Waternut

Thermostat installed backwards? If the bypass hole starts allowing really hot water through, it would still open the thermostat but only for a short time. Have you tried running without the thermostat yet? My old boat would start to get really hot if I was running slalom speeds for any extended periods of time. I put a 140 thermostat in during the hot months and it helped.

In theory, it's a good idea but in practice I wouldn't spend more than $100 on ski gear that I'll never use. I picked up a combo set, lifevest, and rope/handle combo for like $50, 5-6 years ago. I have an old 67" Mapple MPD ski that I used to use and now let friends learn on but I think a wider ski would probably be better. I also have a cheapo wakeboard that I abandoned in favor of something better. Yes they all take up room but it is nice to have a collection of stuff that your friends can choose from....and wakeboards make great tables for your calipers, gloves, tools, etc. Not really sure how I'd adjust my fin without all the other stuff on my wall. I'm all in favor of spending money to teach more people to get out on the lake and have fun with me but I'd never buy the stuff new unless it was on an extreme discount.

No big deal. Ideas and concerns even if they are your own problem can still produce meaningful insight. One thing I used when restoring some anchors that were missing was a laser measurer. I even used one to shoot where one of the turn buoys needed to be. Helps having extra hands and it kind of needs to be fairly dark to shoot long distances but I'm impressed with the accuracy of those things.

Yeah I have considered that and it may be a more valid option than trying to do a sinker course. The only downside is I'd have to redo all the anchors and our lake is a muck bottom.

@aupatking Are you asking what it should be in a normal sinker or how far I'm expecting my buoys to sit if I make this system work? I would expect my buoys to sit around 3-ish feet underwater.

Well with this setup I don't have any arms since it was a permanent course. However, the amount of time and enegy to find, clip, and unclip 22 buoys is more than I want to deal with. If it was just the turn buoys and entrance gates, that wouldn't be too bad but even then, it's a lot of work when most of the time it's just 2 or 3 of us skiing.

@gsm_peter Not sure if I follow what you're saying but I think I do. I have looked into the option of just pulling all the buoys down with pulleys and a winch of some sort. However, at around 15 lbs of floatation per buoy, I was worried about pulling my anchors out of the ground. Let's not forget that we've got at least 22 buoys so 330lbs plus friction and drag in total. You'd also need a really really strong anchor as your central winching point. You could have multiple winching points but that's also more buoys to attract attention. Totally doable and wound be really quick and easy but you'd have to redesign the anchors in a way that they don't move or pull out when you start pulling.

@fu_man I'm pretty sure you're over thinking it. If you try to force a sealed system underwater, it will resist. If you try to force a system underwater and you have an opening, the air will come out. Either way, if your lines go 10 feet underwater, the pressure on the outside of the air lines is way more than a full vacuum so any lines you use would likely have to be vacuum rated. Can anyone confirm that the wally sinker air lines are semi-rigid?

Thanks for the buoy recommendation. I would definitely do some experimenting at my dock especially to get an idea if using different style buoys wold be a problem. Purging water would be a pain especially if it gets in the other buoys but I think it would only be a problem if a buoy got cut when we weren't skiing. If a buoy got cut while we skied, the rest of the system would bleed down and just push air out until everything equalized. You'd have to fix it immediately but we typically did anyway unless it was a boat guide and then we waited until the end of the set which may still be possible....experimenting would help there too.

A few guys and I keep discussing the option of a sinker course. We currently have all the anchors in place but we are no longer allowed to leave the course out on our lake. The course is in 5 to 8 feet of water so I was under the impression that the Wally sinker course isn't really an option at those depths. So my next thought was have a smaller weight and inflate the buoys to raise and lower the system. That way the whole course could be lowered much deeper without the worry of boats hitting it. The only concern I have with that option is that most ski buoy have the inflation hole in the middle instead of the bottom which could be problematic. I have seen some mooring style buoys that are 8" diameter and have the inflation hole at the bottom that would work but when I contacted the company they said they were much heavier duty than slalom buoys. Could probably be used for boat guides though. Am I being crazy? Anyone have any other ideas?

Does anyone else feel motion sick watching that? It was just a short video but I guess there was just enough movement that my stomach started churning.

Looks good so far. Good choice on limiting the amount of area for that candy color with metal flakes. I've found it really tough to shoot metal flakes evenly over large areas. Everything will look perfect until you get it in direct sunlight and then you start seeing streaks where you overlapped.

Ethanol is not the fuel of satan despite what most gearheads will lead you to believe. Rather than rant for or against ethanol since I realize no one will change their opinion anyway, I'll leave you with this. If you don't like to use your boat, I would definitely recommend using non-ethanol gas. If you actually use your boat more than a few times a year....use what ever gives you a warm fuzzy feeling inside!

Goody buy! Love mine and wish I could've gotten it for this cheap.

I own a PTM edge mirror and it is nice. A lot better than the old single CIPA mirrors that so many still have. However, they are stupidly expensive and the mounts are even more ridiculous! If you ski open water, people still go outside my field of view constantly. IMO, 2-3 cheap mirrors mounted in a good location are still the best option. They aren't zoomed out like the PTM, you can watch your skier and see what's going on while he's getting up...even at a hard angle. I can usually see the people in my mirror when they get up but if I'm teaching someone, I can't see them well enough to see what they're doing without turning around.

I've never had any luck with roundup or any of the other weed killers sold in most home improvement stores. Coat the weeds and nothing happens but the overspray that gets on the grass 5 feet away turns the grass brown....wtf?! Also, roundup takes so long to kill the weeds that more have taken their place long before the ones you sprayed actually die. Poison ivy typically takes 2-3 weeks to finally die. Feels like killing an ant line one by one as they come past. You might eventually win but you'll be there forever. Anyway, I use Diquat. In comparison, it's not that expensive because you use so little in the mix. It doesn't kill the roots but it kills the plant in a day or two. If I keep on top of it, I can keep the ground clear by reapplying every 3-4 weeks.

Any chance it was left in a cold place that could freeze? Some of the fibers look pushed out and not in but it's possible they were disturbed and pulled out when removed from the sleeve.

@Horton What kind of weird stuff? I mean when the fin settings aren't even within 0.010" of what you use, you have to manually enter anyway.

Could be a really cool tool if enough people use it. I input the final setting on the last 3 ski's I've owned to help build it. On a side note... I think it would be faster and simpler if the measurements were just manual inputs instead of selections. I also think the comments section might look a little cleaner if it was a wider column. Maybe add a column for speed and/or typical line length groups? Could even lump them together like 32mph or less, 34mph, and 36mph... 15off to 22off, 28off to 35off, 38off and up.

I'll let just about any competent person pull me behind my boat in open water and I'll let anyone use my gear. The list narrows pretty fast though when I'm not around and there aren't that many people I trust to pull me through the course.

You do have to recognize that not every part of the ski is loaded the same. That said, any composite structure is repairable to full strength or greater but not every composite is repairable using the original contour. I'm not exactly sure where that is, but I'm guessing it's right in front of the front foot. For skiing up to 34mph and up to 28off, I'd probably touch it up to seal it like stated above and run it. If you typically ski beyond that, I'd recommend looking for another ski. That's just me though.

Where are you located? A bit off topic... Your budget sounds flexible but why are you dead set on Nautiques? Don't get me wrong, there are some great boats in that time frame but there are also plenty of great boats from other manufacturers in that same timeframe.

I agree with @Dacon62 and @crashman . A DD boat can do anything a V-drive can but a V-drive simply cannot do everything a DD boat can. Dealerships will always try to sell the opposite points and they are probably true for the vast majority of people with families that aren't real serious but I'd rather wakeboard than try to ski the course behind a V-drive. Surfing can be fun but for the most part it's a "screw around" sport....something to do when everyone is tired and that's about it. 2-3 minutes and you're bored once you know how to stay with the boat.

Yeah I liked that one too but figured one mug was enough for me because they are kinda pricey for what they are.

Sorry if this has been posted before but it popped up on Facebook this morning and I felt it was a suitable thing to share with the community. Mug link