Epic mod thread

I am actually the first signer on that owners site. It wouldnt' let me post anything at the time and I have never been back....lol

Nic,

doesn't rattle, fall forward, or anything.

i originally planned on bending the upper 1.5" of the panel back to meet the angle of the windshield. i was then going to have two small velcro circles to hold it in place up top with two more, one on each 'tab' in the middle. needless to say, no velcro was necessary. the angle is great enough that it stays perfectly in place. weight may help with that as well, it is 1/2" plexi so it is pretty heavy.

Ian, do you have a layout of this wind dam? I love the idea of not having channels. I just don't want to try to reinvent the wheel. Hoping you have, or would put something on cardboard for us and send it out?

Being in Canada, shipping a template to the US would be cost prohibitive for the 15 minutes it takes to pull the measurements off the boat. As far as radius goes for the lower corners though, I traced a beer can.

I cut the straight cuts with a festool track saw. dewalt makes one as well or just clamp on a guide and use a circular saw. Jig saw for the radius corners and tabs then a random orbit sander to clean it all up. Quick pass with a torch to melt the edges back to clear and 'voila'.

Let me know if you've got any other questions.

Wow sounds simple...thanks! and it just sits in there and doesnt move or shake huh...cool can't wait to give it a shot. 1/2" huh that may be the key.

Got my driver's compartment box carpeted and the sub/speakers mounted this evening.

Thanks Frosty, just ordered one. Here's a few pics of the transhield cover. Worked great for outside winter storage. Can't wait to get er wet!

Oops. How do I post pics?

Fred, click on "manage attachments" in the advanced reply section.

scott,

ya, just be sure to use 1/2" as I'm sure the weight has a lot to do with keeping it in it's place.

Here we are. Thanks Tuneman. Hey anyone have a secret to cleaning off water stains? My boat's windshield is bad on the driver side. It was like that when I bought it, I just figured it would come off easy with Invisible Glass. That didn't work, along with windex and amour all glass cleaners.

50/50 water and vinegar worked for me for water spots. Give that a try for your water stains.

Mario-

I used to use 50/50 water/vinegar on the whole boat, but I recently switched to babes for the hull. I tried babes on the windows, but nothing beats vinegar.

Is anyone here keeping their boat in the water?

Any ill effects in regard to the gelcoat? blistering?

I ask because of the notice that says warranty will not cover gelcoat issues as a result of leaving the boat in the water. Completely ludicrous if you ask me and I have every intention of leaving my watercraft in the water. The same dirty, muddy water that my glastron sat in for 2 summers with no issues.

Longest I have kept mine in the water was a 6 days. No issues, which you would expect haha. This season I bought a lift to keep it up out of the water. Not so much to avoid blistering, but to keep it clean. I agree that its strange that a boat can't sit in the water......There are several marinas near me in which a huge number of people leave their boats floating all season.

Might be a dumb question, but are Epics drive by wire? I'm ordering a star gazer upgrade for my perfect pass and it asks if your boat is DBW.

Throttle and shift are by wire. But there still is a steering cable.

I'm sure they're only concerned with the throttle though.

I would call PP and find out. They have awesome customer service.

With any luck my boat will finally be on the water this weekend!! Can't wait. Its going to get a bath on saturday and then get dumped in. Supposed to have a nice weekend for it as well.

Nic-

Turn it up while u r on the water Saturday...I'll see if i can hear it @ my house :-)......

haha will do ICE! I hooked up my subs last night though and to my horror the wet sounds amp for the subs wasn't working. argggghhhh!! It sure puts out a lot of treble and highs though haha

Ian, every boat manufacturer says the same thing concerning leaving your boat in the water. It's just a common thing with gelcoat to have osmosis going on. Gelcoat is actually porus. If you never had blisters on your last boat, I would suspect that you won't get them on this boat.

*Mechanical engines include any engine that uses a PerfectPass Servo Motor & cable.

** Drive by Wire engines are only found on late model boats from MasterCraft, Nautiques, Malibu, MB, etc. These boats do not have a servo motor and the existing Master Module under dash will be clearly marked DBW.

This is off of the Perfect Pass website. Mine is not DBW.

Fred, They're talking about the throttle cable. The Epic's with the Merc's are DBW.

It's easy enough to tell. With the boat off, move the throttle back and forth. Can you see anything moving near you intake? If so, it's not DBW.

What type of gas is everyone running? The boat is going on the lake tomorrow and needs a fill. I had been just putting in gas right on the lake from the local marina. It costs 4.50 a gallon though. Now that I have a gas buggy I can fill it up in town and cart it to the dock.

I also figured out my subwoofer amp issue. My distribution block that splits my 1/0 gauge power wire into 4 4gauge outputs is fused between each output. I replaced the fuse on the output for the sub amp and it started working. If I put the old fuse back in the amp turned on but would only output an almost inaudible amount of volume. Strangest thing ever.

I always run premium in my boats, but I am always dragging it from home to the lake so it's easy to fill up at the station and get some beer and ice too!!! =)

All Epic Volvo Penta engines are a "hybrid" drive system. (if I mistaken let me know)

For the purpose of PPass it is mechanical.

I have been through every system of the V Penta engine so unless there is a certified tech here, I will be more than happy to answer any questions you have about that 8.1 Volvo Penta in our Epics.

I use Reg 87 with no issues in my Penta engine.

87 octane works just fine.

Nic, that fuse thing is wierd. I've never heard of that. Usually it's all or nothing.

Sounds like I'll fill up my buggy with 87 then.

Yeah Joe, that is why it didn't even cross my mind to check the fuse. I figured it can't be a blown fuse if it still powers up.

The boat is rockin loud now though wow! Loud and tight. The subs are some of the best I've heard.

Hey guys, I know it is still early (hell my boat isn't here yet) but I would love some water pics of you guys out USING these PIMP boats...... throw em up.

Joe, Ice, Nic, Fred come on.....you got the boat now lets see the skills BEHIND the boat....=)

haha i have about 0 skills as I have only wakeboarded 3 times in my life. This will be the year I learn. I can ride and carve no problem as I am quite a good snowboarder, but I have only landed a wake to wake jump once and it wasn't pretty.

It's been 50 and raining for what seems like a month now. It's sposed to finally warm up this weekend but I can't get out. I do have some pic's from last fall though. I'll post them this evening.

Looking good guys like those mods! The following link has some shots of guys riding behind an EPIC in New Zealand at a comp that we towed.

2010 WakeStyles

Yeah mine is definitely mechanical. Ordered the Stargazer upgrade and FAE today. Can't wait. I won't get on the water till last weekend in May though.

I've heard ethanol gasoline is bad for boats. Where I usually fill up with 87, it says "may contain ethanol" for regular and mid grade, but premium is ethanol free. Gas is stupid expensive up here, so I've always just put in regular. No issues yet, knock on wood. Not sure how much they mean by "may contain" anyway.

I also plan on getting a lot more pics this year. Will post as they come.

Scotty-

After I FINALLY landing a wake-to-wake a few years back, I thought that naturally the next step was to try sometype of grab with a little twist or something (don't really know exactly what I was trying to do?) Anyways, I landed it...ON MY HEAD! About knocked myself out...dazed...ears ringing for like 30 minutes...not good.

22MPH + 255lbs.+ eating $h!T head first= Surfing's best friend!

That was early summer of '07, haven't strapped on my wakeboard since :-)

Here's a pic, not really showcasing my 'limited' skillz, but I like the shot

ICE

Yeah that pic is very cool. Love the sunlight. Almost like you are holding the sun. Cool. I too took a massive header last year which really slowed me down. This year I am rocking a new board, new bindings, NEW BOAT!! and best of all new HELMET. =) So my hope is all those things combined (helmet esp) will alloy me to try some things and not knock myself stupid. I would much rather lose brain cells with a Coors Light in hand than to knock them out. As soon as I get the boat I will take pics and post, and also take some of my first run behind her! I seriously can't wait. I think my first run is going to come with Gary Smith, the owner of Epic, when I pick up the boat. He also said he may be able to get a few really great riders to show us a few things. Don't know if that means pro's or not but we will see. Cool pic, guess all of us EPIC owners have deep wallets but not deep skills....go figure...HA.

Here's last fall. We did surf for a little while, but we didn't get any good pic's.

And yes, I did eat it on that last one!

For those of you with the channeling installed for your wind dams. Do you find yourself kicking the channeling often or wishing it wasn't there?

I haven't kicked it at all. Mine is black, so it blends in nicely with the window frame and heater vents. My buddy came over just this morning and said how nice it turned out.

So to answer your question, no. I actually like it the way it is.

Nic-
We haven't kicked it yet, but we have only been out once with it since installing the channeling, it hasn't been a problem yet.

Below are some pics of the drain plug in the bottom of the cooler...SO MUCH NICER than having to pump or hand bail the water out. My dealer mechanic installed it right next to the V. He installed it towards the back of the cooler, a guy could probably install closer to the front or right in the middle if they wanted to. Just uplug on your after coming up the ramp and by the time you are home, all your water is gone...SO MUCH BETTER!

Drain looks good. That's one I'll do for sure. Thanks for posting pics.

Wow weren't you freaking out to put a hole in the bottom of that boat? Not sure I can have the balls to do that. What does that do to the factory warranty?

Ice, That looks good. I have the parts for mine, just haven't had the time for the install.

Scott, I talked to Jason at Epic. He said it would NOT void the warranty.

Nice Joe. You going to do it yourself? Is it true you should run the drill in the opposite direction when cutting a hole in the hull? avoid chipping?

I am hopeful my damn boat will be here soon. Been almost 3 weeks now. I can't hardly stand myself.

my youngest, this is his 2nd season. and the 2nd one was from Jan

I dunno about that drain location, then again I can't remember if your cooler has a drain to the bilge like mine does. I mounted mine in the flat portion of hull in between the scupper and paddle wheel. My bilge pump is there also instead of in the rear like yooz guys!

yeah you do have a drain that enters the bilge. I would pull that and let the water drain into the engine compartment bilge and then let it drain from there. either way you have to pull a plug. I remember when driving the '09, we would cruise for like a minute at 9mph, get the bow up and water would drain aft, put the plug back in and the bilge would take care of the rest. If you really need a plug, put in the flat section of hull right in front of the tranny and under that rear pass seat cushion. My .02.

Scott, yeah I am doing it myself. And yes it is very important to run the drill backwards for about 3/16". You have to make sure to go easy through the gel coat.

Fred, I hear what your saying about draining the cooler to the back. But I really don't want to keep mixing the engine bilge water with the cooler water. In fact, once I drill the cooler, I'm going to put some silicone in the hole that goes back. My buddy is making my a V shaped drain hole. That way I can mount it in the center and get all the water out.

Have any of you done the 20 hour service yet? I'm assuming some have, but quite a few of us on here got our boats end of season last year. I was just wondering if I should have them replace the impeller when I have the service done.

I'm having it done this weekend. I went out last night and noticed that the trim gauge stopped working the whole time we were on the water. You could still adjust it but the gauge was stuck on zero. It was like this for about two hours until I put the boat back on the trailer and all of the sudden the gauge worked again????? Any ideas on what was shorted out in the water?

Nic,

I did 20 hr service with winterization last fall. Just take it in to a local certified mercury shop and they'll take care of you.

I didn't do the impeller but of course it wouldn't hurt.

Just broke 40 hrs the last day out. would be happy to break 50 by this time next week...keep it up weather!

Sweet thanks Ian. I think I will get my impeller done as long as I have it in there. I had a buddy last year whose impeller shredded and really created a pain in the ass. Granted, he had an open loop cooling system so it created a bigger headache, but I wouldn't want the same to happen.

I recently calibrated my perfect pass over the weekend and I have since had several instances where I get no speed reading at all, both when trying to use perfect pass and when just cruising. Anyone had this happen before?

We finally had some nice weather on a day that I wasn't completely booked up. We got out and messed with the surf wake a bit. So far, the best we found was, front and left full, another 600# (well maybe 500#, the bag wasn't full) in the left rear storage, 11.7mph, and 1/2 trim tab. We had 2 guys, and my girl in the boat. The wake was big, with plenty of push. Next time out I'm going to try more weight up front, rear locker full, and maybe a little in the right. Also, I'm hoping more front weight will equal less tab.

The tab is sweet for tweaking the wake. But you sacrifice wake height for a longer pocket.

I still can't believe how fast this thing gets out of the hole with all this weight. It really is impressive.

Joe,
Do you have the smart tow set to 11.7 when surfing?

I think this is sorta funny. The EPIC owners are some of the most active on this site. This thread is soooo long now.

11.7 on the smart tow.

That's another thing that rocks. It holds speed better then my Perfect Pass ever did. And at the time, I thought it did a pretty good job.

I especially like the launch settings. You get the same pull every time.

Thanks Joe,
I'm still at work and saw I missed your call. Assume you were calling about the smart tow. Greg told me to turn the boat on and off via the push button on the throttle instead of the key. That way the GPS brain does not lose power and have to re-aquire the satellite signal.

Nic, That's true. He told me the same last season. I needed a pic of your trailer suspension. If you could, hold the camera right between your wheels. I need to look at where the 2 springs meet at the equalizer. That's If your trailer is at home.

My trailer is at my parents house. I will be heading there saturday morning to take the boat out. Is that too late or would you still like me to snap one?

Scott-

Don't know if you got your wrap done yet or not, but here are some pics of a wrap that our local Epic Dealer, Prestige Water Sports had put on one of their '08's that they have for sale. It was done by wrapworld.

Nic, Sat's good. I'll let you know if I come up with something else before.

Originally Posted by _vitty_

Sweet thanks Ian. I think I will get my impeller done as long as I have it in there. I had a buddy last year whose impeller shredded and really created a pain in the ass. Granted, he had an open loop cooling system so it created a bigger headache, but I wouldn't want the same to happen.

I recently calibrated my perfect pass over the weekend and I have since had several instances where I get no speed reading at all, both when trying to use perfect pass and when just cruising. Anyone had this happen before?

always keep a spare impellar in the boat…ALWAYS!

So you have perfect pass and not smart tow? If you lose speed reading is it just on the PP gauge or the speedo as well? 2 things come to mind right away. 1. The paddle wheel got stuck, pull it out and check for free motion. 2. The connection is loose or had moisture built up on the back of the speedo. The paddle wheel harness goes to the speedo first and then tithe contol module, I may be mistaken but I have had struggles with the same issues.

ICE,

I haven't got a wrap done yet. That is very nice looking. I went with the black hull and force graphic. I may not wrap my boat this year and wait till next year. We will see. I like that wrap tho...I have also found a MC wrap that I love, instead of Mastercraft in the center put EPIC and I like that font. I will see if I can find that picture on this computer if not, I have it at home I will throw it up here for you guys to look at. I think it would look sick on an EPIC.

http://waterskimag.com/files//2010/0...at-wraps-3.jpg

I have no idea how to post a pic...can't figure it out...copy and paste this into a web browser. I have this picture saved in MY PICTURES. so if someone can tell me how to post it all the better...=)

Hey Fred,
I meant to say smart tow. I believe my issue was shutting the boat off with the key which killed power to the gps brain. I then turned the boat back on and tried to use the smart tow before it got sat signal.

Will do Joe. Will get you a picture saturday.

scott, don't use the quick reply. Instead go to the Post Reply button and find the "paperclip" attachment button. That will allow you to post pics as well.

Scott, also as far as wraps go, be carefull it is trademarked - MC just might come lookin' for ya! lol.

Nic - how can you possibly confuse Smart Tow with PP? I would trade you my PP and left testicle (wife owns the rights to the right one) for smart tow if it would work with my Penta engine.

Thanks....just tried, file is too big, so I will just leave it. MC can come lookin all they want...lol. It would change enough that it wouldn't be theirs anyway. I hate skulls, and that is just a design type. So I would have that sort of design but with my small changes to make it mine. Don't think I am going to do it right away anyway. I think I am going to get my boat by FRIDAY. 7 days...! and COUNTING...

Very nice Scott, Just in time for Memorial day!

Hey Scott - I just got off the phone with Greg, your boat wont be ready until Mid June........................

just having fun at your expense.....I haven't talked to Greg about your boat : )

haha funny funny! =) Been waiting almost too long already! I can't hardly stand it. Helps that it has done nothing but rain and cold here still but, I want it in my driveway to LOOK at. That is more fun than waiting!!!

Do you have any idea how many days I climb in my boat, sit in the capt chair , in my driveway and just chill.....so many times its just sad.....

Damn shut up FRED you are KILLIN ME! lol

That being said I just got off the phone with Gary at Epic. Can I just say again, for ANYONE READING THIS POST.... Those guys at EPIC are some of the nicest and best guys around. They are doing everything and MORE for me. They are BY FAR the best company to ever deal with when buying a boat. Seriously, I work in the people industry (State Farm Agent) and can't tell you how cool it is to be able to speak with whomever at EPIC and everyone know my name and who I am. Gary is FIRST CLASS all the way. Just had to throw him props.

Damn, I am so excited about my boat !!! Anyone want to come to INDIANA and ride with me that first week, not sure the boat will even get dry it will be out so much!!!

Originally Posted by olmoomba

Do you have any idea how many days I climb in my boat, sit in the capt chair , in my driveway and just chill.....so many times its just sad.....

I thought I was the only one who did that...

m-

Sometimes I just sit. But then I always start ripping things apart and modifying them. It's a sickness I think.

I finally picked up my EPIC! We took it out for the first time yesterday and it rocked! I've been waiting forever to post here as an Epic owner, finally...

Brian, Is that the 08' that was for sale in WI? I tried to contact the seller a few times with no luck. Either way, your going to love it.

Where do you ride?

Congrats Brian. Nice to see Epic owners growing in numbers. There was another guy who must have just picked one up as well who made a thread on ballast fill.