Epic mod thread

Scott, what I have is a die cut Seadek, specifically cut to bevel on the edges and fit near perfect.

We took measurements and pulled made a CAD drawing. I sent it to Seadek, they sent back templates, I test fit them and they are near perfect. I have one modification to make at the seam (no bevel) and it will be near OEM fit.

I need to know how many of us want it done and the colors of your existing deck.

Fred hit me a PM. lets talk. I will shoot out one now hoping you are on.

I changed the oil in the tranny today. It was a breeze. I ordered a couple filters from that MAR site that Fred recommended (thanks buddy). They were a lot cheaper then the other places I checked, and very friendly.

I also took off the exhaust extension so I could look at my flappers. They're not broken, they just have a lot of free play. It just proves how quiet the exhaust is now. I bet they were making that noise the entire time, but the big block was just to loud to hear it. I'll figure out a way to quiet the flappers down and let you guys know what I did.

Scott-
Just a thought about the cooler. Once we put a drain hole in the cooler, we started to leave our drinks in the cooler for the next trip and just add more drinks as needed. When we pull the plug after the weekend, we do take a towel and quickly wipe off the excess water from the remaining cans and bottles. No slime or nasty mildew smell at all. Then on the next trip out, we put plug back in, add drinks and ice accordingly and we are off, we really like the in floor cooler. We use a separate smaller soft cooler for food that we need to keep cold and put it under the drivers feet.

Nic-
We have actually broke tow of those black peices last season. Ours were a bit of a pain too, we have it figured out now, but that pivot point does seem a little awkward, for us not the easiest bimini to put up that's for sure, but we have a good system now.

Not sure what the rest of you are running for smart tow. IE: speed based or RPM based. I was on speed based and being on a river with a current and the speed being GPS and relative to land, it didn't make much sense for moving water and we were running at 25.9mph with the current and 22.7 against the current. Anyway, to be relative to the water, we switched to GPS based tonight. Long time coming and a super easy switch. I thought the gps speed based was a consistent pull but WOW...the RPM based control is rock solid. Sooo steady, no significant or long lasting speed overshot on acceleration, etc. If you haven't, I strongly suggest you try RPM based, you won't regret it!

Wow Ian never thought of that. I ride on amazing water alot at night so speed seems nice for now. I may try it though.

Joe, yeah I can't wait for your solution it is getting annoying to me as well. I only hear it now at idle but still annoying to have such a pimp ass boat with a rattle. We have to work on that. I also need an update on extra weight Joe on the surf side locker? How and how much? Bags of sand? Fat Sack? Surfed a ton last and the wave was really good. I just think a few more lbs and we could have something that is just crazy good.

Ice, I hear ya. I just can't get myself to come to grips with drilling a hole in my 2011 brand new boat man! ugg scares me to death. I am not a hands on guy so just something I have to really weigh out this winter. Damn it's a hole in the bottom of my boat. =) Just seems like a bad thing on the surface just saying it. HA

I still need to get my wind dam done. Any one give thoughts on how to cut plexi so it doesn't melt? My first try I used a jig saw with a great bit and it just melted it. Weird. Thought about something like a Drimmel but ...??

Fred, I got your PM. I think I would want it perfect on the matching, not just close enough. I have a really heavy camo pattern compared to you guys. They really made it pop out instead of a bit more grey. Has alot of black and white in it compared to 2009s and 08s. Do you know the company that does it for Epic? I still haven't heard from Karen on this. Gonna email her now.

Everyone here....just wanted to say thanks guys. All of you are freaking awesome and a huge reason I bought and love my boat. Joe you have gone out of your way man, WW is a kick ass place to meet like minded peeps for riding and talking shop. I have learned alot already. I love new thoughts and projects so just wanted to say thanks to everyone here for the ideas and help with my new boat. Joe, Ice, Fred, Ian...everyone else. Thanks guys.

Hey Scott, I'll remind Karen to get with you on the nonskid for your gunnels, we do have it in the same camo that you have. She's been super busy with the Caddo move. When I get back to SD i'll take some pics and send them to you so you can see for youself if they'll work for you.
Phil

Scott - if you can do a CAD drawing on the gunnell and get it perfect, be my guest and good luck!

Thanks Phil, no worries man as it is gonna be a winter project, or late summer at best.

Fred....I have done some CAD but have no access to it now. I guess I have to do that for the bevel to be right. Also want to do the drivers feet.

scott-

My suggestion for surfing, especially regular/port side. Starboard doesnt seem to need as much xtra weight, but the more the merrier!

Front= Full + 200-300lbs
Surf Side= Full + 500lbs in or on back locker (the further back on surfside, the better)
Non-Surf Side= Empty
Wake Plate= all the way up, 0%
Speed= 11.2mph -11.7mph depending on how the rider likes it and will also depend on how many peeps you have in boat.

As far as the xtra weight goes on the surfside and front, we use a combination of lead and people. You can use fat sacks, sand bags, lead, phat chicks, phat dudes...weight is weight...etc. For example, we have about 280lbs of lead that we switch in the back lockers and then have a 200lb guy sitting on top of the sundeck on surfside.

Ice - Got ya. We can't have anyone outside the boat when moving or huge ticket but we always try to fill that corner seat if possible. We ride with the family. So when I ride wife is driving have my 8 year old...(60lbs) in corner seat and the other 3 are typicall on that side up to the glove box. We don't fill the front but will. I am thinking of adding about 300 to surf side. Guess I need more and some in the front. I am thinking fatsac. Wish I could get some fat people on the boat...lol Wife is 125lbs soaking wet.... kids are dinks...lol

Scott, start talking your wife to fast food places more often. That should help. And don't give me that, "oh, but shes so hot, I don't want to wreck her" crap. If you want to surf, you have to commit.

I'm running a lot like Ice. I have full front+100(want to add more, but the bow is pretty close to the water already), full port surf side+600, empty starboard, 11.7, 1/2 tab.

The wave is nice, just not long enough. I collected about 300# in lead so far. I'm in the process of bagging it. But I do have another 600# sac laying around.

The experiment tonight. Fill EVERYTHING, +100 up front, +1200 surf side. Mess with the trim tab, and speed till I get it.

Keep us posted Joe. I have to find some weight cuz lord knows I can't commit to nothing. And she IS HOT....so can't mess that up. But damn, that line had me laughing. Guess if that is what it takes to get the most amazing surf wake ever...hmmmmm May have to "committ" as you say but damn at night that is gonna SUCK!! lol

What surf boards is everyone riding and how is it working with your surf wakes? We are riding a liquid force custom 4' 2" skim style board and are having trouble keeping up with the wake. Granted we are no experts. Was just wondering what everyone else was riding and how they liked it.

I just sold my Darrin Shapiro Slaysh for that reason. I now LOVE the Hyperlite Land Lock. It is long at 5'11" but so much fun to just drink a beer back there and it finds the pocket and hold awesome. I have surfed for 20 min straight in the pocket before losing it. (we had a contest...) Anyway check it out. It is long and doesn't fit in the rack which sucks, but I am getting a surf rack for it. I love the fact that anyone can use this board and first timers always get up. My kids even use it. She is 8 and he is 6 and start on their belly's then go to knees and 8 year old is now standing and finding the pocket. AMAZING and fun to watch.

oh we have found the pocket is pretty close to the boat as well. With out long board we are about 2-3 feet from the back of the boat to the tip of the board.

Nic-

I ride the Triple X Slasher 5'0" with two 3" side fins, no middle thruster fin. I just demo'd the Soulcraft Jetty with (2) 3" fins over the weekend and love it. Both boards are fast and bouyant enough to keep my 260lbs of pure lovin' moving in the right direction :-). The Jetty is a little easier to spin. Let me know if you are interested in either the Triple X or the Soulcraft. Soulcraft is HQ'd in Boise and I am good friends with the owner, great dude, he will customize your board to exactly how you want it, he has a custom graphics person, custom kick pads etc. One of my surfing buddies is one of Triple X's sponsored riders, Nick Scott (just placed 4th @ worlds last week in Minnesota and is at the Northwest Surf Comp this weekend). His username on WW is Nikki Sixx. He can typically get you a deal on a Triple X board.

Link to Soulcraft- http://www.facebook.com/home.php?ref...oarding?ref=ts

Link to Triple X- https://www.triplexsurfandskim.com/cart.html

My wife, rides the hyperlite coex and loves it. That board is ridiculous to spin (like a lot of other skim boards). Here is a couple of linksof one of the guys up here in the NW that throws down on his Coex. I laugh my @$$ off everytime I see his 1800's...ridiculous

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZBK1a...eature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wGFERyJ9xWg

we ride a surfboard. I had one custom made when I was competing and now it is the boat board. 6'0 fish ocean surfing board and also a 5'9" epoxy pop out board that is my sons.

I loved the grindwater Mauka or whatever it is called.

I ride the 4'2" LF Custom. Once you learn how to ride it, it is increadibly easy to keep in the pocket due to its speed.

Does anyone else do a big circle when they surf? I ride goofy, and find if the boat isn't doing a lazy turn to the right, it has a trough at the bottom of the wake the swallows the tip of the board if you're not careful.

yeah that trough is there we don't do a lazy circle though. We to a big oval. It isn't too bad with our big board but I wonder if it is with a smaller board.

Fred-

Yeah that trough took us a while to get used to on the goofey side (it is there on the regular side as well). Anyways, we just ride further back and if for some reason we get into the trough, we 'try' to keep the nose of the board up so we dont dive into it. Between the trough and how steep the wake is, we have found that riding further back and a little up works best and when you go to throw any kind of tricks (especially spins) you start your spin just behind the middle of the trough (about 2ft from back of swim platform) where as on other boats, you can start your spin right off the swim platform to give yourself plenty of wake left to catch back up after your spin. Just different to get used to. We will slightly turn into it sometimes to get rid of that little ripple of white water that sometimes appears on the lip of the wake.

We experimented with my buddy's '07 surf wave this weekend and found that front full plus a fly high v-drive sac (400+ lbs) in the hallway and then half full on the port side at 11.0 and plate at 25% was pretty good. It still needs just a little more push but it lengthened the pocket by at least 5' and had a nice little curl at the back. You can get a really long pocket at a faster speed but there was 0 push to it, it looked awesome but rode like crap, the wave looked like a mile long. Once the speed dropped the pocket shortened a little bit (not much) and the push started to come in. He tried front full plus surf side full and then the vdrive sac in the locker and got nowhere and that's when the bag was moved to the front and results were being seen.

I think after a little more experimenting that we can get a pretty bad azz wave out of this boat, just like any boat it takes some work to get it all dialed in. The one thing that I really like most was the fact that the swim platform wasn't in the water at all which means you aren't getting any interference and kept the face super clean.

So I need some help. Last night I tightened my battery grounds as we thought they might be the issue to some of the electrical problems I have been having. After that my gauges would no longer work, they would show the Mercruiser start up screen and that was all, my navigation lights started flashing, with all the switches off, and my horn no longer works. BUT, when I hold the horn button the radio now comes on and I am able to start the boat without a key. Although this could come in very handy if I lost my key, I think it could cause an overall bad boating experience for this evening and this weekends fiasco's... I have an appt. to get it to the dealer on monday, who will probably keep my boat for the better part of a month to only work on it a day. Anyone else had anything like this happen. I am a very DIY person and am an engineer. There is no way that tightening the negative battery post should have spawned these increadible hidden features to surface.... I am at a loss for words.

Sam -

Wow that is a story brother. I wish I could even begin to help man. Hope you figure it out soon.

Tim -

Hey, you fill the FRONT full and the PORT only half? Added 400 more pounds to the front? Usually we are full PORT Half FRONT and added weight in PORT. hmmmm

Definitely sounds like a grounding issue. Where do the guages and radio, etc. ground to under the dash? I would check there and follow all the way back to the batteries.

Sam, did you take any of the nuts off the batts to maybe clean the terminals before you tightened them? If so, I'll bet you a case of beer that you left the ground wire that goes to the ground distribution block off. That would explain all your problems.

No, I just tightened them. They are now off because of the above listed issues. I decided to put the boat in "time-out" with no battery connection until I get to the lake today. All of my electrical issues started when the dealer replaced dead batteries from last season, and seem to have escalated quickly. I can only hope it is not possessed and decides to either catch on fire, or run the bilge backwards to sink the boat while I'm on the lake this evening...........

Scott - yeah, we filled the FRONT full and added 400 more and then only ran about half on the port side. Weird, huh? Completely opposite of what I would think and my RZ2, it likes all of the weight in the back and nothing in the front . The surf rope that I have is super long and I could hold onto the handle and stretch out my arm and I was just barely at the back of the wave because that's how long the pocket was. The face was clean and not too steep, I could ride on top of the lip right behind the platform effortlessly. We are going to experiment some more and I will try and get pics.

Tim-
What about people up front have you tried that? I am not a huge fan of more weight (hate bags) but I may try people up there. 2 guys is 400#s Driver and surfer. Seems doable. Thoughts? How fast again 11 even and 25%?

Sam, same prob, same bet. Someone (they) left the ground off for the ground distribution block. The block is on the back wall in the batt bay. That wire fell down on me every time I messed with it. Reach around the back of the rear batt and feel around. or better yet, get a light, find the distribution block, follow the wire to make sure it's connected.

Scott - there were only 3 of us so we couldn't try people weight. I'm pretty sure we were right at 11.0 and the plate was at 25%. If you look at the gauge it was 25% from the left of it, I'm not used to the gauge enough to know which way but if you read the gauge from left to right, it was 1/4 of the way from the left. We were thinking that if you had a bunch of people in the back that you might not really have to fill the rear surf side very much at all and just stack a few people in the bow.

Guys-

Trailoring...I have been used to putting the cover on since that is what I had to do with my old boat because we would lose a seat if I didn't. So, I have put it on and off everytime going to the lake (45min away) Do I need to with mine now? Don't want to lose a seat cushion. Thoughts? How do you all trailor it with or without the cover?

No cover for me. but I don't go very far. It's been my experience that even the best covers end up scuffing the gel coat after a while. I really won't do it if I didn't have to.

My surf report. I have an original, year 1 landlock, and a TWP comp x 5.0 The TWP is awesome!

I recently decided to see what would happen if I really weighted the boat down. We filled everything+ added 1200# to the surf side corner(port). We went all the way up to 15mph and still didn't get a surfable wave. It actually sucked a lot. Not to mention, the rpm's were way to high for any kind a sustained riding. We ended up dumping the right side and one of the 600# bags and surfing at 11.7 like normal. So cross that off the list of things to try.

I'm very excited about Timmy's method, and will try to repeat his results tomorrow.

Timmy-
Interesting, we will b trying that set-up this weekend.

Scott-
No cover unless we have bags/gear that are light enough to fly out or if we know we will be on a dusty road.

HELP !!

Ok last night went out. Had great time but storm rolled in. Had to drop two guys off at different dock and then had to try to beat the F ing storm to anther dock where my trailer was. So had it pegged which I know I shouldn't but had to. Storm was really bad and we didn't beat it. It was about as scared as I have been in a while. Lightning bad and thunder like a mofo along with rain that was sideways. Anyway....didn't feel anything hit, but we started to vibrate. We thought we must have hit something but at that moment I didn't care. We made it back got it up. We looked and felt the rudders and prop and looked just as new as when I got it. So my friend thought that we may have experieces High RPM balance issue. Have you ever felt that? I was running way to hard on her to save my life ...lol at least I felt that way. I was running around 5000 RPM. It wasn't a bad vibration just enough to be really freaking annoying and worrysome. I couldn't put back in after the storm to try her out again but wondering what you all thought. RPM BALANCE or did I hit something? No nicks not even a scratch on the prop. It looks brand new.... I actually hoped it was the prop cuz that is easy to fix.

I got the electrical issue fixed, and from what I can tell will be a common issue down the road with these boats. After tracing all of the ground wires from the batteries to the dash, I found where all of the dash is grounded. It is grounded with a butt connector, but it is attached straight up and down under the dash. It seems that it fell off when I was trailering the boat, maybe rough ground did it. But for future reference, that is where it is.

This fixed all of my issues except for the perfectpass issues. My boat is still not holding speed. It will be set at 21.5 and beep like it has hit speed around 15 mph, then proceed to accelerate to around 30 mph then to drop back to 15 mph only to then hit 21.5 and start holding speed. With my wife driving this is a painfull experience on a board. On my old Malibu there was a way to adjust the amount of time that the perfectpass took measurements (something like nn). For the life of me I cannot find it on this boat. It seems to me if the speedometer is working with GPS signal it should be able to hold the correct speed.

Anyone have any input, I wish they would have gone with a perfect pass zero off system instead of a mercruiser one here....

Sam I had the same damn issue last night. I set it for 23.5 and it would beep around 15 mph then get all the way up to like almost 29 and never come back. I just manually drove it. It usually beeps when it gets to speed but last night it didn't. Actually it did with no ballast full, and didn't when we had alot of ballast in.

After my storm issue (see above) that seems like a small problem now. lol I am gonna drop boat in and see today if vibration is still there.

Sam, what do you have your launch set at? I usually do 2 or maybe 3, but never highr then that. If it's too high, it'll shoot past for sure.

Scott, the computer takes a bunch of inputs and figures out the best way to hit, and stay at a set speed. So if you have the boat weighted down for a while, the computer remembers what it has to do. So when you dump the water, it doesn't realize it for a bit. That's why the speed and launch will be off. It usually only takes a min or 2 for it to recalibrate.

Scott, the engine protects itself when you get over 5K rpm's. You basically can't blow up this engine. So, you may have experienced the engine going into some sort of protection mode, which caused some vibration. Just a guess.

Sam and Scott, there's a small glitch with the GPS unit: It resets every time you turn the key off. So it has to re-sync every time you turn the key, which can take up to 10 minutes each time. The way around it it to always keep the key on and turn the engine on and off at the throttle button.

Joe, what is the launch setting?

Scott, put the boat back in the water. Lake test it and report back with your latest findings. My assumption is it is nothing to be concerned about. This time don't cruise at 5k RPM. Try it out at surf speeds, wake pulling speeds and YOUR normal cruising speeds. If the problem persists then report back.

Check your engine mounts to make sure they didn't vibrate loose even a little bit, possibly throwing your alignment giving you minor vibrations.

At high speeds even the slightest of bends in the prop can throw the balance off and cause slight vibrations, keep that in mind, you may not even notice it during YOUR normal operations.

I never turn the key off. I always start and stop with the push button. I also have my launch settings at 3 or 2. I even tried calibrating the speed as wrtiten in the manual, with the boat loaded with water and trim gauge where I want it. It says to start at 11 mph and run 20 sec on each mph to desired speed. Well once I get to around 16 mph.... It just keeps going, hits 30mph with it set on 16 then comes below 16 and then Holds. I am about to scream at this point. A 2009 boat should not have to be driven by hand, and my wife can definately not do it.

Any other suggestions?

OK, just got back from the lake. ALL GOOD ! I must have had something in it. It ran great, no vibration. So whatever it was it is gone. I think it may have alot to do with me having it pegged and scared to death..lol

As far as the Smart Tow goes. I always use the key, habit. I am concerned using the push button will eat battery....no? I didn't check the smart tow today should have. I will soon. Yesterday was my first time having that happen. Every other time we have been great. Sorry Sam should have checked mine today.

I figured I would post this for you guys. I do two boats a year depending on timing and such. This one just came out of the shop. We took a 2007 Epic, stripped her completely down and started over. As you can see everything is new. Went with a very, very tricked out paint scheme, not to worry this paint is bulletproof, you can smack it with a hammer and she will not crack. Running into the dock, well you might as well avoid that. New interior, new everything. Opened up the stern for the sound, Clarion speakers to match the paint, Alpine head with Alpine amps, LED's in everycup holder, tons and tons of lighting.
Asking $47,500 for the boat and trailer, Trailer has been tricked also, as you can tell from the pictures. $1,300 worth of rims and tires. The boat has a total of 167hrs. Just sent it in to Volvo for a complete go thru and update. 8.1 liters of fun.
Send me a pm or reply to this if interested.
Thanks.

Scott, I know turning the key is a hard habit to break! You have to just use the button though or you'll be wasting a bunch of time waiting for the GPS to hook back up. It took my buddy a few times to remember as well. The digital start button is money, it does it every time on my boat.

Timmy's really on to something!!! We tried his way and got the cleanest wave to date. The trough was gone, and the face was smooth. It was awesome!

The only problem was it didn't have enough push for me(235#). So we tried to stay close to Timmy's method. We tried a few things, but we ended up with something I'm still smiling about.

Full front and port. 400# in the walkway, and 400# in the port locker. I really liked 12mph, and 1/2 tab. But my buddy liked 11.5, and 1/4 tab. Either way, I had so much fun!

The best part? The engine was running at 3200rpm! Considering we usually run at 4200rpm, that's going to save us a ton of gas. Did I mention that I'm super excited about this?

Oh yeah, I had to take my FAE off last night to work on something. So we rode without it for the first time this season. All I can say is wow! I forgot how mean this boat sounds. But honestly, to anyone that's trying to ride behind this thing without a FAE, What are you thinking? It's soooo loud! You want to know how to improve your stereo? FAE! That's it, hands down best mod ever.

Nice! So adding more weight in the back and the front gave you the push? That was my only complaint about my method was that it didn't have enough push to it but damn was it clean! I'll have to try your new way this weekend and see what happens. Glad to hear that the Epic wave is getting dialed in!

Joe,

FAE- I think it is making my wake wash. I rode with some guys the other night and they are really really good riders. We could not for the life of us clean up the port side. We were full all the way around and dumped almost half of the port side but still wash. Starboard side was soooo SICK HUGE but port was washing. They just couldn't get it dialed and they are experts. They came to conclusion that is had to be the FAE. They think it isn't centered perfectly. They came on this becuase we have a nice size rooster tail and if you drive in a str8 line it throws more of the tail to the port side. So they came to think I needed to move it about an inch over and see what it does.

I am also agreeing with them, because I HATE the rooster tail at anywhere from 14-20MPH. It is even there over that just not as bad. We tube with our little ones and it is really annoying. Are you seeing this huge rooster tail? Seems when I ride I only ride empty or 1/4 front and 1/4 port. So I see it but I am back far enough that it doesn't affect it. For some reason on those settings the tail is fine and both wake sides are money. Fill it more and it washes bad. Thinking of putting my muffler back on and taking the FAE off. Hate to do it cuz I agree with you on the quiet issue. I love the stereo now that you helped me dial it in, and the FAE is soooo quiet. So that I don't want to lose but I have to get rid of that rooster tail.

LAST -
How to add the weight for surfing? Are you taking into account people at all on those 400#? 400in walk and 400 in surf side (port) Need advice on how to get the weight. Can I use people or do I use people to get my 400 or do I use bags? Do I use same amount of weight if I have like 8 people in boat or what about 4 guys in boat? Thoughts.

Scott, I know if I run the tab at 100% the roost is the worst. If I'm pulling the kids, I usually put it to 75% and that really cuts it down. Before you take your FAE off, take a pic from the back, maybe your missing something.

As far as weight goes, weight is weight. More is usually better if placed right. I would fill the front, and surf sides. Then add more at a 60/40 ratio with the 60 in the front. It really seems weird to weight is like this, but it works. We had a harder lean last night then ever before.

Yeah I think I will take a pic and post, but it is soooo sturdy. It doesn't move. It looks perfect. I have run at 0% and we still have a tail at some speeds. I think our easy solve is add rope length to the tube to get them far enough back they don't get spashed. As far as my wake is concerned it is much worse when we are full and I don't ride full at all so no biggie to me, but it makes my EPIC boat not come accross as EPIC when I have great riders back there. (although they did say that is the highest they have ever got behind a boat)

Surfing is our favorite. So I have to figure out the weight. Usually for us we are at the NORM setup. Full Port half front and 10.7mph and play with tab till we get it. Usually at 25%. So I am going to try FULL FULL but I need weight...so got to think about sacs or something.

If you don't have sacs, I would play with the weight in the rear. Fill the front and then rear half and maybe work your way up from there in the back and see what happens? We didn't get a whole lot of time to play with the speed when I was out because the wind picked up and the water was complete garbage with mini white caps so we had to stop for the day.

Scott, if you are running full tanks while wakeboarding that is your problem. Full tanks all the way around is almost impossible to dial in. I do believe the biggest wake this boat will put out cleanly is 2/5 port, 1/5 starboard, and full front. Its huge and clean. As my buddy says, its like a double up off his air nautique. The wake just isn't as good once you go beyond this fill level in my opinion when wakeboarding.

Nic-
Great to know. I will keep that in my back pocket for next time they are up. They want it as big as possible but super clean. So if that is where it's at then I will remember that next time. They did say that our wake is extremely poppy, and straight up and down. I swear one guy did a TS 3 and he was at least 15' in the air at the bottom of his board. He landed it and his eyes were huge, threw the rope and we pulled around and he was just laughing saying "WTF I have never been that high that was sooo fun" So we have a great wake in our boats. These guys I went with for me were a great test. They all can throw 3s and one has a 5. All inverts, Raley's....they are amazing. So for those guys to say it was sick high was cool, they was wished they could dial in the Port.

I run the ballast full many times. A couple of tricks I have learned. Put the front and port sides completely full, but only put just a bit over 3/4 in the starboard side. You need to bump the speed up to about 22.3mph minimum. You will also need to start your pull and make your turns with the trim tab at 100%, but drop it down to 50% in your line. This setup puts out a monster clean wake. It does help to have 2-3 people to move around in the back also.

Now if only my gps would hold speed......

Sam-
We were doing 24.5 or 24 most of the time. We played with the tab and best was 25% . I think we dumped the starboard to under 1/2 throughout the runs. Never could get it right. We will try again but I think I am going to go with FULL FRONT and play with the sides. I like Nic's setup, at least in theory till I see it. About same as yours, do either of your have FAEs?

I do not have an FAE. I really wanted one at the start of the season but between all the issues everyone seems to be having I don't think I will be getting one. I love the reduced noise aspect, but rooster tail spray and noisy flappers would drive me bonkers and negate any positives the FAE would bring. Once someone can solve those two issues I would get one.

Yes I agree Nic....the flappers are annoying and the spray is really getting annoying.

Joe did you ever solve the flapper issue?

Guys, I have some spray, but it's not a problem. I'm actually wondering if Scott's down pipe it too long. Maybe Scott could measure his and I'll compare it with mine.
As far as the flappers go, I figured out the problem, and am working on a fix. The problem comes from the metal that the flappers are made from. Its a thin sheet metal that's stamped out. The real problem is that there's no hinge, just a stampped slot that the pivot pin goes through. Nic, your flappers make noise too. The engine is just so loud you can't hear them. You can try it. Reach your hand in there and wiggle them back and forth. You'll hear what I'm talking about.

Even with the flappers, and the spray(which isn't a prob for me), I'd still never go without one.

This reminds me, I found a mystery part in my exhaust. It was a plastic ring of some sort, stuck behind my right flapper. I think it came out of the muffler when it broke. I don't know where else it could've come from. I'll post a pic later, but you guys should check yours if you replaced your muffler.

ICE has an FAE on his epic. Maybe he could chime in with his experiences

I will try to get some pics today. I don't think mine is any longer than anyone's since I bought it from the FAE guy online. I love the fact that it really does help with the sound a ton and the emissions are long gone.

Guys-
Rooster Tail-
We do have a pretty big rooster tail when we pull the kids and wakeboard. I usually put the plate 50% or below and the rooster tail is back to normal. Didn't tuneman post a vid of his wake last season and I seem to remember he didn't have an FAE at the time and the rooster seemed to be pretty big? Was that tuneman or am I completely off? It was that vid of them kneeboarding...

Wakeboarding wake-
I remember reading a thread before where tony carrol or someone from his crew determined that the port side needs a lot more weight than the starboard, but can't remember the ratio. They said most of it was due to the torque from the engine naturally dropped the starboard side deeper in the water when underway.
We do not wakeboard much, but when we do, we have the same issue with the starboard wake being huge and clean all the way from 55' to 85'. The port wake is a different story. We haven't spent a lot of time trying to dial in the wakeboarding wake, but the port side is definitely harder to get right. We usually default to having about twice as much weight on the port side as starboard (people & ballast). However, most that wakeboard behind our boat are beginner to intermediate and we run minimal ballast. Again, haven't spent a lot of time dialing the wakeboarding wake, but something isn't quite right about the port side. Same goes for the surf wake in my opinion, the starboard side is much easier to dial in, cleaner further back, easier to ride, etc. than the port surfwake. Buddies & I used to think that maybe the hull was just a little off alignment wise on the port side (I HIGHLY doubt that is the case). Could it be the FAE? Part of me also questions if it could have something to do with the dual rudder and the rudder being on the sides of the prop thrust vs. one rudder right in the middle of the prop thrust?

Sorry I don't have any definite answers, but those are our findings and thoughts.

I completely forgot that I took these pics, I just found these. They were taken the first time we wakeboarded on our boat last year. These pics were taken BEFORE we put on the FAE. No ballast, 3 adults and 2 kids in the boat, I can't remember where the plate was and I think around 21-22mph. I got my FAE installed a short time after these pics were taken and I haven't gotten the port side wake on my boat to be this this clean since. As you can see though, the port side wake is a little steeper and has more of a lip on it vs. the starboard side. All things being equal (plate, speed, weight distro) there is something other than the FAE effecting the shape of the wake.

Ok, how do I get the troll control to turn on. I am sick of the GPS not working and want to try to use the troll to hold the speed. It says it has to be in gear at a minimum RPM and I try to turn it on and no luck. Does the perfect pass need to be on or off? Is there anyway to get the troll control to do MPH instead of RPM. I am guessing that it is running off of a paddle wheel....

Any help is very much appreciated

The troll control is not a feature on the Epic, even though it displays it. The cruise control is also GPS only, no paddle wheel.

Tune is correct on that. We do not have the Troll control on our boats even though manual says. GPS is always correct.

Guys, my wake is great when not carrying any ballast. Both sides are super clean. Now I am only at 60' but still clean at least 15' further back. When I do add weight I agree that we have to not add equally, but haven't got to play with the ratio's. Not quite that good boarding yet, however I can now say I can clear the wake most times at 60'. Feeling great about that.

Surf Wake-
Have yet to try the 400lbs in front with front FULL and Port only half. I have to get 400lbs first...Man I am so anxious.


LASTLY- Hours guys?
Remember when I only had 6 hours on her...well try 39 now...and loved every damn hour...!!!!

ICE, I didn't notice much rooster, but I did notice a lot of turbulence inside the wake from the rudders.

You definitely need to add more weight to the port side to get the wake to balance out. Also, if you really load the boat down, you also need to speed up. This is true for any heavy ballasted boat, but it's not obvius on an Epic since the ballast is all hidden.

The port wash is because of the hull design. Prop torque is not the main culprit. The narrow design of the bow allows the boat to list easily. Add in a little prop torque and you have uneven wakes. I was hoping they would fix this on the 21v, but it looks like the same bow shape. BTW, I'm a mechanical engineer, with a background in fluid dynamics. I'm not guessing. Maybe they should add another engine and use counter-rotating props

or a tranny that turns two prop shafts in opposite directions

or a flux capacitor

Wait, never mind. The boat won't go 88. It'll never work.

Hey I liked seeing the pics of the wake!

I know that it sounds like most people do not run these boats with full ballast but I am interested in what it looks like filled up. Does anyone have any pictures of their wake with full ballast?

I ride at 25-26 mph and am very interested to see what it looks like at this speed with FULL ballast... Is anyone able to post a picture at these speeds so I can see what it's all about??

I am interested because this is one of the top boats on my list for when I am ready to buy next season.

Thanks in advance!

Mike.... I ran full all over and I can tell you first hand it is HUGE. I will post some pics next time I do it. Problem is getting the port side dialed in. We had some wash on the port side, I think mostly because of my FAE isn't quite centered but still. Best wake isn't at full really. Clean is important however the starboard side was super clean with whole boat full. Sick big. I think with some tweaking a full boat can be done easily I am just not near good enough so no point for me, however some of those I ride with wanted to see it like you and ride it. They were nothing but smiles after riding even with a little wash on the port. One guy went so high he laughed as he was in the air, landed, threw the handle at us, we went to pick him up and he was still laughing. He said "Holy Shi* I never have been that high" so...yeah it is crazy.

That sounds awesome!!! Would just a few sandbags be able to clean up the one side of the wake?? I have heard that it is enormous!! I would love to ride behind one. I am just not very close to any owners here in East TN.... Post up them pics when you can!

Thank you!

I usually run a 3/2 ratio of weight port/starboard and it is money.

So in theory a full port side rear tank at 1500 lbs in conjunction with 1000 pounds starboard rear tank would produce a massive wake. I have not tried this setting as I am usually riding with about 750 lbs port and 300 lbs starboard and it is plenty big and super clean.

I'll get some pics friday with the ballast all the way full for everyone. It seems no one ever takes pictures....

haha guys and picture taking usually don't go hand in hand. I bet if there were some women owners we'd have pics in a jiffy