNOB, but still very good. My father in law has a 98 (same as the 2000) that I ski behind pretty regularly. It has worked flawlessly with pretty sporatic maintenance on his part. The Vortec TBI is as bullet proof as the ZF Hurth 1:1 on that boat. We have run it through the course a few times and it does just fine. This second generation 205 hull was designed before wakeboarding had taken over. So despite its being a great wakeboard hull (apparently), it was designed for slalom. I believe the ad line at the time was "fanatics with families." In 2000, they got a bit funky with the interior. You'll have a teak ski locker in the walk through that looks like it was inspired by a Cobalt and this is getting into the era of dicey vinyl for MC. That said, I have a friend with a 2000 205 and he has been all smiles since he bought it several years ago. This is my father in law's boat.

Depends on what era of module you have now. The only difference between WB Pro and Digital Pro is attaching a smart timer (magnet sensor) or hand timer to the magnet 1 or magnet 2 port on the WB Pro Master Module. By the time they had "Wakeboard Pro" designated modules, I think there was always a timing/magnet input or two on the module. When I bought my Nautique, I still had the smart timer from my old Digital Pro system. So I saved a bit of money and just purchased a WB Pro system, plugged in my smart timer, selected 3 Event from the menu (may require a system reboot to get that option in your case) and I was off to the races.

I am on an older set of Stradas and have a size 10.5 foot. The size 11 boots have been fine for me.