*The DIY Surf Gate Thread*

[Nicsobu]

Rugger, thanks. I probably would not have done it if it wasn't for your bracket and attachment concept.

[martinarcher]

Lacking length isn't really what I meant as I could surf much further back with this wave. The problem is the wave comes out at too much of an angle from the boat instead of projecting out slowly over a greater distance. Looking at the pictures of your wave it projects down the line of the boat for about 6 feet then seems to "openn up" at maybe a 20-30 degree angle. Mine seems to have about 4-5 feet down the line then opens up at a 35-45 degree angle. Does that make sense?

As for speed....I surf at 8.5 MPH on the PP (stargazer). I know that is slow compared to everything else out there but that was the optimal speed before I started the mods as well. I actually went through a whole range of speeds but the wave was so much smaller at higher speeds. I probably need to surf a few other speeds just to check that the size is correlated to the "surfability". I tried adjusting the speed quite a bit before modifying the boat and always came back to 8.5 MPH.

Wow...I'm surprised your wave forms at 8.5mph. Mine does not even clean up until I am running around 9-9.5. We surf at 10.5 and it throws the wave you see in my pics. Anyone else surfing your hull? Do they also have to run a similar speed? That just makes me think you need more weight and more speed.

[rugger]

Rugger, thanks. I probably would not have done it if it wasn't for your bracket and attachment concept.

Cool! Yeah, there's always a better idea out there but this one seems to work well. It'd have to be one long irregular gate without using a fill bracket on these hulls.

Maybe the evolution of the concept will one day favor a stepped hull. : )

[Nicsobu]

Rugger,forgot to ask you about gate size. Mine is 10x19 , no taper. Made up some new arms today,square instead of round ,no rotation when selecting pins and wanted every part to be non corrosive . I'm not happy with the stainless hinge though, the pin seems a bit small in diameter so it wobbles some. I'll probably make my own with 1/4 inch alum and heavy wall pipe.

Edited June 8, 2013 by Nicsobu

[Tao of Wake]

I just can't seem to get a good goofy wave with my DIY solution. I just modified my design to angle the gates more, and I can get a pretty good wave on the regular side (have not ridden it), but I ride goofy, and I just can't get a decent wave to form on that side. The gates are identical size (12" x 18") and are installed the same on both sides. I have tried adjusting the extension of the gate, wedge positions (including not deployed), weight distribution, etc. My next step is to scrap the gates altogether and try a NSS solution. If it works, I will just have a manual solution where I can move it from side to side. I may look at automating it next year, but I just want a non-listing and quick and easy to switch sides solution for this summer!

[Nicsobu]

My goofy is better than regular, totally different hull though. Got any pics of your set up?

[Nicsobu]

So far this is as good as my set up will get. 750 surf side full, 750 regular side 75% full, wedge down , 10.7 mph, center empty, surf gate out about 25 degrees. Also, wedge made a bigger improvement when boat was weighted evenly.

Edited June 9, 2013 by Nicsobu

[rugger]

Rugger,forgot to ask you about gate size. Mine is 10x19 , no taper. Made up some new arms today,square instead of round ,no rotation when selecting pins and wanted every part to be non corrosive . I'm not happy with the stainless hinge though, the pin seems a bit small in diameter so it wobbles some. I'll probably make my own with 1/4 inch alum and heavy wall pipe.

My new gates are pretty similar in size with a slight taper, and I'm pretty sure last summer's gates were exactly the same as yours. Those arms look solid! Nice.

I was gonna do the same with making a hinge so it would fit my setup better, but ended up using 3/16" SS hinges from ebay. I wouldn't sweat a little wobble though, I'd think all hinges move a little.

Did you cut down your swim deck? It's hard to tell in your previous picture. I definitely think it makes a big difference for the stowed/surf side to get it out of the wave. You can watch it while surfing to see what it's doing. I think I PM'd you my ballast setup so far but I'll try to get some more pictures. I've hardly been out this year...

Edited June 10, 2013 by rugger

[Nicsobu]

My new gates are pretty similar in size with a slight taper, and I'm pretty sure last summer's gates were exactly the same as yours. Those arms look solid! Nice.

I was gonna do the same with making a hinge so it would fit my setup better, but ended up using 3/16" SS hinges from ebay. I wouldn't sweat a little wobble though, I'd think all hinges move a little.

Did you cut down your swim deck? It's hard to tell in your previous picture. I definitely think it makes a big difference for the stowed/surf side to get it out of the wave. You can watch it while surfing to see what it's doing. I think I PM'd you my ballast setup so far but I'll try to get some more pictures. I've hardly been out this year...

I have not cut the swim deck and I did get your PM. As I recall you added to the depth and removed width from the tail . What are those #s. Also did you taper the top or bottom? And does the stowed taper help the surf side receive more push. I'm overthinking this a bit. OCD. I should just leave it alone and enjoy.

[High Altitude]

OK...back with some results but no pictures. Honestly, I was having too much fun and just forgot to snap any.

Bottom line is the suggestions on this site combined with a few tweaks to my "NSS" system worked out incredibly well. I ended up removing about 1.25 inches of horizontal displacement and added some weight. It made for an incredible wave. Nice long pocket and plenty of push. I rode it both on my slow, stable board (Hyperlite Landlock) and my fast, fun board (Triple X, custom Thrasher). I had a friend with me who had never surfed and he was able to go ropeless on the second set (on the Landlock) so I am taking that as a good sign for the wave. I have not tested the port side wave as me, my daughter and my friend all rode goofy. Hopefully, I will be testing that side in the next two weeks.

New setup:

Up front - 400 lbs (combination of sacs and lighter people - evenly weighted)
Back - 800 lbs
Side - 325 (combination) - 150 of that in the far back corner, surfside (this was key)

Amazing that a 20 foot DD could throw such a good wave with just over 1500 lbs of weight. Very happy with my setup! -Marc

[High Altitude]

So far this is as good as my set up will get. 750 surf side full, 750 regular side 75% full, wedge down , 10.7 mph, center empty, surf gate out about 25 degrees. Also, wedge made a bigger improvement when boat was weighted evenly.

Have you tried with a little more weight in the forward section of the boat? I can say with certainty that my system needs more weight in the fron than I ever had before. I know it's a different approach but I thought I read somewhere that the surfgate needed more more weight forward as well. -Marc

[Bu hoo]

OK...back with some results but no pictures. Honestly, I was having too much fun and just forgot to snap any.

Well that is disappointing.

[High Altitude]

Wow...I'm surprised your wave forms at 8.5mph. Mine does not even clean up until I am running around 9-9.5. We surf at 10.5 and it throws the wave you see in my pics. Anyone else surfing your hull? Do they also have to run a similar speed? That just makes me think you need more weight and more speed.

8.5 is the optimal speed for this boat... without a doubt. I don't know anybody who surfs a direct drive nautique but I'm sure they are out there. Maybe witha whole lot more weight that would change but I think I have found an optimal setup for me and my family.

As for the weight suggestion....thank you! (and a few others who had the same suggestion). 150 lbs placed in the right spot made all the difference in the world. I truly have a multi-sport machine. I went from skiing the course on a beautifully flat wake to surfing a very nice wave in less then 10 minutes. My wife and kids kept commenting that I had a goofy grin on my face the whole time! -Marc

[martinarcher]

We live for pics.

That's great you are getting it dialed in. My wife rolls her eyes on "test and tune wave days".

[nevertwobig]

OK...back with some results but no pictures. Honestly, I was having too much fun and just forgot to snap any.

Bottom line is the suggestions on this site combined with a few tweaks to my "NSS" system worked out incredibly well. I ended up removing about 1.25 inches of horizontal displacement and added some weight. It made for an incredible wave. Nice long pocket and plenty of push. I rode it both on my slow, stable board (Hyperlite Landlock) and my fast, fun board (Triple X, custom Thrasher). I had a friend with me who had never surfed and he was able to go ropeless on the second set (on the Landlock) so I am taking that as a good sign for the wave. I have not tested the port side wave as me, my daughter and my friend all rode goofy. Hopefully, I will be testing that side in the next two weeks.

New setup:

Up front - 400 lbs (combination of sacs and lighter people - evenly weighted)

Back - 800 lbs

Side - 325 (combination) - 150 of that in the far back corner, surfside (this was key)

Amazing that a 20 foot DD could throw such a good wave with just over 1500 lbs of weight. Very happy with my setup! -Marc

What were the final dimensions for the nss? How much out the side and under the transom did your plate extend?

Edited June 10, 2013 by nevertwobig

[High Altitude]

What were the final dimensions for the nss? How much out the side and under the transom did your plate extend?

3/4 inch vertical and 1 inch horizontal displacement. Not quite the same as the real NSS system but I found that my hull (99 Ski Nautique - direct drive) was very sensitive to overdoing the wake convergence. I'll try and take a picture of the new cutout but I would guess that it's about 8 inches high and 9 inches long.

I can tell you with this setup my wave is cleaner than my buddies '04 Super Air with stock ballast plus a 750 in the locker on the surf-side. Simply no comparision. Push is about the same but his wave is slightly steeper. Downside is you are surfing right on top of his swim deck. I'm about 5 feet back on my wave.

[High Altitude]

We live for pics.

That's great you are getting it dialed in. My wife rolls her eyes on "test and tune wave days".

Yes...I understand about the pics. I almost didn't post knowing that I would be abused for my lack of photos!

Should have some good photo's of both sides by next week.

[nevertwobig]

I made a temporary surf gate and got it dialed in. It is truly amazing! The only downside is I still have to sac the crap out of it and steering is horrible! Gas consumption is atrocious! I need to try the nss thing. I can surf 20' behind the boat but at 6-7 gallons an hour is killing me.

[nevertwobig]

How's your steering high altitude?

[High Altitude]

The NSS (at least on my boat) still requires uneven weighting. Not a huge fan of that but I have tried many different setups and couldn't make it work with even weighting.

Steering is almost unaffected. When I made my static surfgate system last year that was a huge problem. Needless to say, with Lenco's this could be permanently eliminated.

Have not noticed any unusual gas consumption. Frankly, I don't think about gas very much. When it gets very close to E, I add about 10 gallons. I think I would notice if I was burning a ton.

[martinarcher]

Gas is ballast....fill that baby up! I always board and surf first and slalom last so I'm carrying less gas skiing.

[malibudog]

We are having much more success with people going ropeless their first day and even their first try with a manual gate than we did early last year with the boat slammed/leaned. I think it is because the transition is so much smoother, and the wake curls around behind the rider more. Love watching people's faces when they get it for the first time!

[High Altitude]

Gas is ballast....fill that baby up! I always board and surf first and slalom last so I'm carrying less gas skiing.

My lake is somewhat exposed so my routine is: ski when it's glass... and surf when it's blowing. When we have friends up, I modify that as everyone seems to want to surf. That's when I go with a full tank.

The beautiful thing is it's a 60 second walk from my back door. If I could ever stop landscaping... I could be out everyday!

[High Altitude]

Well the testing phase has pretty much wrapped up…and I’m ecstatic with the progress. I now have a surfable wave on either side of my boat. The switch out takes 3-5 minutes max, allowing for the movement of my NSS wave enhancer, a small amount of water weight, plus 180 lbs of John Deere tractor weights.

Obviously, my original intent was not met…because I can’t evenly weight the boat. With that said…this wave is so much fun! I was 15 ft back dropping in down the wave with enough speed to get past the rear of the boat (on the side). The wave has a ton a push, is pretty clean and just a blast to surf.

The weight remained the same as my previous posts except I was able to add 200 lbs of human weight to the rear and surfsie. The weight does make a big difference but it also works fine with just two of us (one driving and one surfing). The “normal” side or port side wave is still less desirable than the goofy side. The prop rotates right and it makes a difference. This can be compensated for with extra weight. I was able to go ropeless no problem but since I am a goofy rider I never quite felt comfortable on the port side.

Here are the pictures:

The goofy wave has my 10 yr old neighbor on a standard surf rope (25ft?), just before he tossed the rope in.

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The standard side is self explanatory but it was very windy thus some of the cleanliness of the wave was washed out.

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As for pics of the NSS itself, the dimensions are 1 1/8 inch horizontal displacement. I didn’t measure the rest but I think you can tell the rough dimensions based on that one measurement. I might do some very minor mods, but I’m so pleased right now that I probably will just ride most of the summer and leave the tinkering until fall.

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[High Altitude]

I forgot to mention steering. In previous tests I said it didn't hardly effect the steering. This time I had a little more weight to the surfside and it had predictable results. It handles a bit like a pig to the right when setup for the goofy wave. Left turns are no problem. Not a big deal...but worth mentioning,