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Has anyone ridden on both? I have an 04 LSV and I'm just beging to get into mobes and such. I weight the 04 with about 2000 LBS of ballast and can't seem to get the wake big enough. im spicificaly looking for the differnce between the 06 lsv/xlv. XLV i know will throw out a big one but how does it compare to the LSV
Good question! I'd like to hear the same. I compared the 2005 models in my thread from last year:
http://www.moomba.com/bb/viewtopic.php?t=1831
However, I only test-drove the 2005 LSV -- I did not ride behind it. It looks like SC deepened the LSV in the 2006 model year, just like I wanted! They also lengthened it by 10 inches, making it 300lbs heavier and increasing weight capacity by 3 passengers (presumeably about 450 lbs). That's at the upper range of the sweet spot for a mid-size truck or SUV. My 1998 4-Runner struggles while towing the XLV uphill and is barely sufficient when launching my XLV.
I have a 2005 XLV. I can use up to 2100 lbs of ballast (two 750 lbs bags in rear, original 600 in front). However, that's too light in the bow for proper wake shape, so I usually have the rear bags about 2/3 full, front bag completely full, and put a passenger or two in the bow.
Even without full ballast, the wake is really big. I'm too busy trying to improve my technique and keep from soiling myself when heading toward a tsunami to measure the actual height while riding. However, I was watching a video of another rider behind my boat, ballast as described above, and had 7 people in the boat. He's about 6 feet tall, and the wake was up to his hip. He asked me to let out some ballast so that fear wasn't limiting his efforts. So, yes, the XLV will provide complete "doubt removal" regarding wake size.
In case you are wondering, no, the XLV is in no danger of being swamped with this much weight. Some owners of older LSV's have reported issues with this when hurriedly circling back through their own wake to retrieve a fallen rider. How about the 2006 LSV owners?
Also note that I found the XLV's wake to be WIDER than the 2005 LSV's wake. So, you can get a bigger boost, and a bigger challenge at the same rope length.
Ian
I bought the 06 LSV, the XLV has a little bigger wake but it is way too steep, but I'm not a pro, I'm just starting to get into a little more aggressive tricks. The 06 LSV is a great boat it has a great wake that is like a nice ramp. I don't use much ballast yet and it has a great wake with some adjustment with the hydralic wake plate. I have ridden with all three ballast full and the wake plate half way and the wake was sick. So it depends on if you like a steep wake or a nice ramp.
Jones, under what conditions were you riding behind an XLV? How was ballast and crew distributed?Quote:
Originally posted by Jones710
I bought the 06 LSV, the XLV has a little bigger wake but it is way too steep [...]
I ask because I find that the wake can be too steep if I have too much weight at the stern, so I don't fill my rear 750's all the way, and often have 1 or 2 crew sit in the bow when I want everything perfect. I plan to get a 1000lb front bag for next year, to even things out without inconveniencing people. The factory Gravity III bags were well-balanced.
Anyway, with proper weight balance, I find that the XLV has plenty of room to adjust the wake steepness to suit the rider, using the wakeplate. I'm no pro. Not at all... as I was reminded last night, when I couldn't really find my mojo despite good conditions, a perfectly tuned wake, a short rope, and ice packs awaiting my knees when I was done... At least I couldn't blame the boat! :-)
Ian