Tige Taps vs Boats with Ballast

I am shopping for a new inboard wakeboarding boat. I now have an outboard so I have virtually no experience with true wakeboard boating. Bottom line is: Does the Tige taps and hull design system work as well as other brands using ballast? Tige has a good sales pitch, but does it really work?

It's really nice being able to adjust the attitude of the boat to shape the wake or for load or weather conditions. I test drove the Tige D and V drives but decided on a different boat.
Others here are much better than me to tell you what the shape or quality is.

There is no comparison between the Taps and a ballast system. Ballast system will win every time. A Tige will make a good wake with ballast.

The TAPS system will NOT make a difference on the size of the wake. It allows you to "fine tune" the shape based on how much weight or people you have and the speed you are riding. But if you really want to go big, then you will need extra weight. I have the direct drive 22i, and people can still pull alot of inverts without any ballast, but they are also not getting super huge. When I add 1000-1300 lbs of ballast it really improves the size. Hope this helps! }

The TAPs system actually works pretty well. As mentioned the nice thing about TAPs is that you can adjust the attitude of a boat within 5 seconds, even if you add extra weight. Try emptying your tanks in that time.

Here is some additional information to consider:

- TAPs will not make any Tige have a huge wake, nor does it compare in size to something you may get from a boat with Ballast, although for most people the wake size and shape is good for all rider levels.
- TAPs can help you get a bigger wake with extra weight. You have two options here: bring all of your buddies and make sure the fuel tank is full which will give you a nice wake size and shape with no washing or you can add about 1000 lbs to the rear and about 700-750 in the bow and then you can shape the wake using TAPS.

Hope this helps. If you need any additional info, hit me up.

Contrary to what the advertising guys say and much to the shegrin of Tige owners everywhere, TAPS is not a substitute for ballast. IMO and through playing with TAPS for 5+ years now it does make a difference in the size of the wake. However, it's never going to be as effective as an extra 1000 lbs. Just about every single Tige owner out there uses ballast. The wakes on Tiges without ballast vs. the rest of the boats without ballast are outstanding. However, humans being humans, we always want more. The real benefit of TAPS is being able to tune the wakes and the boat to any given condition. I would never own a boat without it. Lots of boats have similar systems on them now-a-days, but the Tiges are designed around them. They have been incorporating them in their design for a long time now and know all the ins and outs of maximizing TAPS. It's a wonderful thing.

Taps is short for Trim Tab.

Many boats have trim tabs, Tige just uses them as a marketing tool.

Same as moomba's wakeplate...

Just think of it like this. When Taps is all the way up, that's when the boat will produce the biggest wake. All the other boats that don't have a plate or Taps are already producing the biggest possible wake. When you lower the plate down, the wake will flatten out and become smaller. Does that sound like TAPS produces a bigger wake? Don't believe the Tige Marketing.

I can't believe how many people get duped into it thinking that Taps produces a bigger wake. There's no substitute for more weight in the boat. Maybe the only reason they market the boat that way is so they can charge you extra money to put the ballast system in if you really want it. Think about it, in all other boats, ballast comes standard...

I'm not bashing Tige, they can produce a fun wake when weighted. They're not for me, however don't believe for a second that just because you have Taps you can make your wake bigger. That's not the way it works...

05mobiuslsv - same for almost all the boat companies. Trim tabs are coming standard on a lot of boats.

My friend in the boating world said the reason that tige started using the trim tab was because their first boat wouldn't stop 'porpusing' (spelling?). The guy who started tige spent a ton of money into creating the hull, and it wouldn't even plane right. So they added a trim tab, which was later used as a marketing scheme. Don't know the story, so don't kill the messenger.

i think that stock, no ballast, a tige will make the biggest wake all the time. its just that as with every other boat you need to add ballast to get a better wake. taps is really just for fine tuning the wake. also, taps really helps in rough water, you can really stop the boat from bouncing or keep the nose out of the water a little more.
i know in our boat i run 2000#s and the taps on about 6. it makes one of the better wakes i've ridden behind, but definitely not the best.

so what are the options for fine tuning a wake with taps. We have established it doesnt make the wake bigger it just changes the shape. What are the shape options?

I thought it was so that you could flatten the wake for slalom skiing (tab in the down position for more surface area, thus smaller wake) and maximize the wake in the up positions (creating the least amount of surface area). And by changing the angle of the plate, you can creat a wake anywhere in between the two extremes.

you can change it from pretty mellow with a nice ramp to fairly steep. i think even with ballast, with the taps down in like 1, it will cause the wake to be a little smaller also. really nice for beginners.

also, i really think it helps out with the holeshot. keep the taps low starting out, then once your at speed turn it up to 7 or 8 or whatever you want to ride at

wo when you are turning it up, the highest point would be when it is out of the water, right? like a 9 or 10 i am guessing?

I've heard that "story" as well. I don't really give a crap one way or the other. The important thing is that they are standard on Tiges and every hull since then is designed around it. Just because someone need a wheel for something, is that a good reason not to use a wheel for anything else? It's something that works and works well so why not use. That's why you see them on a lot of wake boats now. Same reason behind pickle forks and towers. They work.

Now then, marketing. Tige has kind of painted themselves into a corner with TAPS. IMO, TAPS will get you a bigger wake. With the plate down, it will push the bow down and the stern up, creating a smaller wake. With the plate level, it becomes basically an extension of the hull. With the plate up, it allows the the stern to drop into the water, creating a bigger wake. However it's very marginal when you compare it to 1000lbs. of ballast. It aint the same thing. Tiges marketing does make it sound like TAPS is all you need and for Average Joe Weekend Warrior,
it's plenty. The wakes are actually deceptively large. The whole TAPS campaign is misleading at best though. Most of us Tige faithful have begged Tige to dump it this campaign, but it's been going for so long, how do you just drop it without Joe Jackhole going, "See, I'm so smart. I told you so". I'm sure the sane members on this board can appreciate that.

Me, I like my TAPS with ballast please.

actually 8 is the highest the taps goes

i ride with mine between 6 and 7
when its all the way up the wake gets really sensitive, so i turn it down just a little

Thers no reason why taps would make a bigger wake. The biggest wake is with it up which would be the equivalent of not even having it on there. What it is good for though is shaping the wake and getting on a plane quicker

I like my TAPS part way down so that the wakeboarding wake is somewhat rampy. That is good for the old man's knees. I have friends who prefer a steep wake and I can just adjust the TAPS and like magic I now have a very vertical wake. It is clean on both settings. This has been hashed a thousand times on this board, but Tige is different than other boats with a trim tab because the hull is shaped differently to accommodate the trim tab. As Leo pointed out, the Tige hull will bounce at high speed unless you have the Taps down.

As for a direct answer to the first post, the TAPS does not make the wake bigger. It makes it have an adjustable shape.

Monte you need to think about how many people you are going to have in your boat when you take it up. if i take 8 or more people most of the time i don't fill my ballast. if your not going to be supper into wanting the learn tricks and just want to go cruise around and jump the wake a little then waisting the money on ballast wouldn't be worth it. theres no doubt that adding ballast makes the wake soooo much better and funner to ride on. but the taps does help shape that wake. it doesnt' make it bigger like ballast but does give you the controll of it without pumping out some ballast.

Tige used a hull without a hook. Most everyone else in the wake world does hook the hulls. When you don't hook the hull you have to use a trim plate to create the hook. This will help you control the nose of the boat when you are driving. I like this coming from a Jet boat where I could control the nose of the boat for driving purposes. Shiada boats do the same thing with their hull (it is non-hooked) and they use trim tabs to help with the overall control. I am not sure of all of the ins and out of it but I do know the wake apears to be smaller at the #1 setting and much steeper in the #8 setting. This has to do with the displacement of the hull. Tige tend to weight more than most boat to begin with and with added balast you only can make the wake bigger.

Posted by Paul Hanna (faceplanter69):
"Just think of it like this. When Taps is all the way up, that's when the boat will produce the biggest wake. All the other boats that don't have a plate or Taps are already producing the biggest possible wake. When you lower the plate down, the wake will flatten out and become smaller."


Actually that's not true. Almost all inboards are an instant plane hull. (I.E. Mastercraft, CC, Bu, Etc.) These boats need the ballast to sink them in the water, otherwise you get a flat slalom wake. Tige's hull is designed to sit in the water to begin with, and Taps pulls them up and out of the water. So the taps system is really designed to flatten out or shape the wake. Tige's hulls is what's designed to produce the larger STOCK wake. Notice in their marketing, they will always say Taps in conjunction with their "patented convex hull".

I could be wrong, so don't quote me on this, but I believe Supra follows the same path in terms of their hull design.

The CONVEX V is a patent for Tige and it is just that. Instead of being flat or in a V at the transom end of the hull, the hull is CONVEX or inverted. Add the TAPS and you have a vaccum effect on the boat sucking it down into the water. You can choose to have ballast but for most amateurs, people weight plus TAPS is enough. If you are serious or pull tournamnets, get the factory ballast option. Its available on all Tige' models. No other inboard has the CONVEX V. A trim tab (TAPS) will not work on a conventional hull, only in conjunction with a CONVEX V hull. All others are "me too". Keep in mind that a Tige generally weighs much more than brand X due more fiberglass layers that make up the thicker hull. The TAPS also lets you have bow thrust so instead of bouncing up and down swells in a rough lake, the boat cuts through the chop.
look it up at www.tige.com under "the Tige' differnce.

(Message edited by skireel on February 08, 2007)

(Message edited by skireel on February 08, 2007)

Wakepro said it best

"No other inboard has the CONVEX V"

Ever wonder why no one else uses it? No need to.

First sentence of my post.
"The CONVEX V is a patent for Tige"
No need to (as Mike says) or can't infringe on PATENTs 6874441B and D48844345. Take your pick but educate yourself first.

Ok Ok you showed me. I have owned a Tige. I like them, but TAPS does not work as advertised. If it was everything that they say it is, Why does Tige offer ballast as an option? The company itself states that drag hardware and weight are dangerous...if it is that negative why offer it as an option? Because they have to, that is why. Advanced and pro riders demand large wakes, TAPS and Convex V can not deliver the substance without ballast. With that said, once the ballast has been added, TAPS does a great job of shaping the wake, just like every other wake plate on the market.

Don't get booty hurt, I was just stating that if it was such a great idea, other companies would pay the patent cost to develop similar technologies. Let's see such as Tige using a wakeboard tower on their boat...correct craft owns that patent. Stands to reason that if the technology was that effective (which it is not) other companies would be chomping at the bit to use it...which they are not. Mastercraft, Malibu, Nautique, etc all seem to get by fine without the wonderful, wake building technology Tige has managed to "patent". Good on em'.

no hurt feelings, just stating the facts. Tige has been proactive in terms of design. All states and the US coast gaurd are due to push forward on laws that mandate you either stick 12 people in your boat or 2500 lbs of ballast, but not both. Tige is hedging that their boats will already be up to snuff.

If Malibu and Supra and Nautique think only ballast is needed, why do do they have wedges, wake gates, and wake plates? Because they are "me too"

Doesnt epic seem to haave something like this convex v that sucks the boat down?

Monte I hope i can add a little to this discussion. The best way to figure out if it is a marketing thing or not is to test drive the boat, and make the decision for yourself. All Tige dealers are very eager to demo their boats and show you what TAPS And Convex V is all about.

TAPS does work, and it is awesome. TAPS alone would not change the wake but in conjunction with Tige's hull design is how it works (as mentioned earlier).

I read this board a lot, and i have to say that some people are under the wrong impression about Tige. The story about the first Tige hull's porposing (spelling also) isnt accurate at all, the first Tige's didnt even use a trim tab! So please Monte when you read all these responses try to keep in the back of your head that while wakeworld is a fun place to discuss boats, it is by no means the best place to get information on them....

Here are 3 things that you cannot argue about ballast:

1) it takes up space (if it is under the floor it is taking up space where foam should be)

2) it hurts performance (extra weight cause boat to drive harder, plane slower, harder on tranny, eng, etc)

3) there is more maintenance to a the boat (you know have pumps, impellers, thru-hull fittings, gauges, tanks) all these pose potential problems.

So back to the original post...I believe TAPS to be a great alternative to ballast for the beginner (cause you will want a small wake specially for teaching newbies) to the intermediate wakeboarder. If, and this is a big if, you are an amazing boarder and you need a huge wake then load it up. Put a couple of thousand pounds in the boat and hold on. But i think you mentioned that you are coming from an outboard boat....ie you will be happy with TAPS!

so please drive the boat and see for yourself and if you get a chance post what your thoughts were.

TAPS up baby!

"A trim tab (TAPS) will not work on a conventional hull, only in conjunction with a CONVEX V"

I got a good laugh out of that one. What a complete and utter load of crap! Trim tabs were around far before any Convex V hull design. lol And hydralic trim tabs have been around for just as long. It's all been done before.

Here's a test of the concept of convex v hull that was on another thread a while back. Although not scientific, and an extreme example it still gets the point across. take a spoon hanging by the handle, let the kitchen faucet run over the scoop side of the spoon (hooked hull). what happens? the water forces the spoon, or the transom of the boat up, bow down = flat wake. turn the spoon around, (convex hull) feel how the water sucks the spoon into the water. therefore displacing more water = larger wake. Go ahead try it.

First off I like the tiges so im not bashing anything, infact if the rz2 had snap in carpet (i ride in salt water) id consider getting one. But first off the taps is a trimtab, it shapes the wake and i'm sure works good but its just a trim tab and can't make up for ballast. Second people are saying the tiges don't need it because they are just heavier than other boats. Again this isnt true as an xstar weighs like 300lbs more than an rz2 and they are the same size. Also im sure that most wakeboarding boats now have hulls designed to throw a bigger wake, not just typical ski hulls. So im sure that taps works great for shaping the wake but it still isn't an alternative to ballast

There have been some great explanations on how/why it does what it does.

I think it is fair to say that the wake behind a Tigé is equivalent to the majority of boats with factory ballast. Since most people here add 2,000 pounds to the factory ballast you would also have to add 2,000 pounds to a Tigé to get an equivalent wake.

Well put 'ole evilone....
Well put joe1975....
Well put JL....

Anyone that does'nt believe that a Tige WILL throw a sick wake, roll on down to H-Town, and we'll load "White Lightning" down and with factory + whatever. It is as nice as it gets my friends and partners... Guaranteed......

Is Tige still not putting any stock ballast in their boats? If that is the case it's ridiculous. Even in the new RZ models?

I've ridden behind a few different Tiges' with the Trim tab and IMO, they just like any other boat without ballast suck for wakeboarding.

WAKEBOARD BOATS NEED BALLAST, bottom line.

You can get stock ballast in the Tigés, and have been able to for a few years.

Scott, Tige has offered a "Stock" or "Factory" ballast system for several years now. And yes it does work, and it does do a job, just like everyone else's "Factory" system. But who around here does'nt add aleast alittle bit over "Factory or "Stock"? If you want to go BIG. The fact is, Tige is a top of the line boat that utilizes functional features for all watersports and all athletes at all skill levels. TAPS included.

Tige offers ballast on all models as an option, it is not standard.

Tell me then. How does Taps make the wake harder? My experience with every boat ever made is that the wake always gets much firmer as you ad weight. With a Tige. The wake is a marshmellow without weight and my opinion is that's it's not worth riding behind unless you have a Tige weighted like every other boat.

Tanner. I'd put a stock weighted X-1 or SAN against any Tige without weight. I'm not about to get duped into the Tige marketing. at 8-23 mph the "hook" does pretty much nothing. It's only at speeds of 28-35 where it takes effect and stabilizes the boats from bouncing up and down.

Tige's need weight. period. If they don't have it you might as well pull the 6 year old grand kids on the tube with them...

There is no replacement for displacement.....

That being said, TAPS does work, and Tige's are heavier than most boats in the same size range.

But IMO it is a fancy name for a trim tab. (And I have been behind a few Tige's) Most wakeboats are now offering trim tabs.

Seems like most people have clarified what TAPS does and doesnt do. However, I have the factory ballast in my 07 RZ2 (900 pounds) and run another 1200 on top of that and love it.

The wake has gotten good reviews from a variety of riders from all levels in the area I live in (Dallas).

I get great reviews on my 22v, We run 2000+ lbs, no factory ballast. The taps definitely helps in rough water and shaping the wake. Also gettin on plane. I do keep it almost all the way down, sometimes 1 and sometimes 3. I also use mine or another Tige for teaching clinics. I find it really useful for beginner progression. New riders I can put at 1, no ballast and have a easy to cross wake. When kids are ready to start wake to wake, I can make it a little steeper and shorten the line. It doesnt create a bigger wake, but it does give me options. The picture is me, 6 feet tall, boardsliding the wake. Once again thats a 22 ft boat with 2000 lbs. Not saying its the best, but definitely comparable to what people on this site think is the best.

Air Nautique 220 weight off of Correct Crafts Website..........................

Approximate Weight.............................4070 lb. (1846 kg)

Tige RZ2 weight off of Tige's website.......3900 lb.s

both boats are 22 feet. VLX's weigh in about 3600-3700lbs but are 6" shorter. It's all marketing mumbo jumbo. They are great boats. I live 90 miles from the factory, so you can imagine everyone out here has one. I ride behind them often.....w/ weight. Without weight, they just aren't that great.