Will this work

[lakeerieboater26]

I have a 18' Mariah Diablo with a mercruiser alpha 1, 130 hp. a 3 blade prop. pulls two people on a tube no prob. I want to get a wakeboard. I dont really care about perfect wake and ect... will this work for wakeboarding ? how long of a rope ?

 

[brick75]

Re: Will this work

Most people will say that you should have a 4.3L or larger for effective wakeboarding. But you shouldn't have any problem using yours as long as you don't have the boat weighed down too much with people and gear. The more weight you're having to push through the water, the more you'll struggle.

The length of rope depends on you're experience and what you want to do. As a beginner, you'll benefit from a bit shorter rope (around 50 ft.) as this will place you at a point where the wake is narrower. This helps when you are ready to jump wake to wake since you don't have to clear as much. As you progress, you can lengthen it 10-15 feet to get back to a wider wake area.

 

[shaneb0422]

Re: Will this work

We have a 165 horse merc and do fine.
Originally had a 21p 3 blade and it was sluggish getting up.
Changed to a 19p 4blade ordered from iboats and the hole shot is way better. no trouble at all poppin' up and does pretty good with some weight in it. Definitely doable.
If your boat is a little sluggish, its amazing what a different prop will do. I think ours was only around 100 bucks so its a cheap(er) fix to a bad hole shot.\

My rope is 65 feet.

 

[Dave.Mishchenko]

Re: Will this work

We board with a 3.0L on a 17 foot boot. As mentioned it may help to change your prop if you have trouble getting on plane. Rider technique is very important. The below videos were helpful to us when we started.

http://1hourWaterSkiing.com/video1/
http://1hourWaterSkiing.com/video2/
http://1hourWaterSkiing.com/video3/
http://1hourWaterSkiing.com/video4/

 

[bowler]

Re: Will this work

I'll second the above posts and say go for it.

We have an 18ft bowrider with a Merc 3.0. We've pulled boarders with 6 people on board (one in the bow to plane) with success. It's no inboard but it is doable for sure. A competent driver is a must as the throttle will need fairly constant adjustments once the boarder starts moving and cutting hard behind the boat. We have a 19p 4 blade also and still hit 40 + at WOT. Youtube has loads of helpful vids as well once you start to progress. I also recommend 'the Book' instructional DVDs - everything you'll ever need to know about wakeboarding.

D.

 

[pat8839]

Re: Will this work

We have a 165 horse merc and do fine.
Originally had a 21p 3 blade and it was sluggish getting up.
Changed to a 19p 4blade ordered from iboats and the hole shot is way better. no trouble at all poppin' up and does pretty good with some weight in it. Definitely doable.
If your boat is a little sluggish, its amazing what a different prop will do. I think ours was only around 100 bucks so its a cheap(er) fix to a bad hole shot.\

My rope is 65 feet.

What prop did you get? I'm looking to get a new one and $100 is right up my alley!

I have seen a lot of guys using 3.0L for wakeboarding. A lot of them even have wake towers. You will be able to do it and you'll love it!