Of course it is only becoming more obvious how much gas I am burning with the higher gas prices but I have also noticed how much less my buddys 02 Xstar burns with similar weight. Went out and pulled 5 sets today and burned 18 gallons where he can ride all day and burn 12 gallons. Any ideas or suggestions?

340 monsoon by the way

Pretty interesting. I would love to see more tests.

wow 18 gallons for 5 sets I would look at re-proping. I to have the monsoon and can run all day on 20 gallons. we surf and board.

How do you figure out what prop to use for better fuel economy? My boat uses way to much fuel as well. But I can sac her out (almost 2000lb ballast) and never feel the difference.

the more weight you have the more torque you need. keep in mind as you re prop for the weight your going to loose top end speed. i experianced the same thing boat pulle out of the water the same weight or not but i also noticed the rpm differance 3k rpm empty was 25 mph 3k rpm weighted was 12mph. see the differance. talk to the guys at acme or oj they can help you out.

Today i was messing with my shops computer diagnostic computer that is set up for our Marine Powers that are in our Tiges. I noticed that one of the readings is GPH(gallons per hour). i didn't get a chance to run the boat to see what GPH it reads at the different RPM's but tomorrow i'm going to mess with it a little. If you want to know the exact GPH your boat is putting out contact your dealer and ask if they have the diagnostic set up for your motor. It may or may not have a GPH reading on it. next time i head out to the lake i'm going to test my RZ2 unweighted and weighted(2500lbs). also with the stock prop and the power prop that i run. it should be interesting.

Alex something is definetely wrong there. First of all the gas guage is not all that accurate, my boat has 1/4 tank more than the guage reads. You can replace your sending unit in the gas tank and it will improve but it still won't be dead on. Second of all I can run 2 days boating for 8 hours a day without running empty. This is a good 8 hours of boating a day, of course it's not set after set after set after set. The boat does get turned off and we sit for a while throughout the day. I run the ACME 1235 prop.

I always figure about 5-6 gph in my v-ride...I was told a VLX would be the same.

When I ride during the week there is no stopping for the most part. We ride one after another for usally 4 hours or so.

Still Alex I think that's not right. Might want to chat with your dealer about that.

nu bu is right that is not right that would mean you burn a whole tank in less than 8 hours. talk to your dealer for sure.

I did a little study when we were away over the Christmas break, we towed 25 sets and used an average of 2.9 gallons per set. All the riders were intermediate to advanced and had pretty good length sets, we were pushing 2000 pounds of ballast and did a little bit of cruising so the general consensus was it was money well spent. I know for a fact that a friend of mine's 05 VLX uses about the same as our boat loaded when running with factory only & wedge. On the plus side the VLX wake setup that way is ok, maybe a little whimpy. Bu's are notoriously thirsty to run when you ballast them up.

Darren I see what your saying but I run well over 2500 pounds all the time just moved around between surfing and boarding. I am still getting an all day trip out of less than half a tank. or just under 20 gallons. bye all day I mean 8+ hours. <BR> <BR>(Message edited by liljohn on March 31, 2008)

What prop do you guys run with the VLX's. I am going to reprop mine. I never run more than around 30, so losing top end isn't that big of a deal, looking more for efficiency and torque.

You definetely want the ACME 1235 or the OJ 475, you won't regret it. There should be a group buy over at the malibucrew pretty soon on props if you can wait. If not boarditup.com has the lowest everyday prices I've seen.

Thanks, this is on my upgrade list, along with the Fresh Air Exhaust.

There's one going on now over on the bucrew, but you need to be a paid member. The savings is worth the membership.

Stephen I might be able to give you a good deal on an ACME 1235. Let me know if you're interested.

sorry to hijack, but... <BR> <BR>nu bu I need another 1235 prop <BR> <BR>I have 2 stock props that I can trade..381....for 1 1235.. <BR> <BR>and my gas usage is similar to yours.....2 8 hour days or so to a tank....with the 1235 prop and the hammerhead <BR> <BR>(Message edited by ord27 on March 31, 2008) <BR> <BR>(Message edited by ord27 on March 31, 2008)

nu bu, I'm interested, I'll drop you a PM.

Cliff I'm only interested in a potential sale, not trade, especially since you're offering up a 381 which would hinder the performance greatly of my boat.