Rough water ride LSV v. XLV v. Launch 24SSV

[.264 magnum]

Most days my lake features lots of choppy water from boat traffic and wind. I love my '08 LSV but it does beat us up at bit when we cruise from place to place in the chop.

My dealer says the XLV rides quite a bit better, in rough water, due to being a bit heavier, 1.5 feet longer and mostly because the hull is shaped differently.

He also mentioned the Supra Launch 24 SSV. At 24 feet long plus 5 inches more beam it looks like an intriguing boat.

Chime in please and thanks.

[sandm]

the supra is wider, heavier and longer, so it SHOULD handle a choppy lake a little better than the xlv, but probably not enough to really notice a difference..

my guess would be this will boil down to which boat you like better and fit your budget. my .02, I'd buy the supra if I had the coin, and the xlv if price of the supra is an issue.

you won't be disappointed with either one, but they really are for 2 different markets imo.

[you da man]

I run in 2ft chop often in my XLV with no problems

[Membrain]

Fill your bags about half full, and you'll plow right thru! Smooth!!!

[Ian Brantford]

The thing about being wider is that it catches more wave, about comparable to the difference in weight. In fact, the XLV (without ballast) isn't that much heavier than a current LSV. I found that my XLV had pretty much the same feel in chop as my 18' runabout with a medium-depth V at the bow.

Bottom line: test drive one. You'll probably find other reasons to upgrade, with your original reason being in the middle of the list, rather than at the top of it. It doesn't matter whether it's the XLV or Supra -- you'll be suffering from two-foot-itis and will want to upgrade. If you've got a spouse, turn over your wallet for safe keeping before getting in the bigger boat.

[patrick232]

I agree with filling the bags it helps alot. We have a XLV and switched from a 26' Ebbtide. Test drove a couple of boats in 2-3 ft chop and the difference between filling the bags was night and day. With the bags filled our XLV rode almost as good as our Ebbtide.

[Ian Brantford]

I forgot to mention: in XLV or LSV, you can try leaving the center bag perhaps half-full during your cruise. This will make the ride better in chop without the wallet-draining effect of using three full bags of ballast.

[.264 magnum]

Thanks guys. When the chop is bad I fill the front bag partially full and drop the wake plate some and certainly doing those things helps but the ride is still not good at times.


Ian knows my thinking too tell - LOL!
I'm sure during my test drive I'll find other reasons to upgrade.