clemsondave

I'm 175# and the 66" felt good. It was more than fast enough. If you decide on the 66", mine's for sale if you are interested.

Sounds like good advice. Then tell the damn judges to keep the pens out of your boat and use pencils!

Agree, I have 2 Eagle vests and love them. So much so that I'm inquiring to be a dealer.

Yes, I got the 63.75. It's about 1.5" shorter than my 66" Z7. It does not feel short at all. 6.780 jaws; .720; 2.500; 8* Those worked very well, but I'm going to experiment on Friday to see where the extremes are.

All of the hardshells that I have tried have run big, like rollerblades. I'm a 9.5 and used size 9 Fogman with size 8 liners. Reflex I'm using size 8 boots.

Used JD's settings with boots at stock 29.125. Had a very unusual strong wind at the lake this afternoon (storms blowing though right now). Started with a couple 28s to get used to it. Took 35 tail wind with heavy chop. Ran it with no problem. Didn't try much at 38. It impressed me, not that 35 is hard, but that I ran it pretty easy while still being cautious and with a significant tail wind on my 4th pass on the ski. 2nd set with calmer conditions, I was pushing it harder and made it to 4 @ 38 several times. Kept making silly mistakes (why can't I find a ski that takes my brain out of the equation?). I like that I can rip an offside turn without stalling and zero feeling that it might blow the tail. The does as advertised and fixes the couple things I was having trouble with on my Z7. It maintains speed in the turns no matter how early I get there. And it turns hard without stalling. My Z7 is just as quick cross course and turns just as hard, but I've been having those two issues for a while. With the water as hot as it is, I'm somewhat content with 4 @ 38 on my second set.

I'm impressed! Will report in later.

There is another thread, just down from this one about the Z7 that has his and other fin settings in it. What numbers are you running now?

Nope, I'm backwards from most people. I also follow Schnitz's philosophy on fin tuning. For me, moving the fin forward makes it noticeably faster. I tune very little, but when I do, like I mentioned, I tune to achieve the speed/angle/width that I want. If I get that, the turn will happen automatically. Basically, I tried stuff till it worked for me. So many theories out there. IF I had a theory about this movement, I'd say that moving the fin back proportionally moves your weight towards the front of the ski. More ski in the water means more drag. More drag = slower. Regardless of theory, I noticed my ski was slow in 92* water. I moved it forward and got my speed back instantly. Also, for the front/back fin movement, I do a ton (0.030 to 0.040). Only a few thou for the other measurements.

Wasn't there one recently from a company called Standard Boat Company or something?

My 2010 Z7 66" numbers: 6.980 tips 2.515 0.760 Hot water 85+ 0.726 Cold water 85- 29 3/8 to heel of front boot 8* wing Mine turns so hard, I'm having to put stronger Dual Lock on. Of course, I get there pretty early, so turning is easy. I typically tune my ski to get me to the buoy line when/where I want and to give me the speed I'm comfortable with (a lot). If I can do that, the turn is easy. I'm going to try JD's numbers before the Mid comes in just b/c I'm curious.

Update from the state championship. My boat was used for round one slalom. 52 skiers. 1 tank of gas. It was also used for two practice rounds and apx 10 passes to map and for the drivers to get used it. I'm getting someone from the host club to post here to verify those numbers. Their 196 is pulling today so we will see how it does. Fyi, my boat is full at 88%. So it runs forever on empty. Waiting to hear from my dealer if it can be recalibrated. I asked almost every skier and driver what they thought. One M8 said the wakes were wider. All others were loving it.

Wow, it was amazing! I was very nervous, but they worked incredible! They buoys lit up very bright and we did not have a single failure. We tried to take pictures, but I doubt any will come out. There was only a sliver of the moon, so it was really dark out. We hung glow stick necklaces on the skiers. That turned into a fashion show with kids and adults taping glow sticks to their skis, vests, handles, ankles, etc. It was so dark, all you could see was these floating glow sticks zip across the wakes. You would be amazed how much you could tell just by watching the necklace vs the stick on the ski. Gates were easier to tell in the dark than in the daylight. Turn balls were easy to judge as well. But you could also see how their form was just based on the glow sticks. Couldn't see their body at all. We ran it as a fun round as I was worried someone would push it and get hurt. We recommended everyone slow the boat down, not worry about the gates and gave everyone 4 passes. We lit the line up buoys and put in lit drop area buoys as well. All the buoys were so bright, it looked like a runway. Design We found a killer deal at Home Depot. They have 10 small (1"x3.5") LED flashlights with batteries for $8. Put each one of them in a quart size zip lock freezer bag. Don't use cheap bags. Cut a float noodle thing a little smaller than the flashlight (apx 3"). Drill a hole in the middle of the noodle, with a hole saw, a little smaller than the flashlight. Put flashlight in zip lock bag, trying to get all the air out so it doesn't float sideways. Insert flashlight/bag into the noodle. Turn balls, gates and 55m Duct tape or zip tie 4 of these noodle/lights together into a square with a 4" piece of 1"PVC. Run the buoy line through the PVC. Orange buoys worked way better than red. Green would not light up at all, so we replaced one 55m with orange. Boat guides and line up buoys Yellow buoys light up very easy and they don't need to be as bright as the skier buoys. Use two zip ties and put just one of the noodle/light just under the boat guides I had made up an aluminum cylinder for the skier buoy noodle/lights, but some of the cylinders sank while the noodle/flashlight stayed in place. I'll leave the cylinders off next time. Cost? About $5 for the skier buoys, $1 for the boat guides (plus the cost of the buoys). Hopefully, there will be someone else on the forum that was there and can talk about it.

I created a chart that I've heard is pretty accurate. Some have other theories, but this might give you an idea. Schnitz has it posted on his website. Mine is the one near the top of the page. http://www.schnitzskis.com/zerooff.html

Hosting my first day/night tournament today. 2 rounds in the daylight starting at 4pm. Then having a cookout. While everyone is eating, we'll be putting on my experimental lighted buoys. 3rd round in the dark. We may just make it a fun round. Crossing my fingers that everything works. I'll take some pictures and post tomorrow how it goes.

That's basically what I do, except I've had good luck with the clear (sticking to the ski and plate). I also put about a dozen clamps with blocks on it overnight to make sure it sets well.

It's ok JD, those Minnysoota boys don't really know anything outside of ice fishin'

In my experience, the 2" definitely sticks to the ski better. The fewer amount of pieces the better. I've occasionally replaced small sections that were damaged by cutting out small 1" wide sections. They never hold. I'd release and it would pull the tape from the ski. Imagine gluing two 2" x 4" boards to a wall versus one 2" x 8". The 2" x 8" would require more force to come off. I 'think' the 2" holds better on releases (ie takes more force to release), but that's just a gut feeling. I try not to release much! ;-)

I agree that the black lasts longer, but I have always used the clear. I usually get a year or apx 10 releases on the clear 250. The adhesive on the black is a major PITA to get off. Helps to soak it with Goof Off. Also, I use 2" wide strips instead of multiple 1" strips. I think it holds better.

Thanks JD, so those numbers will get me through 39 like those guys, huh? ;-) I'd be happy if it gets me 38 more often. Do you have the length via tips? Most calipers I have used vary on the jaws measurement. That's the way I measure, but I'm sure mine are different than others.

Did you feel the 67 was too small? Going from an X5 to a Z7, my opinion is that you should go smaller. The Z7 is way faster so you don't need the extra length. The shorter ski will ride a little deeper and be more stable. I went from a 67.5 to a 66 with no regrets (175#). Call Tadd at H2Osmosis or Henrik at Miami Ski Nautiques. They may have a used one. Plus, they both have a try before you buy program.

Mid on the way.... Thanks everyone.

thanimal, the 200 is 4.75" wider than the 196. Is the tunnel that narrow?

I agree. Although there was much less stress on my back muscles when I went from an X5 to a Z7. Less effort and could ski longer. Roger, I just read your post. Is the Mid wider than the regular 9900? I assumed it had to be since the chart says I should be on a 63.75" mid.

Not doubting you. I'm guessing you had mostly 34/36 skiers? We have a large mixture up here. I assume that's the difference, unless there are differences in the tune from boat to boat. I'd be concerned if I couldn't pull 30 skiers too.