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Buying first Malibu, surfgate question.


Banks13

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Question, how important is Surfgate as far as wake surfing? Do the ballist bags get the job done enough without Surfgate? I'm trying to decide whether to get a 2013 20" with Surfgate, or a 23" 2010-2012 LSV model without? Is getting 3 more feet of boat worth not having Surfgate? Any opinions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks very much!

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How big is your crew? What kind of lake do you typically surf/ski on? What tow vehicle?

A little more info about how you use your boat would help. Personally I would take a 23LSV w/o SG over a 20 footer with all day and twice on Sunday.

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If you plan on surfing a lot, get surfgate. Changing bags from side to side and draining them can be a pain. We went from a model without surfgate to one with it and it is a game changer. We surf and wakeboard with ease.

  • Like 2
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I just tried surfing this summer behind a friends 2014 23 LSV. So I guess I got spoiled. But I can't afford that much boat. My crew will usually be 3-6 adults. I just had a 20 FT Sea Ray, so I have a good idea of space on a 20 FT boat.

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How big is your crew? What kind of lake do you typically surf/ski on? What tow vehicle?

A little more info about how you use your boat would help. Personally I would take a 23LSV w/o SG over a 20 footer with all day and twice on Sunday.

I have a 22 vlx with surfgate and perfect for my situation. i have small crew so gate will make up for that loss of friends and the lake gets a little rough sometimes so filling all the ballast can be risky busy when you dont want to take water over the front. So with surfgate i can still get a decent surf wave (not huge but it is surfable) with less weight and not have worry about loading the boat down to get the wave

And think of resale

Edited by Mattb422
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I would vote 23. There are those of us that don't even like the wave that SG makes. Just a matter of opinion. and a crew of 3-6 is really nice in a 23 footer. Everyone has room.

If your handy, switching from side to side is super easy after you plumb all the ballast in.

Edited by Lance B. Johnson
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If you had 3 the 20 footer would be fine. At 6 the 20 footer is not a comfortable boat. You will be cramped. I would also add the old addage.."There is no replacement for displacement". The wave in a 23 footer will have plenty more potential as you progress. There are a lot of aftermarket gates as well now. So if listing isnt your thing the 23LSV will carry more storage and allow you to add a gate later.

Don't get me wrong. I love a gated boat way more than a non-gated boat but when adding space. Space trumps. If I could afford a big nonSG boat or a small SG boat....I'm taking space. You can solve the wave problem, but you can't solve the "I wish I had more boat" problem cheaply.

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With all the aftermarket surf gates popping up I would (and am) going to add one to my boat before next spring. Just waiting to see what everyone says about the many options. If your tow vehicle can handle it go with the LSV. Room and weight are always good. Always.

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How big is your regular crew?

Pro's for surfgate 20 foot boat

1.) Surfgate will make a decent wave behind the 20 foot boat.

2.) If you have riders that surf regular and goofy more time riding less time switching.

3.) Surfgate boat more than likely already setup with plug and play ballast just add bags.

4.) If you ski should make a better slalom wake than the 23 foot boat

Cons:

1.) Room

2.) Room

Pros for 23 foot boat

1.) Will make a bigger wave than the 20 foot surfgate boat

2.) More room for gear, friends, etc.

3.) If you wakeboard the wakeboard wake will be better

Cons

1.) Will require extra ballast and to do it right will cost you a little bit of money.

2.) You will be driving a listed boat and you need to be on your toes when surfing

It is rare on here to hear someone say man I wish I would have gotten a smaller boat.

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I would go for the LSV if you can tow and store it. I'm not too sold on surf gates, it's a lot of money for basically being able to transfer, which apparently the surf band has a lot of glitches.

Or go axis if you can get over the tower and half windshield. I don't like the look personally.

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The benefit of the surf gate is that you and your crew can surf regular and goofy without spending 5-10 minutes transferring ballast between whichever side the next rider prefers. That's a great feature by itself, even if few riders are good enough to actually do side to side transfers while under way.

Someday I'll have a surf gate boat but I would only go with a 22-23' boat. Until then I still really enjoy my 23 LSV.

The surf band shouldn't be part of the OP's consideration here, it's not part of the surf gate functionality.

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THANKS for all the info guys. Seems I can't go wrong either way. One more question, is the surf wake in the 23 LSV with ballast, equal to the wake in a 20 FT with surf gate? If so, then I will definitely go with the 23 LSV.

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if you are coming from a 20' sea ray, you are already gaining room in the 20' malibu just based on the way the two manufactures use the space. If 20' is bid enough, I'd vote surfgate. Maybe even an 22' Axis brand new for not that much more. JMO

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2014+ Axis A22/T22

You'll get the size and surfgate

This. And I'll add t23 to that list. You can get one brand new for the budget you can get the used boats you listed plus there are no expensive touch screens or mux switches to go bad.

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I'd get the 23 and list it, or try a manual gate if you must. I tried a manual gate and prefer listed on my 247, seemed I need 2x as much weight to get the same wave as listed. Plumb in a few reversible Johnson pumps and a few sacs and you'll be set. There are aftermarket surf systems to install later down the road if you just have to do transfers. Cheaper to add one of those to a boat than to add 3' to it.

http://www.themalibucrew.com/forums/index.php?/topic/57826-mission-surf-gate-reviews/page-2

  • Like 1
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I'd get the 23 and list it, or try a manual gate if you must. I tried a manual gate and prefer listed on my 247, seemed I need 2x as much weight to get the same wave as listed. Plumb in a few reversible Johnson pumps and a few sacs and you'll be set. There are aftermarket surf systems to install later down the road if you just have to do transfers. Cheaper to add one of those to a boat than to add 3' to it.

http://www.themalibucrew.com/forums/index.php?/topic/57826-mission-surf-gate-reviews/page-2

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