Centurion guys.......Or your thoughts on Centurions as a surf boat
Hey guys
I have a buddy looking at a Centurion. I just don't know much about them and he wanted to get public opinion on them. He has a few specific questions. He is a current inboard owner as well. Any of you guys have any input to share..... The boat will primarily be for surfing only and just general hanging out 1. Is the pro surf ballast setup worth the money or would it be better to do a custom sack setup in which ever model. 2. He is contemplating the 244 or FX-22. Thoughts on each? Which would you choose and why? Resale similar on each? Cost seems similar. 3. Thoughts on the Aegis tower versus the standard tower for the FX-22? He likes the Aegis tower, but the cost is so much more, will he see it in resale? 3. What are "must have" options on the 244 and 22? 4. For the guys that have them, what are your favorite things about them and things you hate. Thanks for any input. Try to keep the posts strictly Centurion, so we don't start a brand war. |
good friend has an 2007 avalanche c4. we don't surf much, but the one time we went to dale hollow, the wake was big with lots of push. he has a 2000# extra ballast. mechanically the boat has been tremendous. in the last 3 years, he's put around 300-400 hours, mostly trouble free. the only problems i recall are cosmetic, likely caused by us. it's his second centurion. overall, i am very impressed.
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I have friends with a 244+, that being said it has every possible ballast, the owner rides goofy so he ordered it with a goofy prop rotation, they also lay a 750# on the floor and the wave is great on the goofy side or I will admit it's as good as I've seen....BUT when you weight it the same for regular it's average at best and takes forever to load or change sides and I am not a fan of Tsunami pumping bags and having them anywhere in sight, seats or floor. I would consider them and myself wakesurf snobs so where the factory ballast may be good enough for most, it is NOT for us. IMO I have seen better on both sides ( and yes Centurion uses a reg prop boat and a goofy prop boat for their events ) for well under 70K and the 244+ is well over 80K. It's no mystery they bought another brand.
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1. He will want the plumbing, just make sure whichever boat he gets the maximum sac size for the space.
2. This depends on if he likes hammerhead bow or not, seating and storage, ect... Don't know anyone with the FX22 yet but they are growing on me... 3. Aegis is a bad mofo, it will show in resale but the gladiator 2 is also nice.. Personal choice IMO 3. ;). Everything you can afford!! It's all worth it, now that wetsounds does the factory stereo, LEDs are a eye catcher on it and transom LEDs if you boat at night. Surf racks, the bigger motor option, touch screen, ect... I'm at work.. Ill post better later :) |
244 will be a better boat. I like the 244, lots of room and like mentioned will throw an amazing wave with extra ballast. Pricing can be all over the spectrum so I'd call around.
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Both boats in stock form form surf equally amazing (arguably the best there is), just make sure he gets a boat with complete ballast (quick fill, pro ballast, PNP, bow = 4K+ lbs). Its very simple to reprogram the Pro Vision Dash to add more weight with a custom sack in Pro Ballast, either port or starboard side. The 244 will cost about 10% more initially (sale price) and burn more fuel (409 and bigger boat) than the FX, but he can't go wrong with either. I have a lot of seat and ride time in both boats and if he wants to ask any questions just shoot me a PM.
Quick Must Haves in Either . . . . Complete Ballast, Ice Breaker Package, Swivel Racks, Posidon Flooring, Carbon Vents, Silencer, Dual Batteries with Management System, the new 2013 Surf Platform, and Enjoy! Personally I wouldn't upgrade to the Aegis Tower, the Gladiator Tower is as solid as they come, works great, and has not had any issues - its proven tough. The Aegis is going to cost more to do the same thing, just in a "cooler" fashion. |
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244 I have heard the 233 is a better surf boat but I have never ridden a 233. Get the pro surf package you will still need more weight to make it the best is can be, I would choose lead for the fact its more weight with less space. as for the tower I dont think its worth the extra cash. take that money saved on the tower and get the PCM 409 engine option.
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I'm a centurion fan, just not of the FX and the new dash in general. I'd still take the 244.....even more a used one with the older dash to save coin. They're out there, plus...it'll have a better Looking dash IMO Fx/new dash hater out :) |
Diggs, post on Centurioncrew.com and ask owners there as well for their opinions.
I tried the 244 and I liked it. Can't wait to get behind one again |
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A couple pics from the boat show. I would say the 244 with the extra plug and play ballast. You will need to swap the factory sacks for bigger ones and will need a couple hundred pounds of lead to put under the rear sack to make it really come to life. The 244 is huge and the fit and finish is awesome. I spent some time in the FX 22 at the show cool boat but the bow intake rattles the interior is not as deep and the seating design in the bow made it feel small. Tower comes down to what you like and what you want to put on it for stereo.My guess would be four xm9's so the gladiator would be just fine
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Thanks guys... All very helpful info.... Now the next question for the die hard surfer...
Tige Z3 or the Centurion 244? |
No offense, but that Dash doesn't look like it belongs on an 80-100k boat.
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Centurion all the way ...
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I just purchased an SV233 less than two months ago and love it. So much of all this is personal opinion, but the 233 fit in my boathouse without modification and that was the overriding difference. The FX was not in consideration when I ordered the boat.
The 409 is a good engine. Get as much ballast as you can get. (see comments later) I changed out the carpet and put Sea Deck in and like it. I upgraded the stereo speakers to WS REV 10 and added an equalizer. Underwater transom light are nice. The new dash is very nice. We mostly ride regular and I have the boat set up to ride best that way. Set up with the 244 should be similar. I have added some lead weight on the regular side and a little more in the bow. We have been riding with 2-3 people, but if you had a crew no additional weigh would be needed. I have 50 hours on it and still tweaking it. My daughter will ride pro skim this year and I want it just right. The ballast set up is very different regular vs goofy. The largest sacs are the plug and play. The only negative for me is they share one pump which make for a lengthy switch over from regular to goofy. I will make an adjustment to the system by either sharing the bow ballast with another pump or just adding lead weight to the bow. This will provide a dedicated pump to both PNP's |
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All opinion here, and I'm a Centurion SV230 owner. I've owned a lot of other boats too. Centurion, hands down, has the best built hulls/gelcoats in the industry, but their interiors and fit and finish are sub-par. The 2013 dash is just awful and I would bet money that they change the dash for 2014. That being said, for resale, I would look at a 2012 244.
Now, if you throw a Tige Z3 in the mix, I would definitely go there. Much better fit and finish, the surf wave is just as good and the significantly taller transom won't make you feel like the boat is gonna sink at any moment. |
My 2 cents. If you can live with a pickle fork the supreme 226 would be the way to go. It is arguably the best surf boat on the market and is for sure the cheapest. $65,000 loaded with everything. With the money saved you could do a custom ballast system a huge stereo system and still have $$$$$$ left over. I have surfed all the top surf boats and bang for the buck goes hands down to the supreme. The interior is super deep and the boat always feels safe with lots of ballast. Also there is something to be said for traditional gauges without all the new digital stuff.
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Here is a link to some great boat and board reviews. It should help answer some of your questions
http://wake9.com/polar-bear-2012/recap.php |
Harold
Funny you say that. I saw that Tige at River City's appreciation event and then at the boat show. It made me really take a close look at Tige and the Z1 and is stil one of the boats I would consider myself. The things I liked the most was that gel coat (like a pearl) and the captains chair. |
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"H" you went to the PDX boat show and didn't invite me????
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Sorry it was a last minute thing. As you know I have been sick. I was going stir crazy and had to get out of the house for a few. We are going to try and come up and go to the Seattle boat show with you and K
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yes do! we need to hook up!
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after reading some post above I have to tell a story, got a MB 23 B52, totally winged a PNP for well under $1500 with 2 reversible pumps, about 7 min to fill or empty no lead anywhere, no tweaking, the first day out I touched the trim a little.....and BAM, the wake is equal on both sides, with a touch of the trim you can have big nasty or long and clean, bonus... wake boarders rave on the rampy clean wakes
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you cant go wrong with the tige or the centurion. I have had 2 enzo's an 09 sv230 and now a 2012 244. love them both, i was a malibu guy for years before that, but both tige and centurion have really up'd there interior's i love the 244's huge cab space. good luck
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drew...that wake still looks sweet! cant wait for summer so i can get my boat dialed in
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Anyone have any real expierience with the Convex VX and both th 244 wave? How do they compare?
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I surfed a stock 244 and wake 9's z3 with the covex vx at the polar bear event and the tige was my favorite wave of the event
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I also have a good amount of time behind the Z3 with and without the convex Vx. Set up correctly the boat has an incredible amount of push. The VX makes the wave shape better and longer. At the Polar bear event us goofy footers struggled with the 244 and the ballast was pretty maxed out minus sacs on seats.
That white Z1 is stunning in the pics I wish I could have seen it in person but I will have to wait and see what's in Seattle. Harold- what was the Z1 going for? |
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Surf
I'd look at the Supreme 226 supposed to throw a killer surf wave!!
And for those of you that don't know fine line bought out Supreme so they Will be built in the same factory save 10-15k and at least look at the 226!! |
The enzo 230, 233, 240,244 may make some of the best wakes in the business. They REALLY need a graphics/color guy. Stay away from old carb engines.
The Z3 is a great boat at $86000 special price or you could get a Sanger 237 for $69000 and spend $5000 fixing it and come out $12000 cheaper than the Z3. |
the 237 looks awesome on the water, but it sits pretty freakin low in water when you weight it down. I don't consider it "sketchy" but it makes for a wet ride...
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Harold, do you have any more pictures of that black and blue Tige that I see in the background of the Z1 picture? I put the order through for my Z1 this Thursday and as of now we have Black and Electric blue combo. I would love to see some actual in person photos of that combo.
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