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Need Advice on Boat Shopping


andrewml

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Hello crew mates.  I am putting some feelers out for my brother who is looking to become a first time boat owner this summer.  Currently he and his family are traveling abroad but are moving to Utah later this summer.

He and I are slalom skiers and I have taught all his kids to slalom behind my 95 Response.  His kids are teenagers so they will inevitably have friends who want in the boat and I’m sure the surfing bug will bite them all.

I’ve been pushing him toward a VTX since he’s going to need more space than a Response has to offer but wants to be able to slalom before all the kids jump on the surf board.

He has found a pretty nice Mastercraft XT20 that is pretty sweet but I don’t know much about Mastercrafts.

Any advice or experience  with the XT20 and/or the VTX is appreciated.  Also any VTX’s for sale by crew members preferably in the pacific NW.  Thanks.

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I had a 13 VTX with the 3 sport hull for 5 seasons.  It's pretty legit as far as being capable of being pretty good at everything.  I don't slalom very much, but had a regular rider that free skis at 32 and he always thought it was great.  Your definitely want the center pole though... Not sure if it's standard but it really flattened out the boats attitude and the wake compared to the pop up.  All that said, it's not going to compare favorably to your Response.

The surf wave can be dialed in, but it's not ever going to be world class... but very good.  I have no experience with later models, but the reviews around here are that the new hull steps up the wave without much effect on the ski wake.

My biggest complaint with the boat was the interior size.  The narrow beam really cramps the interior.  It's pretty much a 6 person max if you are going to be out all day.  8 can be done, but it gets tight when trying to access anything, really.

I loved the boat for what it was, but as is usually true with anything designed to do everything... It does everything well but nothing great.

The 21VLX of that era is a better sweet spot IMO.  Doesn't ski as well ("fine" would be the assessment from a guy that isn't very good)  but way more spacious and the surf wave can be made legit.  That said, I'm 99% surf, so that influences my assessment!

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ahopkins22LSV

No experience with the XT20 but it is heavier as mentioned so I can’t imagine it being better than the VTX either. VTX is tried and true. I switched from a reaponse TXi to a VTX last summer and haven’t regretted it for a second. I love the boat. So much better for a family and even just hanging out with friends. While I loved my TXi for its skiing, that is really the only time when I used it to its potential. The VTX can get cramped but it is so much more roomy when you are coming from a Response. Here are some videos of my 19 for reference. 2013-2015 will be slightly better for slalom but not as good for surfing. 

 

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