X-15 Review

Darren at MC of Seattle took us out for a spin on the X-15. He hooked us up.

After seeing the other boat reviews, we feel like we owe Darren one. Here it goes:

We skied and wake boarded on the X-15.
The skiing was good enough for us.
The wakeboarding was awesome.
We didn't surf, but I bet the surf wake would be good.

The wake was good with stock ballast. We could do all our tricks (rolls, spins, etc) with stock ballast, but it wasn't the massive air we are after.

So, we added about 1,800 more weight on top of the approx 1000 of stock ballast.

Just so you know, we add additional ballast to all the boats we ride, Malibu, Tige and SAN. So, I am not saying the stock ballast is weak.

After we added the extra weight, we got what we were looking for. A giant, smooth, and rampy wake.

Power:
We demo'ed the 350 hp engine. The engine handled the weight great. The trim tab was nice. We trimmed down to easily get the rider up. Once the rider was up, we trimmed up to make the wake huge. We could have added even more weight if we had it. The extra 1800 lbs didn't phase the 350 motor.

Ride:
The boat rode well. It was very smooth, had enough power, and was easy to drive. Even with all the weight, it didn't feel like a tank.

Stability:
The boat sits pretty high, even with all the weight. It seems very sea worthy for its size, if that matters to you. This boat would do fine in large lakes or big bays.

Features:
The VDIG seemed cool and easy to use. There were spots to plug in yor IPod and Video cameras. However, I didn't mess with it that much. I am not the best guy to be reviewing gadgets.

Durability:
This is what we liked best about this boat's interior. We all use our boats a lot. We have our rider buddies who all know how to respect the boat, but we also have family, kids, dogs, 4th of July parties, etc where maybe not everyone is so gentle on or boats. So, we like a boat that can stand up to some abuse.

This boat feels like it was made to stand up to a lot of use and abuse. IE - I feel like we could have a wrestling match in it and nothing would get busted. It felt like it was commercial grade.

What we liked best:
Wake
Salt Water Series - built for salt from the ground up
Sea Worthy - important for us who boat in big bays
Durability
Snap Out Carpet
Smooth Ride
Trim Tab - for skiing, gettng riders up, and for driving around
Storage - huge
Ballast - we can easily tap off the existing plumbing to add about 2000 of additional auto ballast to this boat - for 3000 lbs total.
Versatility - we still ski the course, but primarily wakeboard. This boat can do both. It won't be awesome in the ski course, but it will be good for a wakeboard boat.

What we didn't like:
Since it is an MC, I have to complain about the price...

Below are some pics:




(Message edited by davomaddo on October 01, 2008)

I've heard great things abot the X-15 also.

For a short while I was selling MC's at the local dealer here in NE, and I must say that out of the line-up, excluding the x-star, the X-15 was my favorite boat.

And as far as the surf wake, we did do some surfing with only stock ballast, and it really was a great surf..I know there are some owners of the 15 on the site, I'm sure they'll chime in..

NICE, now thats a wakeboarding review. Thanks, I have been wondering about this boat for awhile. The wake looks beefy.

Darren took me out on that same boat. I did surf it, just didn't wakeboard. I can comment on the surf wake.

We loaded up about #1500 extra ballast in sacs and full stock ballast, even non-surf side. The wave was big and smooth. It wasn't the biggest wave I've ridden but very respectable and really clean. This boat takes alot of weight to sink it. If you like everything else about this boat you'll like the surf wake as well.

I agree on the price though. Darren is a stand up guy.

I was more joking about the price - because everyone complains about the price of MC's on this site. You get what you pay for. IMO

(Message edited by davomaddo on October 01, 2008)

I wasn't joking.

I rode with Dave and I would have to say the wake was really, really nice! It had a real nice ramp with a great peak at the top to take you straight up. I never really even charged the wake becuase I never had to. I agree with everything else Dave wrote regarding the boat itself, but the wake was a blast to ride on! ...another pic

i love my X-15, My wake is not nearly as huge but i have just the stock ballast. Looks like ill be upgrading next yr cause that wake is huge

...and with wrap-around seating/open bow, it seats 14 with a ridiculous amount of storage.

I love mine as well and we board, surf, skate, etc. Stock ballast or added it is a blast. Two thumbs up!

Thanks for the review guys. That was a really fun day on Lk. Samm.
Next we will do the X35!!

Porter, Maddock and Darren, I want in on the X35... Let me know if you need a 4th...

Andy,

I have sat in the X-15 in the showroom and would hate to be on that boat with 14 people. Even with women and children, 14 is pushing it for comfort. Let's not get carried away.

I respectfully disagree and have proof. By my count, 14 in this picture:

I have an 08 x15 and enjoy it a lot. I have plumbed in the rear fly high x2 sacs and the integrated bow sac. I have also added an FAE. The boat is great. 14 people on it would be tight but do-able. You can easily do 10 and its comfortable. The boat is worth a look if you are in the market for a new boat. A sleeper for sure.

Ian - how is the integrated bow sac working for you? I saw a post of a guy who plumbed in the integrated bow sack to his X2 on the Mastercraft site. I figured it would work the same way on the X15. Do you have any more info?

We test road the X15 it is a great wakeboard and surf boat. The ski wake is just tolerable too high to pull through. We are now about to order a 09 CC210 sante it has a great ski wake as well as wakeboard and surf.

how did you add the extra weight and what does plumbed mean?

By plumbed, I meant that I hooked the fly high ballast bags up to the stock ballast vent lines by connecting with spa hose and fly high quick connects.

I put the integrated sac in like the X2 install that I have seen on this site. I have a shut off valve going to the bow and one to the KGB from the pump. I turn the valve going to the KGB about 45 degrees. This helps the bow fill faster than the KGB.

I need to reprogram the ballast timers so that they run longer. They are programmed to shut off after a set time. There are some instruction on this board. This will allow the bags to fill all the way.

I think I will have the boat out one more time this year. I will take some pics of the install and the wake and post them.

Pics would be great.
I thought you would just hook the overflow from the KGB into the bow sack - so the bow sack would fill after the KGB.

You lost me on the shut off valves and turning the fill rate down.

andy -- pretty surprised nobody has at least giggled....

I plumbed in the flyhigh kit off the overflow lines from the stock ballast on my X2. Had to reset the timers which is easy to do. There is a full write up of similar install on the MC website on an X2.

Andy,

I got an opportunity to ride an X-15 today. It has a much bigger feel than I remember. The storage spaces are pretty small in the back and that really opens up the cabin area. You really can get a large volume of people in there.

I think that it felt smaller on the showroom floor than on the lake. I can only think it felt that way because it was sitting in the same showroom with an X-45.

Even 14 of THOSE will fit nicely!

(Message edited by talltigeguy on October 08, 2008)

I completely understand the "X-15 effect". At a glance, one might be fooled into thinking "oh, this is about the same size as a Bayliner Capri and should hold 7 people", but once you get settled, there is plenty of room especially if the storage space is utilized (presumably to cram more people). In the spirit of wakeworld compromise, I will concede that 14 people in an X-15-even if half are kids-would be a bit excessive. We had 13 once and the water patrol stopped us because it looked like a violation.

14 would be no problem. We had 22 adults in my buddies X45.

I have had 12 in my X-15, could have fit a few kids in there too, we were all adults when we had 12.

We also surfed it, BTW. It put out a very surfable wave with stock ballast and 400 pounds in the port corner. 3 adult men in the boat.

I love the x15, it is spacious , puts out a killer wake. With stock ballst options, and then if you get like 6 people, and put another 400 lbs in the rear lockers and fiddle with the wake, riding about 80' back with the wake plate adjusted it was just straight boosting. The double ups were incredible. The surf wake stock is OK, but we put another 350lbs. in the rear locker, and 400 on the port side and it was a sweet wake, but I want to try putting more weight in the bow to lengthen the curl a little bit, I wil post up pictures in a second.