DIY Pipe Booster for improving wake

[buckbuck]

I am not going to miss one episode of this adventure. We Northerners appreciate you Southerners taking this on as winter howls outside.

 

[Mainah]

I am not going to miss one episode of this adventure. We Northerners appreciate you Southerners taking this on as winter howls outside.

Appreciation is welcome but perhaps you will rethink that. Not even two years in the south and I just had to jump in the jacuzzi to warm up as it is ONLY 60 degrees here right now
#DamnYankee

 

[buckbuck]

I work in the building trades and have been outside all winter. Once I retire I am moving to Texas and will become just like you.
Really looking forward to what you guys can develop. It would be nice to have something that stows easily under a seat. And I share your desire not to have bags on the swim deck. Please remember to take pictures of it installed on the boat next time you are near it.

 

[JayZ2012]

Does anyone have a 3D printer? I would think that would give someone the opportunity to create a curved board that is all one piece. I'm just thinking that to get more water across the back, it should be larger than a single 3 inch pipe- and 4 inch pvc is typically not for pressure. Dual 3 inch PVC pipe is a good option, but it still loses a lot of water that could be routed around the back of the boat.

I've been thinking about crafting something out of wood initially and then possibly coating it in epoxy. Very interested in hearing how your trials go with PVC piping and what your results are. I'll post as well with anything that I can make happen. Glad we're working on this- I'm not ready to shell out 500-1000 for another product yet.

 

[Mainah]

Does anyone have a 3D printer? I would think that would give someone the opportunity to create a curved board that is all one piece. I'm just thinking that to get more water across the back, it should be larger than a single 3 inch pipe- and 4 inch pvc is typically not for pressure. Dual 3 inch PVC pipe is a good option, but it still loses a lot of water that could be routed around the back of the boat.

I've been thinking about crafting something out of wood initially and then possibly coating it in epoxy. Very interested in hearing how your trials go with PVC piping and what your results are. I'll post as well with anything that I can make happen. Glad we're working on this- I'm not ready to shell out 500-1000 for another product yet.

Anxious to see what you come up with. I don’t think the 3d print idea is cost or time effective with the amount of material and time needed, never mind the print bed size needed. Epoxy covered wood is interesting and for that mater wood core fiberglass. The nice part with the curved pipe is the inherent structure but the pipe may of course prove to be less effective than a curved plate.

 

[MidnightRider]

Anxious to see what you come up with. I don’t think the 3d print idea is cost or time effective with the amount of material and time needed, never mind the print bed size needed. Epoxy covered wood is interesting and for that mater wood core fiberglass. The nice part with the curved pipe is the inherent structure but the pipe may of course prove to be less effective than a curved plate.

Yeah it may not prove be as affective as a curved plate but regardless it is still very interesting from the standpoint of the DIY'er because of the simplicity of construction for anyone with limited fabricating skill sets, as well as the low cost to build and experiment with.

 

[swatski]

I just love that curved pipe idea, what can I say, lol. I see it not only as a stand alone that would be awesome, but also as an "enhancer" to (my) current (kick a$$) setup (w/Gatlin parts). Shooting water from the side to the non-surf side would boost the wake AND force counter-steer to boost it some more.

I'm not good at designing things but I just found out that I do have access to a high end laser cutting and water jet cutting and aluminum welding etc. facility at my own institution, or so I'm told by some trainees in our residency programs who are dubbing in various startup facilities here. So, I could potentially be helpful and as always - I'm willing to run tests in the water.

--

 

[swatski]

I'm super interested in this topic as we are at a point where, if we decide to get a new boat in the next year or so, the "wake surf-ability" would be one of the key factors in a purchasing decision.

The Wedge has proven itself to be quite formidable.
It hits just the right way. Here, if you look at the wave coming out of it and compare it directly with dedicated surf boats - it is just crazy how good the Wedge works (when properly setup).
Just take a look at this:


But, of course for the Wedge to work like this^^^ the boat needs a serious list and the swim deck needs to be pushed down hard. And there are times I would be fine with a wave half the size IF I could do it w/no extra bags.


--

 

[Jgorm]

Can you post a picture of it on the boat? I like the idea.

 

[Mainah]

Hopefully this weekend ai will be able to post photos of the sounle stack version on the boat with the improved retention mechanism.

 

[djetok]

Starting a separate thread on this. Will be interesting to see what we can up with that is reasonably DIY. Lets please keep this focused on this DIY project without bashing any other for sale products out there. Testing, comparing, and documenting results against references in a scientific way is however encouraged.

For those trying the DIY booster thing here is my DIY pipe booster protoype with $20 in parts. Perhaps someone can improve upon it. I used a long sweep 3 inch 90 degree pvc electrical conduit from big box home improvement store through bolted and 3m 4200 sealed to some left over hdpe (starboard). I used a trim router to cut the slots for the tie down mount and vise deformed pex and through pin to secure. I had to play with the cut angle on the pipe and placement of the mounting slot. I also quickly rounded off all sharp edges with a dremel.

With only 400lbs of underseat ballast and less than 400 lbs of people ballast I got the below result. With a custom swim deck bag and more people pushing the pipe booster further under the water I bet it would be even better. One big key is that the mounting plate has to be tight to the hull or you get spray. The pin and some thin foam to seal against the hull are the improvements I know I need to make at this point. The black parachute cord is a saftey (in case ripped off the hull don’t want it hitting me) and drop lanyard (it could sink when trying to install if dropped) that I attach to the docking cleat. This setup held surprisingly well and less force on this than one might think.

Don’t know how this stacks up with the other options out there and coming but for a few bucks of plastic and bolts it certainly is cost effective, compact, and most people could do this. I do wonder how booster type devices would work with in conjunction with the TV surf or the Gatlin Wedge. Can’t wait for the water near me to warm up and do some more “testing”.

A few ideas to improve upon this that have been mentioned are doubling up the pipe (@Whisky), reinforcing the tie down (@haknslash), trying one on each side for wakeboarding (@Cambo), and possibly a flap for closing one side off (@Cambo) if used on both sides. @swatski has experimented a great deal with different DIY devices and I am sure many will have more ideas to improve upon this.

A quick note on wakeboarding speeds is that much of this is out of the water at wakeboarding speeds with no balls so doubling the pipe by stacking another pipe and enough ballast in the right spot may be that ticket for that.

Could neoprene work to make it fit tighter to the hull.

 

[Wisefam22]

I have been replacing transducer so under boat a lot over weekend and today. I realized why the wake booster was only for certain year models. I dont think there is enough room to mount even a DIY booster but I'll give it a try for 20bucks.

 

[Mainah]

I have been replacing transducer so under boat a lot over weekend and today. I realized why the wake booster was only for certain year models. I dont think there is enough room to mount even a DIY booster but I'll give it a try for 20bucks.

View attachment 86388

It will need careful measurements for the plate and the pipe will need to stick out to the side more but I think it will work.

 

[Wisefam22]

It will need careful measurements for the plate and the pipe will need to stick out to the side more but I think it will work.

What I was gonna try, like said $20 so even if it fails it's not spending tons.

 

[COtoFLsurf]

It's been blowing a bit here so have not been out on the water, but here is my first shot at a Mainahbooster and DIY Wakebooster. Mainah's pipe was a 3" elbow with the flange end cut off, so still a big angle. I used 4" pipe and chose a gentler angle that closely resembles the Wakebooster curvature. For DIY Wakebooster, I used some available rubber mat (no surprise, right!?) which is heavy duty but compliant enought to fit the curvature. For the connection, I really like Yamaha's approach and was able to craft something similar by cutting off one leg of a deep-throat clamp (this worked ridiculously well ...). Here are some teaser pics, next pics will be on the water. Just a couple initial hacks, but fingers crossed.

 

[buckbuck]

Brilliant @COtoFLsurf
We are expecting pictures and video of both proof of concept. But please repair that chunk of gelcoat missing.

 

[AlphaKap]

It's been blowing a bit here so have not been out on the water, but here is my first shot at a Mainahbooster and DIY Wakebooster. Mainah's pipe was a 3" elbow with the flange end cut off, so still a big angle. I used 4" pipe and chose a gentler angle that closely resembles the Wakebooster curvature. For DIY Wakebooster, I used some available rubber mat (no surprise, right!?) which is heavy duty but compliant enought to fit the curvature. For the connection, I really like Yamaha's approach and was able to craft something similar by cutting off one leg of a deep-throat clamp (this worked ridiculously well ...). Here are some teaser pics, next pics will be on the water. Just a couple initial hacks, but fingers crossed.

The hacked clamp is pretty brilliant. Very creative.

 

[swatski]

It's been blowing a bit here so have not been out on the water, but here is my first shot at a Mainahbooster and DIY Wakebooster. Mainah's pipe was a 3" elbow with the flange end cut off, so still a big angle. I used 4" pipe and chose a gentler angle that closely resembles the Wakebooster curvature. For DIY Wakebooster, I used some available rubber mat (no surprise, right!?) which is heavy duty but compliant enought to fit the curvature. For the connection, I really like Yamaha's approach and was able to craft something similar by cutting off one leg of a deep-throat clamp (this worked ridiculously well ...). Here are some teaser pics, next pics will be on the water. Just a couple initial hacks, but fingers crossed.

Fantastic!
Looking forward to your reporting, this is so cool.

--

 

[Robo]

Cant wait for you to get this dialed in so i can copy your final work lol

 

[Wisefam22]

So the wakebooster is patent pending still.. I took it off the 242x at ATL show and noticed that sticker.