Craz surf setup tips

[Ry_Guy82]

I have recently purchased a 2016 Moomba Craz that I have been told has 900 in each rear, 700 center, and 500 bow sac ballast = 3,000 pounds total ballast weight. I can't find any markings on the flyhighsacs in the rear to confirm the 900 pounds.

My question is: I'm looking for advice on ballast settings, and both port and starboard tab settings for surfing left and right sides. I get the idea of the wakeplate but looking for advice for ballast and side surf tab settings. Thank you in advance to all that share their experience and tips.

[Stazi]

Everything full and then forget side surf, surfplate at 50% wakeplate between 15-20%. For starboard side surf, surfplate at 65%. Speed about 10.8-11mph. Then have anyone extra in the boat sit on whatever side you are surfing as well.


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[SD1]

Hey guys, I have essentially the same question. My brother bought one last year and we are still not thrilled with the setup as of yet. Our kids who weigh 100lbs fly around without the rope with ease, but my bro and I weight 175 and 165 respectively and while we can certainly surf, we have a 400lb fat sac on the rear bench and have to physically move it side to side as we surf opposite sides. And of course it takes up seating not to mention its a pita. So much he called me and said he was looking at trading it for a Centurion. He wants to jump in the boat and just hit the buttons, fill the tanks and surf. We have the resources to either mod the Moomba or buy a different boat but that seems a bit drastic. Must be some way to get this thing a little more dialed in. To the OP, we have a cabin on CDA so we are neighbors. : )

[Stazi]

Hey guys, I have essentially the same question. My brother bought one last year and we are still not thrilled with the setup as of yet. Our kids who weigh 100lbs fly around without the rope with ease, but my bro and I weight 175 and 165 respectively and while we can certainly surf, we have a 400lb fat sac on the rear bench and have to physically move it side to side as we surf opposite sides. And of course it takes up seating not to mention its a pita. So much he called me and said he was looking at trading it for a Centurion. He wants to jump in the boat and just hit the buttons, fill the tanks and surf. We have the resources to either mod the Moomba or buy a different boat but that seems a bit drastic. Must be some way to get this thing a little more dialed in. To the OP, we have a cabin on CDA so we are neighbors. : )

Get some “lead” ballast bags from wakeballast.com and keep that in the side lockers. I added 500# o. Top of the 1100’s I upgraded to in the rear lockers. At your weight you should have no issue. I’m 208 and can surf the Craz without any issues.


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[jared24]

Try letting out a little water in the opposite rear bag so you have more tilt on your surf side. Mine doesn't have autowake so depending on how many ppl are in the boat and where they are seated, I try to get the boat slightly leaning surf side. Usually around 100% surf side/85% opposite/100% front is what works for me. I have the upgraded rear bags (1100's) so around 3400 total ballast and have no issues with the wave.

[hawgtitan]

I have a 2016 Craz with 1100's in rear (which actually fill to probably between 900-1000) and center and bow. I fill all to overflowing, speed at 10.5, put wakeplate all the way up and surf tab on 35% for me to surf. I weigh 275 lbs. and have a Phase 5 Trident. I can surf ropeless all day long with only my wife and 11 year-old son in boat. With surf tab and wakeplate settings I use, the wave is very steep, but has push that will put me in the boat. I can surf probably 10 feet back or so like this. When I let my 11 year-old surf, I change surf tab to 70% and speed up to about 11-11.2 mph and put wakeplate all the way down. He has a Phase 5 Scamp and can probably surf 20 feet back! I was confused when I first bought boat about surf tabs. Lower percentage means steeper wave with more push but you can't surf as far back.

[bpaul1033]

I also have a 2016 Craz. Upgraded rear ballasts (I think 1400?) and ride full ballasts, but am not happy with the wave, it can barely push me and I'm 165, surfing regular. I have the wakeplate all the way up, but I'm reading about the "surf tab". Is that in the factory settings? I would think that 100% would be best, but you are saying 35%? Can you clarify?

[Stazi]

I also have a 2016 Craz. Upgraded rear ballasts (I think 1400?) and ride full ballasts, but am not happy with the wave, it can barely push me and I'm 165, surfing regular. I have the wakeplate all the way up, but I'm reading about the "surf tab". Is that in the factory settings? I would think that 100% would be best, but you are saying 35%? Can you clarify?

100% is absolutely not the best. All it does is lift the back of the boat out of the water out too much. If you were surfing regular with the Craz you need to fill all the bballast 100%, run at about 10.8-11.2 mph and have the starboard surf plate at about 55% , wakeplate at 20%.
I’m 208lb and have zero problems surfing the Craz. At 165, you are like my buddy and he can surf about 20’ back from my boat. 100% surf plate is useless!
https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180721/b2f3a547472f393befc7ad0d4fb7df76.jpg

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180721/3d6154a6034b11a6b7d645898c036944.jpg


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[bpaul1033]

100% is absolutely not the best. All it does is lift the back of the boat out of the water out too much. If you were surfing regular with the Craz you need to fill all the bballast 100%, run at about 10.8-11.2 mph and have the starboard surf plate at about 55% , wakeplate at 20%.
I’m 208lb and have zero problems surfing the Craz. At 165, you are like my buddy and he can surf about 20’ back from my boat. 100% surf plate is useless!
https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180721/b2f3a547472f393befc7ad0d4fb7df76.jpg

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180721/3d6154a6034b11a6b7d645898c036944.jpg


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I see in your picture you have a ballast bag on the back seat. Is this on a 2016 Craz? Is this bag in addition to the rear locker bags? Also my dealer says that my problem is that our lake is only 10-12 feet deep. Does that make sense to anyone? I find the wave is better at 9.4 or 9.6mph....which is big, but not enough to push me...and it's usually a few feet behind the boat. Let me know about the extra ballast bag on the seat.

[bpaul1033]

One other question....with a 2016 Craz has anyone tried or recommend a surf shaper?

[bpaul1033]

One more....the surf tab settings are deep in the computer. Is there a way to change these "on the fly"? Or do I have to stop the boat each time to adjust?

[hawgtitan]

If your boat has stock bags in rear, they are most likely 650's and you will most likely have to switch to 1100's or Enzo's in order to ever have a decent wave. At 165 lbs. you should not need a shaper or extra ballast based on what you posted that you already have. The lakes I frequent are anywhere from 40 ft. to 150 ft. deep where we surf. I have heard that depth does make a difference in that it at least needs to be 15-20 ft. deep or more. Try this... next time you are at the lake, fill your ballast to 100% everywhere. Set cruise at about 10.7 mph and put wakeplate all the way up. Watch it, because after you accelerate, wakeplate will return to 50% or to your last setting if boat hasn't been turned off. Have port (regular) surf tab set at 0%. After reaching 10.7 mph, begin changing surf tab 5% at a time, watching what wave does each time you change it. At 30-40% you should see a pretty good (Steep but not very long) wave forming. This is where I have to ride with a small crew in order to have enough push. You will notice as you increase the percentage, the wave will become not as steep and longer with each increment you change it. My guess, for your weight (and depending on which board you are riding), you will probably be satisfied at about the 55-70% range. Also, once you get a nice wave rolling, you will notice that speeding up or deploying wakeplate down in different increments will change wave also. Generally more speed or wakeplate further down means less steep and longer wave. I think once you try the initial steps I recommended you will be able to play with the speed and wakeplate and adjust it to a wave you will love. Remember, If you have 13 people in the boat, like I did on the 4th, you need more surf plate and more wakeplate. I was able to surf with wakeplate almost all the way down and port surf tab at 55% at 11.2 mph with all that weight in the boat and remember, I weigh 275! Also, there is only the one place to adjust surf tab percentages. It is easy to go up as someone is surfing, but if you go too far, you have to go all the way past 100%, back to 0% and back up. Usually when doing this you will lose your wave and have to start over (unless you are really good and really fast!). Just takes time to get it all down.

[Stazi]

You need at least 15 feet of water to make any decent waves to surf on. Sorry but that’s the truth any shallower than that and the lack of depth seriously affects the way the water is pushed under the boat to create a wave.

Also it is very easy to change the surf tab amount while on the fly if you are either in regular driving mode or in Cruise. You cannot change it while you are in autowake. To access it you have to press the right most button that lets you look at the ballast levels and then you use the up or down buttons that corresponds to the plus minus carats, and that will change the amount of deployment each surf tab deploys, individually, depending if you have the surf switch to the left or to the right.
The right surf tab is for surfing natural foot, a.k.a. the left (port) side of the boat, and the left surf tab is used for when you surf goofy on the right (starboard) side of the boat.
The screen will look like this
https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180722/eed882e387dadbcc68cdef217451a10c.jpg


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[Stazi]

BTW, I have a 2017 Craz, so I apologize. The screens are totally different.

[hawgtitan]

27368 Here is my wave behind my 2016 Craz. Cameral angle helps, but it is pretty nice!

[Catman]

I think the depth of your lake is throwing you off I have a 16 craz when it had stock ballast I surfed at 185 lbs as a beginner and just a couple of people in the boat

[bpaul1033]

You need at least 15 feet of water to make any decent waves to surf on. Sorry but that’s the truth any shallower than that and the lack of depth seriously affects the way the water is pushed under the boat to create a wave.

Also it is very easy to change the surf tab amount while on the fly if you are either in regular driving mode or in Cruise. You cannot change it while you are in autowake. To access it you have to press the right most button that lets you look at the ballast levels and then you use the up or down buttons that corresponds to the plus minus carats, and that will change the amount of deployment each surf tab deploys, individually, depending if you have the surf switch to the left or to the right.
The right surf tab is for surfing natural foot, a.k.a. the left (port) side of the boat, and the left surf tab is used for when you surf goofy on the right (starboard) side of the boat.
The screen will look like this
https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180722/eed882e387dadbcc68cdef217451a10c.jpg


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This is really helpful. thanks. The shallow water is an issue, but even when I get to the max depth of 25' in my lake the wave is just ok. The 'best' I can make it is when I really list the boat with almost all the ballast and all the people on one side. I wonder if I can upgrade my screen, yours looks easier than mine to adjust.

[bpaul1033]

did I see a ballast bag on your rear seat? Is that the trick? more ballast in the rear? If I put more in front I'm afraid I'll swamp the boat.

[Stazi]

did I see a ballast bag on your rear seat? Is that the trick? more ballast in the rear? If I put more in front I'm afraid I'll swamp the boat.

More ballast in the rear will definitely ramp up the wave.


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[Snowslydder]

I am running a '18 Craz and I have noticed that the boat needs more roll and pitch then autowake suggests, at least for bigger people. I made a good wave one day that had push in the back of the wave and I could move up the wave without pumping and just pushing down on the front of my board. Figured it would be easy to recreate and we were not able to do it last weekend. So I know your frustration where you bought a new surf boat, expected to flip some switches and surf. Turns out building a wave is more of an art form then the videos show.

When we slammed it out and had most people in the back with the pitch close to 10 and the roll above 3 we saw tons in the back of the wave.

When we slammed it and it was 9 on the pitch and 2.5 on the roll the wave only had good push up front near the swim step and was really weak in the back.

We have been doing a ton of experimenting to find the best wave and are getting closer. We tried some of the 11+ speed setting that some people are recommending but found it hard to stay with the boat and the back of the wave did not have the push we wanted.

[Stazi]

I surfed goofy yesterday with 9.5” pitch and 5.5” roll and the wave was awesome.

What I have found to be the best trick for getting consistency is set up the wave how you want it with all the bags full, using the Cruise function, and get the wakeplate around 15% and port surfplate at 65% for goofy and 55% for natural foot.

Then I switched into autowake to see what my pitch and roll was with the wave how I liked it, then set the pitch and roll in the autowake menu to those values.

Then I could just leave it in Autowake and it would stay the same always!

The pitch was about the same for both sides, but the roll was slightly different.

Also I find that it’s better to fill all the bags manually first, before you engage Autowake, otherwise it won’t always fill everything, even if you have amplitude set to 100.....

I also surf at around 11-11.2mph, but my son who is 85# surfs at 12mph.

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180724/9305e731567bc2cf267a35f5e1e58298.jpg
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[wired1236]

So you guys are making me nervous. I posted a thread about ordering a Cruz and how we like to surf but if you buy a new boat that is advertised as being a surf boat, then have to add in lead sacks and change out the bags...?? That's extremely concerning! I guess I'm in for a trial ride before I sign on the dotted line. :(

Sounds like Moomba needs to go to a side wakeplate (wakegate) like everyone else.

[Stazi]

So you guys are making me nervous. I posted a thread about ordering a Cruz and how we like to surf but if you buy a new boat that is advertised as being a surf boat, then have to add in lead sacks and change out the bags...?? That's extremely concerning! I guess I'm in for a trial ride before I sign on the dotted line. [emoji20]

Sounds like Moomba needs to go to a side wakeplate (wakegate) like everyone else.
That design is patented, so they would have to pay royalties to Malibu if they did.
The first boats that came out had undersized bags (mine were 650’s). These days they are shipping with 900lb bags instead. Would it be better if they shipped with the biggest bags possible? Sure...but you would loose all storage space and exceed the max weight placards. Nonetheless people upgrade to get the biggest bags they can and don’t care about storage.
No matter what you order for a boat, you find that most people do upgrades because they want the biggest wave they can get. My buddies brand new G23 surfs no better than my boat with its stock ballast. Could he add bags on top of the Built intanks of course, but again this is an upgrade. And go price out the custom fit bags for a G23 and get back to us.....
At the end of the day you can buy a Moomba, add bigger bags, lead etc. and still be ahead in both performance and cost of a lot of the other boats out there.
Even my other buddy’s Axis which probably cost the same as my Craz and has a inferior interior, tower, dash etc, needs bigger bags to compete with my boat, and it comes with the Malibu gates. So it’s up to the buyer and what he values. I have yet to see a turn-key boat that compares with Moomba that gives you the same value for money.


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[larry_arizona]

Maybe buy a Malibu if you are dead set on the gate option.

Each OEM does it a different way.




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[KnoxMojo]

So you guys are making me nervous. I posted a thread about ordering a Cruz and how we like to surf but if you buy a new boat that is advertised as being a surf boat, then have to add in lead sacks and change out the bags...?? That's extremely concerning! I guess I'm in for a trial ride before I sign on the dotted line. :(

Sounds like Moomba needs to go to a side wakeplate (wakegate) like everyone else.

Everyone else? Besides Malibu and Nautique with NSS, everyone uses some sort of trim plate tab system. Btw, Axis only comes with hard tanks, you have to add plug and play bags to get a decent wave.

[wired1236]

That design is patented, so they would have to pay royalties to Malibu if they did.
The first boats that came out had undersized bags (mine were 650’s). These days they are shipping with 900lb bags instead. Would it be better if they shipped with the biggest bags possible? Sure...but you would loose all storage space and exceed the max weight placards. Nonetheless people upgrade to get the biggest bags they can and don’t care about storage.
No matter what you order for a boat, you find that most people do upgrades because they want the biggest wave they can get. My buddies brand new G23 surfs no better than my boat with its stock ballast. Could he add bags on top of the Built intanks of course, but again this is an upgrade. And go price out the custom fit bags for a G23 and get back to us.....
At the end of the day you can buy a Moomba, add bigger bags, lead etc. and still be ahead in both performance and cost of a lot of the other boats out there.
Even my other buddy’s Axis which probably cost the same as my Craz and has a inferior interior, tower, dash etc, needs bigger bags to compete with my boat, and it comes with the Malibu gates. So it’s up to the buyer and what he values. I have yet to see a turn-key boat that compares with Moomba that gives you the same value for money.


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Agree on all points. I'm not going to pay $100k+++ just to get a gate. I guess it's just disappointing you have to in this case as it's a great way to not list your boat. I'm sure there are many others that feel the same way but I don't want to start that whole conversation. That horse has been beaten enough IMO. Thanks all!

[Stazi]

Agree on all points. I'm not going to pay $100k+++ just to get a gate. I guess it's just disappointing you have to in this case as it's a great way to not list your boat. I'm sure there are many others that feel the same way but I don't want to start that whole conversation. That horse has been beaten enough IMO. Thanks all!

Most of us are running with a list of less than 5° so it not like the old days prior to the wave shaping devices where you were listed at 20°. It’s not even something I really notice anymore.


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[wired1236]

Most of us are running with a list of less than 5° so it not like the old days prior to the wave shaping devices where you were listed at 20°. It’s not even something I really notice anymore.


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That's what I'm starting to understand reading more of the posts. Good to hear!

[Snowslydder]

It took me a while to dial the wave in but, I added enzos and lead and my wake is huge. Watched a guy with an axis but the wake was really short. On lake Whatcom there is a guy with a Malibu that complemented the Moomba wake after seeing the rollers I was throwing across the lake.

[Jeepers]

If you look at that study comparing Mastercraft Surf tab system to Malibu’s gate system, the surf tabs outperformed the gate system on almost every category.

https://utahwatersports.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/Surf_Study_06.pdf

I truly believe the Surf Tab systems provide more push and adjustability over the gate system. My buddy at our lake has a 2016 Axis with Gate and his wave is no where close to the wave my old 08 LSV throws with the wakeland mfg surf tab system. He has added more weight to the bow and rear and still can’t throw a decent wave. In addition, the SurfGate system is either deployed or not. There is no adjustability.


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[Stazi]

If you look at that study comparing Mastercraft Surf tab system to Malibu’s gate system, the surf tabs outperformed the gate system on almost every category.

https://utahwatersports.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/Surf_Study_06.pdf

I truly believe the Surf Tab systems provide more push and adjustability over the gate system. My buddy at our lake has a 2016 Axis with Gate and his wave is no where close to the wave my old 08 LSV throws with the wakeland mfg surf tab system. He has added more weight to the bow and rear and still can’t throw a decent wave. In addition, the SurfGate system is either deployed or not. There is no adjustability.


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That’s a very interesting report! Man the A22 has almost 12° of pitch surfing!!


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[Snowslydder]

Also look at all of the youtube videos on wake9. They are running the tab system on SC boat and their wave is huge as well.

[Jeepers]

I think like others have mentioned on the forum; none of the “surf” boats come ready and optimized for a perfect wake. Whether it’s a G series nautique, mastercraft or top of the line Malibu. The stock ballast is not going to cut it. It all comes back to displacement and consistently weighting the boat appropriately; which skiers choice to my knowledge is the only company to have introduced a system to attain consistency.


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[wired1236]

That’s a very interesting report! Man the A22 has almost 12° of pitch surfing!!


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From personal experience, the report actually makes sense. All the way from the steering, gas consumption, and yes, even push. Nice to see some actual science behind it all.

[Scotch]

I'm new to the forum and bought my 1st surf boat in the Spring of 2018 (2018 Moomba Craz), and love it! This is my 6th boat; and I truly believe for the money you will not find a better boat in quality & build, and I have friends with Malibus, Mastercraft, and Nautiques for reference. I pretty much agree with Stazi & Snowslydder assessments, as does my Moomba dealer. I have a stock boat with 200 pounds of lead ballast under the FatSacs in each rear locker, and 100 pounds under the FatSac in the bow full time, for a total of 3500 pounds of ballast (usually have 6-8 people in the boat too). The surf instructors at me dealer said not to use the auto wake mode while surfing, they told me to fill up all the bags except maybe the non-surf side (90%), and run the wakeplate full Up (not deployed) at a speed of 10.8-11.5 or so, and surf tabs in the 50-60% range depending on regular or goofy (60 for goofy side surfing). This all works great for our family; I'm 6' 4" and weigh 210 lbs, and have no problem surfing 10' or so off the swim deck. My girls are in the 110 lb range, and I would say they can go back 15-20'. The wave is pretty steep and thus has great push, but I can also ease back carefully so I can build more speed when trying tricks. This is just the new guy observation, and I appreciate all of the advice on this forum thus far. Just wanted to talk the fella out of giving up on his Moomba too early, don't sell it!!

[Stazi]

Perfect!

I do pretty much the exact same thing but I run everything at 100% full ballast.

My crew is typically 3 adults and maybe 2x 11 year old boys so we also throw a 400lb bag on the floor right up against the back walls and sometime one more on the surf side seat.

It always better to add more weight than take it out.

I find I only really use Autowake for Wakeboarding. If I have a big crew of 8+ adults, then I’d turn on Autowake for surfing.


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[jnr4817]

It took me a while to dial the wave in but, I added enzos and lead and my wake is huge. Watched a guy with an axis but the wake was really short. On lake Whatcom there is a guy with a Malibu that complemented the Moomba wake after seeing the rollers I was throwing across the lake.

Where is your lead in the boat when surfing reg foot?