Wake Surf Help please!
 

Alright my family just bought a 2004 Malibu Wakesetter 23 LSV. I just have 2 questions about it, we are looking at surf boards and I honestly don't know what board to get we want a board that everyone can ride and we can begin and progress on, right now I was thinking of getting the Phase 5 Prop. Anyone know anything about that board? And my second question. Is my stock ballast in it enough? Or do I need more. Im not talking like I need a huge wake but is my stock ballast enough to ride without an issue? Any help would be very appreciated!! Thankyou so much!

I have friend with the exact same boat. Stock ballast would be a challenge to surf on. He fills up the MLS (stock) and add 1100lb in the rear locker and 800lbs on the seat with only 4 in the boat.

We have a 21' VLX and surf it (without the rope) with only 1 750# sac in the rear locker on the surf-side. We're to the point now where we're trying 360s and airs all again with that little amount of weight. How much weight does your ballast hold in the rear locker? if its around 750, you should be able to surf it. You'll want more weight in the very back surf-side when using a skim tyle board since they don't offer much speed down the line. The more weight you have concentrated in the back, the more push your wave will have, and the more push you wave has, the less your rider has to pump. If you get the phase 5, just expect your beginners to look like newborn deer when they first get up, awkward and all over the place. Skim-style boards are pretty loose feeling so I unusually have our first timers start on a longer surf-style board. That way they're stable and can get a feel for surfing without being all over the place. Usually if the rider has a better experience they're first time out they're much more likely to continue later on. I hope any of that helps.

I also forgot to mention that our LSV has the power wedge as well. I haven't been able to check the boat to see what ballast is in it but i'm almost positive its just the stock ballast with the power wedge. if I fill the ballast and drop the wedge do you think that would be enough? Also we usually have 10 people on the boat all sitting on surf side.

put a thread on Malibucrew forums. Some of those dudes get the LSV dialed! I had a V-ride a couple years ago and ended up removing the wedge as it drags the entire back of the boat down and you only want to list one side..... Good luck!

Stock would be tough. One 750 should get you a decent wake, good enough to learn on. If you don't want to buy a bag yet, get 6 or more good size friends, and have them all sit as close as they can in the rear corner. Buy a big plastic tub from home depot and put it in the back locker, and fill with water using a Homer bucket. That should give you an idea what your wake can be like with and without weight in the rear. Think you will want to buy at least one bag not long after that.

Agree that easiest board to learn on is a big long thick foam core board with big fins (Hyperlite Landlock is what we use, but not sure they still make it). You can learn to go ropeless on that, but once you get to that point, you will want something more maneuverable pretty quick.

If you want to do spins, a skim style board (usually one to three small fins, and usually not more than 58" long) is best. If you are more about airs and jumping, a surf style board with 3 or 4 bigger fins is often best. There are hybrids in between, and this is oversimplified, but it should help you get started.

Stock ballast only will not be surfable. Man-up and put at least 1000 pounds on the surf side and get in water greater than 10 feet deep just to get a surfable wave.

I had an 06 LSV.. not really surfable stock, but can be turned into a very nice wave.