Hello Everyone! This is my first post and I apologize if it is long. I have been lurking on this site for some time now and have learned a lot; but I’m as confused as ever. I will appreciate any help you can offer. <BR> <BR>I am going to give a short bio about myself which may help you give advice. I am interested in everyone’s opinion, so please do not be shy (I know this is not a shy forum!). I am 39 and started wakeboarding two years ago when I bought a 2004 Yamaha SX230 (my first boat). I have taken to wakeboarding well, but the Yamaha is not a very good wakeboard boat. The wake is not only small, but it rolls, so I get practically no lift at all. I purchased a Taylor Tower for the Yamaha; however, my neighbor talked me out of installing it, reasoning that I still will not be happy with the wake board performance. I purchased the Yamaha trying to satisfy many needs: Wakeboarding/Tubing and Cruising/Entertaining. I find that the Yamaha does not do either good enough. I like the layout, swim platform, and reliability, but it does not excel at either end of the spectrum of what I want. So, I would like to either (a) find one boat that does everything well or (b) buy a dedicated wake board boat and a pontoon boat. I live in Badin Lake, NC and have a private dock that will fit up to three boats (one boat lift). First Question: <BR> <BR>Are there any boats (under $35K) that wakeboard well, but is also excellent for cruising/entertaining? If so, please give some recommendations. <BR> <BR>Secondly, my experience is limited to the Yamaha, so I am yet to experience a wake board boat. I do not know what features are most important on a wake board boat to get decent performance. I do not think that I need maximum performance, but I really don’t know. How much do I need to spend to get a decent performing wakeboard boat? <BR> <BR>Questions: <BR> <BR>I have noticed that I can get a 2000 Moomba Outback for about 10 – 14K (without a tower). If I installed my Taylor Tower, what kind of performance can I expect? Will it be good enough for a beginner to intermediate wake boarder? <BR> <BR>What would you recommend in a wake board boat in the $10 – 15K range? <BR> <BR>What would you recommend in a wake board boat in the $15 – 20K range? <BR> <BR>What would you recommend in a wake board boat in the $20 – 25K range? <BR> <BR>What are actually the most important features to look for? Perfect Pass, Ballasts, HP, direct drive vs V drive, etc? <BR> <BR>How old a boat it too old? How many hours on an engine is too many? <BR> <BR>As you can see here, I am completely lost! Worst of all, I am not even sure of the right questions to ask. <BR> <BR>Please! Please help! <BR> <BR>Thanks in advance!

First off buying a boat should be a fun expirence, so dont let anyone pressure you into something you dont want.Start looking locally and test drive as many different boats as you can.Visit the dealerships that are around your area and go in and ask questions just like you are doing here (get a feel of which dealship you think will help you out the most in the future)See if they have anything used priced right. <BR> <BR> To answer your first question yes there are good used wakeboard boats out there for 35k and under. Look in the boattradder, onlyinboards and all the other classifieds that offer wakeboard boats. Wakeboarding hasnt been real popular for very long so maybe a early 90s is about as old as i would want to go on a wakeboard boat, but for 35k you should be able to find something much newer. <BR> <BR>The options on theese boats is where you start getting into mucho money. So find out which ones are the most important for you. If your wife is going to be pulling you alot you might want perfect pass or if you pull up on the beach alot to hang with some buddys then maybe a rockin system is what you want to go with. <BR> <BR>Bottom line is all the major manufacturs build quality boats with quality powerplants. See which one fits your style and go for it!!

Spend some time searching the articles on this site, it will be a little painful, but you will find answers to all of your questions. Do a little research online like Kyle said and see what falls into your price range. Once you have determined what you can afford come back and be more specific with your questions. There is a tremendous amount of knowlege here, but your requests are too general. Narrow it down to 2-3 manufacturers and models and you will get a lot more helpful responses. <BR> <BR>Some general comments: <BR>-You can buy a lot of boat for $35 <BR>- if you plan on primarily wakeboarding, buy a vDrive with ballast (downside is they are more expensive than a direct drive). You can buy a less expensive direct drive and add external ballast which is what many of us started with in the beginning <BR>- perfect pass is a luxury item - not a necessity (although many might disagree) <BR>- no boat is too old - you have people on here riding on 70's,80's boats. <BR>- 1000 hours is pretty high, if has been well maintained it might be ok, I would stay away from anything around 1000 hours. <BR> <BR>There are many opinions of what constitutes a good boat. All manufacturers make great boats, they are just priced and equiped differently. <BR> <BR>Do some research, come back with more specific questions and the Wakeworld communinity can help you across the finish line.

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