DIY surf tab setup

[Vtxdave]

I tried the new tabs this weekend and WOW what a difference. This was an amazing difference and way way better. I tried all different ballast weight configurations and the best setup I found with only me and a friend in the boat is:

All mls full, driver locker 85% full, passenger locker 60% full. When I say % full I mean as full as my 1100 bags will fill. I can use my wedge to adjust height and length and was able to make the wave above waist heigh and still pretty long.

I tried deploying the tabs at 35 mph to see if it would change the wave for slom. It didn't do much at all and I though I got it on video but then realized the gopro memory was full. I do have a bunch of video to post. Only have one uploaded now but will post more tomorrow.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=dium1XdpN_w

[Vtxdave]

[jtryon]

so what was the big difference? they look smaller than the first set and they don't have the sides turned down? the wave looks real nice.

[Vtxdave]

The plates are smaller which is what I wanted. The other plates came to close to the center of the boat and lifted the whole back and not just one side. The only reason it had channels on the outside was because the old plates were super thin metal and I wanted then there for strength so they wouldn't bend. The wave now is way cleaner and easy to adjust. With the old plates the wave wasn't near as steep and push wasn't near as good either. The way the gopro was mounted dosent do the wave justice at all on the above video. Posting better videoin a few

[High Altitude]

Nice work...again. Amazing that such a small tweak made such a big difference. Out of curiosity, did you change the weight in the boat between the two tests (either people or ballast)? It's amazing how fickle the surf setup can be in some of our boats.

I think I'm going to try a tab here soon. The results are legit and I really believe this setup will have the least interference with my ski wake based on my hull design.

Edited August 18, 2015 by High Altitude

[wakinvol]

The XTI is screaming for that...and I may just have to give it to her. VERY COOL. Probably wouldn't be as good but who knows.

[Vtxdave]

I know they aren't but a few inches narrower but what I found is the wegde and the old plates were so close together it seemed it just fought each other. I did change the weight setup compared to the old tabs. I tried running the same weight with old tabs and result was not as good of height and push. This boat is super picky about the goofy side wave for some reason but regular side is very easy to get perfect. Hear is some more video. The weight in the above video and below are the same.

[Vtxdave]

How full the rear lockers were

[Vtxdave]

The XTI is screaming for that...and I may just have to give it to her. VERY COOL. Probably wouldn't be as good but who knows.

I think you could make it as good just have to tweak it and play with weight options

[wakinvol]

That's what I'm thinking. Uncharted ground but could be fun. You need to make templates of the plates. The design looks great.

[Vtxdave]

Yea I'm going to make templates of them. The only thing I want to do on the plates is the outside of the plates cut the corners off and angle them with the platform so they don't stick out past it on the outsides. I'll post pics with measurements when I get it done

[Jonsey]

Great job diving into a project this in depth. Have you figured out what angle off the bottom of the boat the tabs are when the wave is at its best?

[Vtxdave]

Great job diving into a project this in depth. Have you figured out what angle off the bottom of the boat the tabs are when the wave is at its best?

No I have not. I don't deploy them all the way down I hit the switch to deploy it and when the wave looks right then stop. It also depends on how much weight you have in the boat and what style wave you want, as long as possible or as tall as possible or a happy medium

[Jonsey]

Have you tried swapping sides yet on the fly, if so how quick can you do it?

[Vtxdave]

Have you tried swapping sides yet on the fly, if so how quick can you do it?

I posted a video on page 2 showing how quick it will swap. It dosent take long at all

[TimbrSS]

The camera angle plays such a big part in this game. The vertical video on page 2 looks really awesome, but you say this setup is much better. The video from the tower doesn't look any better, but I certainly will take your word for it. Good work, and thanks for the updates.

I had planned on doing an NSS type system, but this seems like an easier and better solution... easier to make, and modify to optimize, and make it look professional, and better (I suppose) because they can be used to get on plane quicker. I still think my 247 listed wave is pretty awesome, but want to experiment with this stuff.

[Vtxdave]

The camera angle plays such a big part in this game. The vertical video on page 2 looks really awesome, but you say this setup is much better. The video from the tower doesn't look any better, but I certainly will take your word for it. Good work, and thanks for the updates.

I had planned on doing an NSS type system, but this seems like an easier and better solution... easier to make, and modify to optimize, and make it look professional, and better (I suppose) because they can be used to get on plane quicker. I still think my 247 listed wave is pretty awesome, but want to experiment with this stuff.

Very true that camera angle plays a huge role. I'll get video this weekend from the same angle as the video on page 2 to better compare.

In my opinion it is the easiest system to make and modify. I was full ballast for surfing and able to get on plane with the help of the tabs. I have video of it I'll post. If you did a set up like this I bet it would be an unbelievable wave behind your boat being it is so much bigger. And the best part of this system is I do not have to worry about taking on water over the bow or the side anymore like with a listed setup. I had to slam mine past the rub rail in the water in the past to get a wave that isn't close to being as good as this one.

[High Altitude]

I think a bigger boat will need bigger tabs. That's in line with what MC is doing.

[Vtxdave]

I think a bigger boat will need bigger tabs. That's in line with what MC is doing.

True and I thought about that when I was building mine. Then I also remembered the video of the 08 lsv with the GSA that works so amazing and his tabs aren't much bigger than mine. It was cheap for a 4x8 sheet of metal to make them out of and you could make around 4 pair or more. The only hard part is making different size tabs to try can be a little time consuming