Wayne

For that model LXI, Titan II tower was the factory default. I have seen a G3 on the 2007 and later hull as it was a factory option as well.

 

The two towers above and the Illusion are “old designs”. Are you trying to find a used one?

 

On Edit: the forward facing tower on the Reaponse LXI interferes with the rope for slalom skiing around 28 to 32 off depending on year and who mounted the tower.

These fundamentals videos have been great and thank you for taking the time to make them.

@Horton as others have pointed out there is more to it than the air temperature. What is the water temperature? What are the high and low temperatures for the day prior and day after?

Dumbest one for me was when I tore a rotator cuff tightening my boat cover down before a big storm when we were renting a houseboat. It sucks getting old.

@MISkier what is the history of that lake? It’s called “Silver Fox Lake” now and I noticed a bunch of roads around it have names that fit the 70s and 80s pros. It’s certainly a unique site. I think it has wind protection from all sides.

 

I’ve never seen a house on that lake go up for sale, so who ever is on it stays on it.

@Wish this should explain it https://www.3gunnation.com/

 

Essentially it requires that you are skilled at 3 firearm types (pistol, shotgun, rifle). It’s like 3 event skiing but with bullets.

@AllRightsReserved you are making the same transition I did back in 2007ish. Went from a then current Freeride series ski to the S8. Fin and binding placement makes a huge difference on that ski. Get the fin near stock settings and play with binding placement.

 

So is budget a limiting factor for using such and old ski? To @Garn point the newer skis are much more stable and less effort. Even something in the 2015 range would be a technology leap.

I don’t think this addresses the original issue of the thread but if you want to make your trailer bunks have less friction, try a product called “Slydz-On”. Overtons used to carry it, now I get it off amazon.

 

Word of caution, it works too good. If you don’t have anything holding the boat on the trailer it will slide right off, even when they are dry.

@Jody_Seal do you know a guy named Curtis Collie? He was one of the engineers at Ford that worked on the 5.4 supercharged engine and has one of the ski fly Nautiques. It lives on a lake here in Michigan and sees regular slalom use. It still looks like a new boat too.

@vtmecheng yep understand the v-drive apprehension which is why I always mention it needs to be run 32+ for slalom. If you go slower, forget it as an option for course work.

 

I’ve had my Sunsetter on some of the KY and TN lakes (mostly Cumberland and Dale Hollow). If you give the big boats space and pay attention it was ok. After changing to the Reaponse LXI there were a few situations where I turned around and ran from stuff.

 

Another Malibu direct drive is the Response FXI, but they are more rare than Sunsetters.

Sunsetter came in a few iterations over the years and the notch in the transom is the tell-tale of the LXI. They also offer an LX, which in some iterations looks like the LX but it’s on a different hull (no notch) which was designed more for wake sports. The LX also was missing a rear storage locker in earlier years.

 

There was also a Sunsetter (not LX or LXI), I owned one and in 2000 it was offered on the “LXI hull” but it didn’t have that notch making it a little shorter boat. They are a little more rare and could be optioned with the wake hull as well but it gives you a second model to look for.

 

Another darn good recreational boat that might get into your price range is the Malibu Sunscape 20 LSV. Yes it’s a v-drive but at 32 MPH and up the slalom wake is quite a surprise. It will have more free board and at lower speeds ride “bow up” which may help on the river. Just have to make sure it’s on the “Diamond hull” which is more slalom friendly.

The two highest freeboard ski boats

I can think of are the Sunsetter LXI and the Tige 20i.

Wonder if I’m confusing the sequence plate with the individual plates with regards to the slots behind the rear boot.

The Radar counter sink head screws are about 3 threads too long when used on an HO ski. HO doesn’t have the wide hole pattern only the narrow one, so you really need to use the horse shoe. If you don’t there are “windows” around the screws so you can rotate the plate on the ski. So the large head screws don’t have sufficient surface contact with the plate to hold the binding down safely.

 

I would either file about 3 threads off the screws you have or run to the hardware store and get some stainless 8-32 counter sink head screws that are shorter. I haven’t purchased HO bindings in a long time, the hardware kits they used to include had the right length screws that would also work with the Radar plates.

I own a 2009 Response LXI and occasionally ski a 2000 Response and a 1998 SN196. All great boats and I don’t have any complaints on any of them from a skier perspective.

 

However the 196 seems to have a more gentle transition across the wakes. This could just be something completely mental but I feel like I work less behind that boat.

@ROBOT I notice something in the picture that was not mentioned. In the tucked position the knees look bent slightly. Can you comment about how the knees and leg muscles factor into contributing to achieving the normal posture?

 

Good article, thank you for posting it.

Not sure of how much cup is applied to OJ listed for sale. It’s actually a little steeper than an Acme 525. A 525 runs about 200-400 rpm higher than a 515 at slalom speeds. I’d expect the OJ to be 300-500 rpm above a 515.

 

I have the 525 on my 2009 Response LXI with the 350 monsoon. I also have the 515 as a back up prop but have tried both. The 525 is just a tad firmer pull than the 515. Again depending on cup the OJ will rev a little higher for the same boat speed and be a little stronger pull. I’ve never noticed a wake difference between the 515 vs the 525 not sure if the OJ would make a difference either.

 

Sounds like @jercrane is being pretty open, if his prop fits your boat it seems like a really nice back up prop.

If you do all of your waterskiing above 32 MPH and keep the crew size/weight small both the Nautque Sport 200 V and the first generation Malibu VTX on the Diamond hull (or Sunscape 20 LSV) have respectable ski wakes. They are not quite the quality of a tournament qualified direct drive but above 32 MPH they can be quite serviceable in the course.

 

If you drop below 32 MPH like many people do when learning the slalom course, the “v-drive” configuration becomes apparent and the wakes get very big in comparison to a direct drive. Below 32 MPH these boats still have an ok open water wake for more casual skiing.

 

If you slalom ski at 32+ MPH it’s my opinion that you get a lot of additional capability for the compromise. The other catch is keep the weight in the boat down when slalom skiing. Thinking you can have 8 people in the boat since the pylon is behind the seating area and get reasonable wakes is not the case.

 

For surfing I would look into one of the suction cup type devices and you should use all of the factory ballast. Also look at bigger skim or hybrid type boards as the are a little more forgiving on smaller waves.

 

I looked at trading in my Response LXI on a Sport 200V or a Malibu VTX when the Nautique came out. We spend a lot of time doing in water comparisons with some very understanding sales people. In the end I kept my direct drive as slalom was WAY more important and the extra cost of jumping into a new boat didn’t make sense. We do occasionally surf on the Response here lately when we have non-skiing friends over. I did go with a tower (originally for barefooting), have the Malibu Wedge and added a suction cup type device. With the weight of a few extra people it’s enough to be entertaining and the learning curve is not as steep as skiing.

Our lake was recently treated by a commercial outfit. They did a liquid application but it literally looked like it was being sprayed from a garden hose. Just a fat single stream being shot about 5 feet from shore.

Is this your regular dealer and will you be using them in the future? It really seems that the dealer makes a difference in your experience on any perticular boat. If they caught this, disclosed that it was there and are fixing it I would think if there are other warranty issues they will support you to get it fixed.

 

I would just do a very thorough inspection on your own and do a water test before accepting it.

 

After a few sets behind it you will forget about this anyway. :)

You should see the trick wake that thing throws

New-Skin or Dr Scholl’s mole skin will do the trick.

Does Nautique use some type of shipping cover that is used from the factory to the dealer? I would see if that could be used. It protects the boat and saves the factory cover.

 

Alternatively, could it be shrink wrapped?

As was mentioned Malibu Sunsetter LXI, possibly a Response LXI (same idea as the Sunsetter, just a touch smaller with less freeboard) and I will throw in a wild card with a Malibu Sunscape 20LSV. It’s essentially a V-drive Sunsetter LXI and if you are an open water skier, bumping the speed to 30 or more the wakes are not really that bad. 34-36 they are better than any IO and give some direct drives a run for their money.

What speed are you running? How many people in the boat? How is the TXI configured (tower, Bimini, wedge)? What additional stuff do you carry in the boat?

 

Other than weight from passengers or “extra stuff” and boat speed, most of the above makes a small difference but is somewhat negligible.