New Boat

Hey all,

Yes, this is another one of those 'new boat suggestion' threads. I will be in the market for my first (own) boat this summer. I am graduating school this summer and plan to get my first boat. I have grown up around boats and my dad and I had a Moomba Mobius that I did most of the maintenance on. So I know what it entails. I want a boat that will comfortably seat 10 people and I will use it for surfing/chilling/boarding around 50%/25%/25%. Because of that, I really like Tige. I won't ever be super serious into the competition side, so this is more for the opportunity to enjoy the water, surf, and let the girls have a good time out on the lake. I have gotten to ride behind a Z3 many times and have already test driven the RZ2. I've ridden/driven a G23 and I gotta say that I like the Tiges more. The RZ2 is by far my favorite boat that I've driven. I didn't have a board when I test drove it so I haven't gotten to ride it. But that can be arranged pretty easily. I'm here to get some personal opinions based on personal experiences with boats that meet my specifications. I hope to be out the door under 80K but that number is somewhat fluid if I absolutely fall in love with something.

I know that one of the most important aspects is the relationship with the dealer. I have been building a relationship with the local Tige dealer, The Ski Dock in Austin. However, I will be moving to OKC so any dealer in Houston, OKC, Dallas, or Austin will likely be able to work for me.

Another issue I'm slightly concerned is my tow vehicle. I have a 2010 Dodge Ram Hemi but it's 2wd. I will likely get a real locker and don't think I'll have much issue unless it's a steep/****ty ramp.

Any insight is greatly appreciated!

-Scott

I can't help you much on the tige details, since I never been in one. I bought a 07 nautique 236 which is same thing as a 230, I pull it with a 01 ram 1500 2wd, it pulls it well, but nothing like a diesel would. If your not going to tow long distances your truck will work great, but long distance I recommend a diesel since your fuel mileage will suck tremendously. And like you I'm going to put a locker in mine as well, one tire fire will be a pain to deal on a slick ramp.

As far as the tow vehicle's concerned. I have a 76 F150 2WD 6.4L and have towed my friend's Sunsport before. It had no issues, one time I even pulled it from his house to the ramp before I noticed that the parking brake was on the whole time lol. It had enough power it didn't care if the brake was on or not. It did do quite a number on the rear shoe.

I'm sure with a 2010 Hemi you should do just fine.

I can't talk about the boats but can tell you all about the dodge. I have a 2012 big horn 2wd. I LOVE the truck but want to burn it to the ground half the time on the ramp. On a "normal" ramp you are golden and won't have a single issue. Thing tows fine over long distances but fuel mileage blows a bit with a boat period. It however gets much better than my 6.0 denali did towing. I wanna say it is around 10-12mpg.

Now I have one of those crappy steep ramps you were talking about. I have a 21' MC and its all about weight. I figured out if I have people in the truck or in the back of the truck its fine 99% of the time and wont slip. Now if its just me and the girl or there are still people in the back of the boat it will start to squeel tires 99% of the time. My solution was to throw one of my 500 lb cheapy sacks in the back of the truck (over the tires) for those days when we use that ramp. Also always have a full tank of gas if you doubt the ramp. The issue isn't ever power with that truck.......its traction. Not worth selling the truck imho for 5 min of filling up a sack or planning ahead.

The traction is the main key. The first time I tried to pull it up the ramp, squealled the tires. Dropped the pressure in them from 55psi, down to 30, no problems at all. Little quick trick to get more surface on the pavement and get you more grip.

I tow with a '05 Ram SRT10 and it rips the boat out of the water and up the ramp regardless of grade without ever thinking twice about it.

Could always leave some ballast in the belly/bow of the boat to get that extra bit of traction an pump it out

I have an tige and a dodge 1500 except my setup is years older. The tige is a 2001 2100v. I think the tige brand would be perfect for you. They aren't really the best at anything but good at everything. Back in the day, tige's had one of the deepest and widest interiors for 21ft boats. If you liked tige, then go for it. All the brands will do what you want it to do.

As far as the truck, I have a hemi and 4x4. I also have 34" terra grappler A/t's and a detriot trutrac LSD. With that setup, I rarely get stuck on a ramp in 2wd mode. The only ramp I ever break loose on is SITE 6 in Havasu. This of you that know havasu, know exactly what Im talking about. However, when I do start slipping, and just apply some brakes and the truck pulls no problem. The only time I used 4x4 was when the site 6 ramp was super crowded and super slippery, I had a boat full of people and just didn't want to be the center of attention.

Could always leave some ballast in the belly/bow of the boat to get that extra bit of traction an pump it out

The bow helps much more than the center. Temptation is to have people sit in the bow but I always discourage sitting up front pulling out. Only takes one person falling out and getting run over.

Scott, I'm pretty much running the big boy combo of what you're talking about. I've a 2012 Dodge 3500 MegaCab 4x4 Dually with the Cummins and pull a 2013 RZ4.

1. My truck is completely overkill for the boat and has zero issues pulling or towing, and has had no issues with traction even on my crappy ramp. Last year I even had to drop the trailer and help pull a guy up the ramp because he couldn't get any traction. It was a late model crew cab 2wd Chevy attempting to pull a 23 ft Regal out. It was pretty funny actually, kinda like that Toyota commercial where the Tundra pulls the sunk trunk and boat out. Dude didn't want to admit he needed my help and still wasn't happy that I had to help him, he ended up just leaving as soon as we unhooked, didn't even stop to pull is plug or clean his boat out.

With that being said, the locker should take care of most of your traction issues on the ramp, at worst you may also need a new set of tires. Worst case scenario you upgrade to a 4x4 in the future. But the Hemi Ram is more than enough truck to pull most wakeboats out there (aside from a G23 or ASR). If you are going to be pulling long distances though, you may want to look into a set of helper air bags just to soften/adjust the ride a bit so you don't get beat to death.

2. The RZ2 is a great boat that throws a fantastic surf wave straight out of the box with factory surf ballast and no extra work really needed, especially if you go with the ConvexVX surf system as well. But for an $80K budget you're pretty much right on the cusp of being into a RZ4, which I'd suggest taking a look at too. The major difference between it and the RZ2 is you get an extra foot of room in the bow area, and an extra foot in the mid/rear seating section behind the driver, and I think you have a slightly bigger ballast option available as well. But the extra weight and capacity make a huge difference in the ride experience. It's rated for 17 people, and I know I've had 15 in mine with no issues and plenty of room to spare...it's freaking HUGE on the inside.

Price-wise, I think I was right around $86K with some hard negotiations out the door on mine last year, so it wouldn't really take much more to get into one. I bought mine at Eagle Marine in Ft. Worth, which definitely puts it right into your preferred area too. If you're ever down in the south DFW area hit me up and I can give you a pull behind mine so you can get a feel for the wave before you buy. Also, dealer support is one of the biggest things to consider in your purchase, and so far I've had nothing but good to say about Eagle Marine since buying my boat. They always have taken care of me and the couple minor warranty issues I've had, gone the extra mile to make me happy, and have had one of the best turnaround times in the service department I've ever seen. Give Darin (General Manager) a call and tell him what you want and he'll hook you up. He's got a ton of boats on the floor, so color/option selection is premium right now, and I guarantee he would love to start moving a couple boats early in the season.

Guys, I really appreciate all the replies. My mind has been eased regarding the towing concern. I'm pretty set on Tige and I really like the styling of the RZ series over the Z so I will likely go with the RZ2 or RZ4. Which I get will be dependent on price and what's available. I will try to find a new 2013 closeout deal if possible. It will still be about 2 months before anything happens, but because of y'alls replies, I will give Eagle Marine a call.