How much does a wakeboat really weigh?

I always see the mfr's posted weight for wakeboats but then hear how much they weigh on a trailer and the numbers never seem to add up. Is the weight that the mfr posts with or without the tower? Is it with fluids or without? Without stereo? Single or dual battery option? Anyone know the truth behind this or have you weighed your trailer without the boat?

Just curious...

We have discussed this on Tige Owners but thought I would solicit input from here as well. I was reminded of it in the Nautique thread about the weight of the new electric boat.

I believe the "dry weight" is no fluids, gas, and batteries. Literally the boat itself with engine as would come off the manufacturing line before fluids are added.

don't have additional insights on how the boats are weighed but i think it is interesting that Epic makes the lightest boat (due to their resgn infused hulls) but also the potentially heaviest boat (when ballast is full)

FYI
ALL hulls are resin infused. its how fiberglass is made...
and the moomba LSV is very light too 21'-6" and 3300 lbs.

Weights are normally for the base model without accessories. No tower or stereo or accessories. No fluids

Originally Posted by stang_killa_ss

FYI
ALL hulls are resin infused. its how fiberglass is made...
and the moomba LSV is very light too 21'-6" and 3300 lbs.

Actually resin infusion is a process that is unique to few manufacturers, Epic being one of them. Its a similar process to vacuum bagging. While all hulls have resin mixed with fiberglass, resin infusion is a process that standardizes the amount of resin used by allowing precise application in a uniform manner, allowing less material (resin) to be used while maintaining proper strength characteristics.

Many boat manufacturers use a process that is much more labor intensive. This isnt a bad thing necessarily, but it almost always results in more resin being used. You end up with a strong (or stronger) boat, but one that weighs a good bit more. Resin infusion and vacuum bagging are also a greener method, producing less volatile emmisions.

I'm watching intently to see who has actually weighed their boat.

^I'm having a hard time getting it to fit on my bathroom scale.

I've weighed my boat at both the local grain dryer and at a truck stop, it's very easy to do.

Where did it end up, Sam?

LOL@ Jeremy!

What did you come up with Sam?

My boat 2008 Calabria Team V, I'm pretty sure it says it weighs 3500lbs but i weighed it at a truck stop and it was just over 5000lbs with 1/4 tank of gas.

I have it written down, either at home or in my truck, I'll check when I get home.

It has been a few years back but on themalibucrew someone had weighed their VLX with gear and some fuel in it and if I recall correctly it was at or near 6000lbs. This was for the 05-08 style hull which has a dry weight of 3600lbs. They say you can factor in 1000lbs for a tandem trailer.

I have weighed my boat . Calabria Pro V2- Boat, Trialer, gear, full tank of gas = 5217lbs

The manf. rating is just as they state "Dry Weight" which is the weight of the boat off of the line without anything in it. (Gas, water, batteries, Gear) This would include the tower. Gas is 5.93 to 6.42 lbs/gallon depending on the type. (Methanol, Alcohol additives etc.) Water is 8.34lbs/gallon. My last two 20’ boats both tandem axle trailers were 1250lbs.
So, if you use this logic, I would assume you are trying to get to the full towing weight…
Boat = 3500lbs
Gas – 40 Gallons = 247lbs average
Gear etc. = 200lbs
Trailer = 1250
Total tow weight = 5197

Weighed mine after a day on the lake. Half a tank of gas and minimal gear. Basically pulled through the weight station onto the scale and left the trailer wheels on the scale and trailer still hooked to the truck.

I have a 2005 SANTE, stock except a pair of Pro 80's and an amp. Tandem axle Ram-Lin Trailer. The weight was 5690 lbs. I didn't unhook the trailer from the truck, but the truck was not on the scales.

I was weighing it to see if my wifes car could pull it.

So 5690 and then you have to factor in the tongue weight which is usually about 10%, right?

Originally Posted by swancer

Weighed mine after a day on the lake. Half a tank of gas and minimal gear. Basically pulled through the weight station onto the scale and left the trailer wheels on the scale and trailer still hooked to the truck.

I have a 2005 SANTE, stock except a pair of Pro 80's and an amp. Tandem axle Ram-Lin Trailer. The weight was 5690 lbs. I didn't unhook the trailer from the truck, but the truck was not on the scales.

I was weighing it to see if my wifes car could pull it.

Wow, you have one heavy SANTE. 05' is listed at 3190 lbs, and the ramlin trailer is listed at 1200lbs. Thats about 4400 lbs, I am not sure where the rest of the weight is from. Even 20 gallons of gas would only be an extra 125lbs...

Originally Posted by MattieK27

Wow, you have one heavy SANTE. 05' is listed at 3190 lbs, and the ramlin trailer is listed at 1200lbs. Thats about 4400 lbs, I am not sure where the rest of the weight is from. Even 20 gallons of gas would only be an extra 125lbs...

Not sure how to reply to this, other than this is how much the tickets says it weighs. I only weighed it to see how close to the towing capacity we were for my wifes car which was 5500 lbs. Trust me I did all the math prior to as well and thought just as you did that I would be around 5000 lbs.

Not sure where the discrepency is. I would assume it was not in the scales, but rather in the fact that I never unhooked the boat from the truck. Not sure how that would impact the weight if any.

This is exactly why I started this thread - it just doesn't seem to add up.

Some or all the discrepancy might be explained if the mfg stated weight excludes tower, speakers, racks, a battery or two, light bars, extra balast tanks, and a lot of other accesories that you see in most wake boats that add up.

I am wondering if they factor in tower weight into the total weight.

Generally figure 300-500 lbs more than whatever they say to account for fluids, fuel, gear, etc. Same as a car really when it coems to advertised weights. Add 1000-1500 lbs for trailer depending on size/axles/material/etc.

I think what we can all agree on is that you should just figure it weighs some amount more than what they say it does. There - string closed

I drove mine across the scales at a truck stop once - fully loaded, gas, tower, all of our boards, a cooler full of beverages and while the manufacturer said a 2001 21V weighs in at 3450 without the tower ( dry weight) I think it's a lot more. I know the dry weight of my trailer is 1550 lbs- drove it over the scales without the boat once too. The total for my rig was 6,140 - figure 200 for the tower, 252 for 42 gallons of gas, that leaves 4,138 for gear and boat- Seriously I think the boat weight very close to 4,000.

The reason epic and moomba weigh less is because they use less fiberglass and barrier coat. It isn't rocket science. That is why MasterCrafts hold up the best and are the best boat along with more expensive is because they are typically 15-25% heavier(more layers of fiberglass and barrier coats) than the rest of the manufacturers.

The weight as stated is without fluids and gear but should account for tower/ballast tanks. You will see a difference in weight for a maristar series MC to a X series along with sunsetter to a wakesetter.

Originally Posted by jason95gt

The reason epic and moomba weigh less is because they use less fiberglass and barrier coat. It isn't rocket science. That is why MasterCrafts hold up the best and are the best boat along with more expensive is because they are typically 15-25% heavier(more layers of fiberglass and barrier coats) than the rest of the manufacturers.

The weight as stated is without fluids and gear but should account for tower/ballast tanks. You will see a difference in weight for a maristar series MC to a X series along with sunsetter to a wakesetter.

truth vs disinformation:

http://www.nava.ca/infusion.htm

"You will see a difference in weight for a maristar series MC to a X series along with sunsetter to a wakesetter." Really? That would be news to me. The guys laying up the boats don't differentiate so I don't believe this statement is true. Most of the time there is no differentiation until the graphics are applied.

Jason- as I was reading your post, I was thinking , how that is just BullSh*t, When I looked at you profile, I understand why you would write somthing that stupid and wrong. You work for Mastercraft. Very dissapointed in your statement. As a sales person, you should do your home work.

Rob and Mikeski, I am not sure what you feel is BS about that statement. If you look in the brochure for a Maristar and then a X series boat the weight is different accounting for the ballast tanks and tower. As far as more layers, that is pure fact. Get a plug from a mastercraft and then another boat and compare how many layers there are. Go to the factor for MC an Malibu and you will see for yourself! The closest one to MC is Nautique in hull construction.

Rob - Sorry, but you are wrong about Jason's post, I do not work for MC, yes I do own one for many of the reasons Jason states. A maristar or now V series and X series MC is clearly stated in the MC literature and the dry weights are different by about 150 to 300#s, this would be the difference of the tower, tanks etc. The tower weights will also vary depending on the size of the boat and additional Manuf. Options, #speakers, lights etc. An MC speaker can is full billet aluminum and about ¼” thick, I have four and trust me they add a lot of weight.

If you don’t believe him on hull thickness, as he stated go to each factory and ask for a core plug from the different sections of each boat. This is not new marketing hype created by MC, just go into a Cobalt dealer and look at what they use to justify the extra cost of their product, quality of the build process etc. etc.

So back to the original point of the thread, what does the boat really weigh; use the basic math process stated earlier by using the Manuf. Quoted “Dry Weight” which must include the tower to get you close and if it is critical to your tow capacity of your rig, take it to the public scale and have it weighed!

It is nice of MC to show a different dry weight for a boat where a tower is not an option. Most manufacturers list the dry weight for the hull with no options and the weight is not different if you selected a model with a tower, stereo, and ballast. As a general rule, with any boat, the dry weight if the boat in it's barest form with no fluids, options or replaceable items. Just like the curb weight listed for a car.
Preimpregnated composites like carbon fibre and fibreglass that are set in a vacuum do tend to be more consistent in wight and lighter than those done in a hand layup. That would be expected as you have better 'portion control'. There are many other factors that affect the weight of a hull also, and material thickness is definitely one of them.

When I bought my boat in 2001, I look at hull thickness plugs from MC, Malibu, Tige, MB and others and depending on WHERE they take the plug in the hull it varied a LOT. I am staying away from this discussion- but it would seem to me that any "hand-laid" fiberglass boat would have it's variations in thickness and wieght- to some degree. I think it's safe to say wake boats have gotten a lot heavier over the years- with added features and hull/design improvements and materials changes.

jason95gt it sounds like you might be a little bit under the influence of too much kool aid.if mastercraft is sooooo much better,why doesn't it have THE BEST WARRANTY in the industry.fact the company is stating their confidence in the product by their warranty. fact mastercraft is AVERAGE at best warranty wise.most boats have the same or better warranty than mastercraft.sounds like a rolex owner i paid more so mines better. my mastercraft costs ....... how much was your boat?i'm not saying mastercraft is a bad boat.i think they are very well made boats.i just don't think they are tens of thousands of dollars better than their top 3 competitors.take a look at the warranty closely[all the exceptions and exclusions] and give it a day or two to sink in while your not drinking the magic kool aid.

I wouldn't say warranty length is a direct indicator of quality. Look at Chrysler products in the early 90's, they had a 7 year 70,000 mile warranty. Also look at Hyundai and Mitsubishi. The point is warranty length can be a marketing tool as much as a testiment to product quality/durability.

That being said, Mastercraft makes good boats. I don't think they hold up as well as Nautiques, but part of that could be due to how owners take care of their boats. The MC guys I have ran across rather talk their boats up and pound their chests than actually take care of their boats. (not saying all MC owners are like this; just the ones I have ran into)

I also think every boat the big three has is over-priced. Quality is one thing, but over the past decade the low end stuff has improved. The price difference seems harder and harder to justify. Plus I don't care what anyone says, a 20' v-drive boat should not cost over 80k out the door; not even if it's the best boat ever made.

i didn't say length of warranty. i said quality of warranty.what it covers. read the fine print and you will be suprised how little even your nautique covers. i'm not bashing nautiques. i owned on for 15 trouble free years.i think nautiques are excellent well built boats.as for chrysler bankrupcy speaks for itself.mitsubishi is a much better quality car now than it was in the 90's and as for hyundai they are one of the best selling cars now and don't have near as many problems as a chevrolet for example. i am a tool dealer and i go to all the dealerships in town. so i'm speaking first hand knowledge from the technicians themselves.

Anyone weighed up a 2005 Sanger v230 dry with the trailer??

Jezz, Dudes i know how you you FEEL! you need to get on the water! just post some BABYDOLL Pix from last season!!! All fiberglass floats! THICK, THIN, INFUSED...Batteries dont!

how much do you think the difference in weight affects the published drafts of the boats?

uhmm... I've never seen a piece of fiberglass float. I guess it could if it had a core that was light but otherwise it sinks like glass covered in dense plastic.

The draft is not affected very much by weight. The widest part of the boat is in the water for draft measurement so it does not increase as quickly as the percentage of weight does. Much of the draft is the narrower part of the hull.