New Boat Time Tige rz2 vs. mastercraft x35 vs. malibu 23lsv vs. supra launch 242
 

I am starting to look at getting a new boat and have some questions that would help my decide which boat would be best for me. I have test drove the x35 i really like the big bulky body of the boat but i didnt really get to see it in rough water since my test drive was at 9:00 am. So my first question which out of these four boats with aftermarket ballast will throw the biggest wakeboard wake and most important surf wake? Next i would like to know which of the four boats can handle the rough water the best ecause we go out on th inlets a good bit? Last which of the four boats has the sturdiest tower i really hate when my tower bounces and moves alot?
Thank You, Brando Miles

Oh boy...... Brandon these posts happen all the time and you are going to get a million opinions, but make sure you take them all with a grain of salt. Most of us own boats and have boaters goggles as to why our boats our better. The reality is you need to go and test out all of the boats and see what works best for your family. They are all fairly comparable boats, but each are going to have their advantages and one might suit your needs much better than it would suit another guys needs. So basically you really need to go develop your own opinion in the end form a good relationship with a good dealer. The dealer can make or break your satisfaction after the sale. With all that being said you should definitely buy the Supra!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

With all the criteria you have there I would look at the Tige's you might want to add the Tige Z3 to your list. They should give you a good ride in rough water a great surf wake. They are all great boats and each has there niche where they outshine the other. Good luck with your purchase.

I would look at the new MC X-30 over the X-35. Less money and compete's better with the other boats listed. I had to decide between those exact same boats this spring. All of them are so awesome. Good luck. There are a lot of posts comparing these boats. All should be priced "similar".

Yes, you should look at the Z3, in fact i have a lightly used Z3 that will be available for purchase early July :)

Wait for it!

what would you be looking to get out of the boat

You really need to test all of those boats as other have mentioned. But since you asked:

Based on your criteria of surf wave and rough water ride, IMO you have an interesting list. All of these will have a great wakeboard wake.

Supra 242: not a great rough water ride. I have yet to see a Surpa have a great surf wave. I am sure you can get a good surf wave but I dont think it will be on par with some of the other boats. The Surpa hulls are fairly flat at the back.

Tige RZ2: great surf wave and rough water ride. If you are going out in pretty rough water consistently, I would want a larger boat if I can afford it. Best surf wave of the boats listed.

Bu 23: not a great rough water ride. Will get a very solid surf wave with the blade and custom sacs. Will take more weight to get a great wave.

MC 35: I dont know much about MC boats. With that said, I have never heard of anybody say anything good about MC surf wave other than the X25. The X 25 will have a great surf wave and rough water ride since it originally was MC Deep V offshore boat.

I generally dont like to add new boats to a specific boat thread, but based on the rough ride and surf wave, you really need to take a look at Enzo 233/244 and Tige Z3

i dont know about the new hull, but my LSV Feels like a bulldozer rolling down a hill in rough water...

what do yall thing about the rz4 i really like the pitch fork fronr end

PM sent

JKW - I would have to politely disagree and I think most would. Supra probably has one of the best rough water rides. I would say Supra and Tige would win that category. As for the surf, it is definitely a taller, steeper and shorter wave. It will clean up perfectly if you weight it properly, but it does not have the long wave that you might be talking about.

Not saying Supra is the boat for him. None of us know, only him after he does his demoing, but as I stated in my first post you will get lots of opinions, but I think most would disagree that it is not a rough water boat....

Tyler: Well we will just have to agree to disagree. IMO, compared to the Deep V hull of a Enzo or Tige the Bu and Supra are not a smooth rough water ride (I am not saying they are terrible, but just OK). With that said, the Bu/Surpa feel much more responsive when you are turning, etc. As for surf wave, I believe you can get a clean surf wave out of nearly any V drive boat. With that said, they are not all equal. The Supra surf wave does not even compare to a Centurion Enzo/Avy, Tige Z3/RZ2, Supreme 226, Sanger 237, Bu 247, etc. I will say that the new Mojo looks promising.

As always, just my opinion. He should test drive all of the boats he can and form his own opinion.

Brandon, looks like you have a tough choice ahead of you! Go test ride/drive them all and see which one works best for you. I am partial to the RZ2 myself having owned one for 5 years now. My #1 criteria when we first started looking at wakeboats was rough water ride and I was steered towards Tige and Supra immediately. I can say without a doubt that the RZ2 handles rough water very well! I can also say that the RZ2 is VERY easy to build a great surf wave (on both sides of the boat) and that it throws a pretty good wakeboard wake. The RZ2 has a 2,000 lb ballast option and I would suggest that you test drive one and check it out. Also, the RZ2 will NOT require a bigger engine, the 343hp engine is more than adequate even with 2,000 lbs of ballast. Search this section and you will see that another member, Bruizza, just selected an RZ2 and was impressed that the 343hp engine did so well.

Good luck with your test drives!

Like everyone is saying test drive them all. Might be worth checking into the RZ4 since you seem to want a bigger boat. We recently did the new boat thing and water tested the RZ2, X25, and VLX. The RZ2 was the right boat for us. One of our big criterial was rough water ride and the Tige excelled in that area followed by e X25. The tower on the Tige is super super solid but it is on worthy shorter towers out there. The surf wave is awesome on the Tige and the wakeboard wake is legit. We have the 2000lb ballast option and boat at 5000ft of elevation and the 343 does fine. Never thought I'd say that! Going into our demos I was sure we would end up with the Bu. so demo demo demo!!!

i have always found that most v drives produce a great wakeboard wake, but most v drives do not make for great surf wakes. yes, you can get a wave, but at what cost, bags everywhere, long fill times and the danger of listing the boat. I also think the the new mojo has promise. i am bias because i have a 244 enzo and it has a massive surf wave, but i think the new z3 tige, and x30 mc will also have great waves. more boat companies are realizing that surfing is growing faster than most expected, we are all getting older.lol i also would like to see the new mb f24 i bet it also will make a massive wave. good luck,

JKW - Totally agree with you on that, but Centurion was not mentioned by the OP and hence why I did not bring that in for comparison. Of the brands mentioned above the Supra and Tige will have the best rough water ride. Just an FYI Supra has one of the deepest V hulls of inboard boats. Yes a flatter back, but a deep V and hence the rough water ride. I don't think the characteristics are similar to Malibu at all in that respect, but who knows....

Out of curiousity, not being biased or jumping to conclusion, but why are you looking at almost every manufacturer except Nautique?

^^^ becasue If you by a Nautiqe you have to spend 120k or you get a row boat....

Ok, so the ride is a little better than Bu and not as good as Tige. The surf wave is not as good as Tige or Bu. If I was to rank these four boats in the order I would buy them based on just Surf/Ride (not taking into account dealer/finish out/price, etc): Tige, Bu, Surpa, MC. With that said, I think his list does not include the best boats based on his surf/ride criteria.

Disclaimer: I think the top 8 boat brands all have very nice boats. I believe that choosing a boat really comes down to person preference. So test as many as you can. For me, I ride on larger lakes and spend all my time with the family surfing/swimming/tubing so the Enzo 244 was the best choice for me. By know means, is it the boat for everybody.

So the rz2 and z3 look like goos prospects i would like to know how sturdy the new z towers are and are you able to tow tubes from them

Anyone saying the 242 doesn't have a great surf wake has never been behind it with an 1100 in the rear. That wave was enormous, I was really impressed. It doesn't get marketed as a surf boat but it has a really sick wave.

I can tell you the Z tower on my Z3 is rock solid, truly rock solid.

RZ2/Z3 also have ski pylons to tow from. That alpha z tower is very sturdy! Go to the dealership and try to push it around.

I don't particularly love surfing but I used to have a Moomba XLV (23 foot) and we had a lot of weight and the surf wave was great.

Then I got my X-30 and saw the difference between a short and long wave. The push on the X-30 is so much more then our last boat. Everyone who has surfed it has said how awesome and smooth and clean it is. And that is with only factory 350lbs in the rear but i have some PnP bags to add in and then it will be even better. Like I said we just surf when we are tired from wakeboarding, but the wave is excellent.

We are dialing the wakeboard wake. Its a lot different then the XLV was. Wider, and more mellow. You have to cut a little harder to make it W2W but one nice thing is you can really charge it and it's very smooth. Its changing my riding a bit but for the better I think. With the really steep wake sometimes you would get bucked when you hit it but on the X-30 its never like that.

The rough water ride and driving/handling of this boat is also far superior to the XLV, but I haven't driven all of the boats you mentioned so I can't comment on them. I would say if you are looking at all these boats test drive an X-30. You won't be dissappointed.

Brandon I am not pro any one brand but check out the wakeboard wake on the Z 3 yes there is extra ballast on top of this. I know ragboy over at the tige group has done tons of testing on the wakesurf wake. I would look at this boat over the rz2 unless your die hard on a pick fork.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature...&v=cT-c-UaZNgA

mastercraft x35 surf wake: http://slayshtank.com/2011/06/mastercraftwakesurf/

haveN,t tried the tige or supra but from past experience, the MC handles rough water better than the Bu.

Your X25 and X35 will have your best rough water ride. The X25 will be your best MC boat that meets your criteria. I would definitely look at the Z3 though as your first choice here. Avoid Supra and Bu. Might be worth it to take a Nautique out for a spin too, either a 230 or a G23 if it's in your price range.

Loook at the size of those fins on that surf board!!!

IMO take a look at the Z3 like already mentioned. Surf wake is phenomenal with the factory option Pro Ballast, and the rough water handling is great. We had our Z3 on Lake Norman a few weeks ago on a Sunday afternoon. More boat traffic and winds than I normally care to go out in, but we wanted to get on the water. It handled the chop with ease and everyone in the boat stayed dry. I know you mentioned you like the pickle fork, but the bow area of the Z3 is HUGE.

Another important aspect that doesn't get mentioned a whole lot, is the dealership. The dealership you buy from will most likely be the place you want to take it back to for maintenance and service. Take how they treat you into account when you look at the different brands. IMO a dealership can make or break the boat buying/owning experience.

Have fun with your search, test drive them all just like you were going to use them when you are on the water.

What he said... I think the dealer plays a big part in your boat choice, choose one that is not too far away, in wich you'll have total confidence about letting them do your maintenance. They should also offer you a great service.