Honest review of the Wake Booster

[buckbuck]

Just a note that I added a video on the original post showing what the Booster does to the water behind the boat and with additional weight.

 

[Mainah]

Just a note that I added a video on the original post showing what the Booster does to the water behind the boat and with additional weight.

That second video with the shot from the surfer perspective in the most useful video I have seen regarding what the Yamaha wake booster is doing. Thanks for posting that.

 

[MidnightRider]

Just a note that I added a video on the original post showing what the Booster does to the water behind the boat and with additional weight.

So I noticed you centered all the weight in the boat. Is it your assessment that the boat doesn't need to be listed, and centering all weight works well? Did you try putting the swim deck bag on one side to list the boat?

Just wondering if you determined

A. Listing the boat is not needed because it is good enough with all weight centered
or
B. the wake was actually better with all weight centered and not listing the boat.

 

[buckbuck]

It was the collective decision of the group to first place the bag center and use people as adjustable ballast. We did not try putting the bag on the surf side as my drysuit was leaking and I became so chilled I had to get out of the water.
I was less impressed with the Booster this time around. I expected with the additional weight for this to produce a wave that would force me to ride the brakes. It did not. I felt that the wave was just as good without the swim deck ballast. Perhaps my frustration was due to being so cold. Perhaps because Lake Geneva is not a good lake for watersports. Perhaps because we have not found the surf solution.

A couple issues that I noticed are the spray coming off the jet stream was a constant irritation and that the wave curl produced was hitting me in the right leg. Perhaps @JetBoatPilot new system coupled with the Booster will fix the spray. As far as the curl I am now viewing that as a negative. In promotional pictures it looks cool. But in reality it is not beneficial. I wanted to drop back in the wave more but the curl messed with my balance. Some thing for you guys to consider when designing your DIY boosters.

 

[JetBoatPilot]

It was the collective decision of the group to place the bag center and use people as adjustable ballast. We did not try putting the bag on the surf side as my drysuit was leaking and I became so chilled I had to get out of the water.
I was less impressed with the Booster this time around. I expected with the additional weight for this to produce a wave that would force me to ride the brakes. It did not. I felt that the wave was just as good without the swim deck ballast. Perhaps my frustration was due to being so cold. Perhaps because Lake Geneva is not a good lake for watersports. Perhaps because we have not found the surf solution.

A couple issues that I noticed are the spray coming off the jet stream was a constant irritation and that the wave curl produced was hitting me in the right leg. Perhaps @JetBoatPilot new system couple with the Booster will fix the spray. As far as the curl I am now viewing that as a negative. In promotional pictures it looks cool. But in reality it is not beneficial. I wanted to drop back in the wave more but the curl messed with my balance. Some thing for you guys to consider when designing your DIY boosters.

Our observations have been that the booster will work pretty well without ballast but adding ballast is actually going to diminish the effects and make the wave less clean.

From what I've seen when you submerge the swim deck you effectively block the additional flow of water that the booster provides. In essence the booster is like a big water cannon blasting water from the jet pump away from the wave on the booster side. If the water volume is diminished by submerging the booster a bit then it makes sense that the ballast would not help but rather hurt the booster.

The opposite is true for the Thrust Vector Wake. The more ballast you add the better the system gets. But, you have to have ballast to really get a tall wave. I believe the wave height with the booster and the Thrust Vector (without ballast) is about the same.

 

[Mainah]

The 21 foot yamaha wake booster is poorly designed. Trying to make it dual side capable is the problem and trapping water under the swim deck (they know it too based on the flapper thing). A side specific version would work much better. If you only surf one side I recommend cutting off the exit bend as this is the bulk of the issue.

I am making progress and have figured out what works, what doesn’t, and why. I have a design for the ultimate device but it will require advanced machining, bending, and welding skills. The parts aren’t cheap and assembly will be very time consuming. No good way to automate fabrication without making it even more expensive. Read this as I am going to spend a lot of time in my garage this winter to make once once santa brings me a new high end TIG welder.

I currently don’t own a wedge and do not have any business or personal affiliation with those who make it. In fact I just ordered a swim deck bag from them online without letting them know it was me as I don’t want special treatment (not that I would get any but making sure this way) so I can stay ethically honest and neutral. That said from what I have spent way too many hours studying and playing with I can honestly say the wedge and custom swim deck bag combo is still the best.

 

[31BVeteran]

Could you please post a picture of the instructions that came with the wake booster. I misplaced mine and I’d like to see where to place the scupper plate cover. Much appreciated!

 

[haknslash]

Could you please post a picture of the instructions that came with the wake booster. I misplaced mine and I’d like to see where to place the scupper plate cover. Much appreciated!

See this post https://jetboaters.net/threads/testing-the-new-wake-booster.21415/post-372393

 

[31BVeteran]

See this post https://jetboaters.net/threads/testing-the-new-wake-booster.21415/post-372393

Thank you!

 

[bergmath]

This is my personal review of the Yamaha Wake Booster mounted on a 2017 212X owned by @Brian eilrich . He, his two boys and I took a trip to the closest river not closed due to flooding in May 2019. The Rock River in Rockford IL was our test grounds. It was near flood stage with a swift current and we surfed in waters 8-10 feet deep.

I have no affiliation with Yamaha and do not even know anyone employed by them.

Wake Booster comes in two flavors. 21 foot boat and 24 foot boat. The two are very different. Here is an outline of both.
View attachment 93555

The following are some of the days test conditions;
2017 Yamaha 212X fitted with the Wake Booster and also equipped with after market @Ridesteady .
Nozzles were aligned to the Surf Point configuration.
Stock ballast was completely filled giving us about 1200 lbs. This turned out to provide the best wave. No other ballast was used.
Brian and his two boys gave a combined weight of 400 lbs.
The Booster is easy to install and remove while on the water.
Even at no wake speed the Booster has an effect on the water behind the boat. It is a bulldozer blade under water. You will have to remove it when not surfing.
Water temperature was 55 degrees. Air was 65. Wind was insignificant in the test.
I would NOT describe myself as an accomplished surfer. No stunts, no tricks. I am content to just go ropeless behind the boat when I surf. Please note that due to the water temperature I had a incentive to not let go of the rope even with a drysuit. I forgot my booties and my feet were cold.
I surfed with the Slingshot Surf Board provided with the kit.
Video was shot by 13 year old who hand held an Autel Evo drone.

From my experience, viewing the shape of the wave without a surfer does not guarantee that it will be good to ride. Prior to getting in the water with my 200 lbs. aboard we did a test run. We looked at each other and said WOW! But I withheld judgement until I was being pushed by it. Note that I also came to the river with previous disappointment in Yamaha. They promoted the Surf Point config like it was the solution to jetboat surfing. In my opinion it turned out to be little more than hype. We tried a number of ballast configurations and ended up with all three full. We also tried many differing speeds. Thanks to @Ridesteady this was easily achieved. However I wish we could have gone a tad slower going upstream. Ridesteady minimum is 8 mph and I feel the wave could have been better with more push had we had the option.
The booster completely flooded the jet area of the boat on the port side. This would explain why Yamaha includes a cover for the scupper valve. I suppose they discovered that water was being forced up the scupper when set up for starboard (goofy) surfing. The stream of water converged with the jet stream approximately 8 inches behind the nozzle.
Very interestingly to me was the boat ran level with no list. I know the ballast was even with no bias but the boys in the port corner did not influence the list. Even when Brian abandoned the helm and joined them the boat did not list. It seems to me the Booster is pushing the boat up on the corner. We are going to need well fed friends and family to overcome this and push this down in the water more. I think we will experience an even better wave with more weight.

The results of this testing led me to believe Yamaha spent some time developing this. It is not Surf Point hype. It had significant influence on the shape of the wake. Particularly in smoothness and steepness. They have produce a credible wake enhancer and those of you with newer boat should consider it if the goal is surfing.
Thanks for reading this.

EDIT 1 June 2019 Here is a video of deep water surfing on a choppy lake. Approx 2000 lbs ballast and 1000 lbs people.

Looking at the two outlines in your picture - which one is the 21 and which one is the 24?

Matt

 

[swatski]

Looking at the two outlines in your picture - which one is the 21 and which one is the 24?

Matt

Red is for 21' and blue is for 24'.

--

 

[Waterjet]

Does anyone know why it doesn’t fit on the older years? Does it not mount or is there another issue? Has anyone tried it?

 

[JetBoatPilot]

Does anyone know why it doesn’t fit on the older years? Does it not mount or is there another issue? Has anyone tried it?

My understanding is that the surface of the booster is flat and the older hulls are not completely flat on the underside of the swim platform. Also its likely the trailer tie down point is in a different location on older models so there's that too.

 

[Waterjet]

My understanding is that the surface of the booster is flat and the older hulls are not completely flat on the underside of the swim platform. Also its likely the trailer tie down point is in a different location on older models so there's that too.

Thanks.

 

[3Card]

This is my personal review of the Yamaha Wake Booster mounted on a 2017 212X owned by @Brian eilrich . He, his two boys and I took a trip to the closest river not closed due to flooding in May 2019. The Rock River in Rockford IL was our test grounds. It was near flood stage with a swift current and we surfed in waters 8-10 feet deep.

I have no affiliation with Yamaha and do not even know anyone employed by them.

Wake Booster comes in two flavors. 21 foot boat and 24 foot boat. The two are very different. Here is an outline of both.
View attachment 93555

The following are some of the days test conditions;
2017 Yamaha 212X fitted with the Wake Booster and also equipped with after market @Ridesteady .
Nozzles were aligned to the Surf Point configuration.
Stock ballast was completely filled giving us about 1200 lbs. This turned out to provide the best wave. No other ballast was used.
Brian and his two boys gave a combined weight of 400 lbs.
The Booster is easy to install and remove while on the water.
Even at no wake speed the Booster has an effect on the water behind the boat. It is a bulldozer blade under water. You will have to remove it when not surfing.
Water temperature was 55 degrees. Air was 65. Wind was insignificant in the test.
I would NOT describe myself as an accomplished surfer. No stunts, no tricks. I am content to just go ropeless behind the boat when I surf. Please note that due to the water temperature I had a incentive to not let go of the rope even with a drysuit. I forgot my booties and my feet were cold.
I surfed with the Slingshot Surf Board provided with the kit.
Video was shot by 13 year old who hand held an Autel Evo drone.

From my experience, viewing the shape of the wave without a surfer does not guarantee that it will be good to ride. Prior to getting in the water with my 200 lbs. aboard we did a test run. We looked at each other and said WOW! But I withheld judgement until I was being pushed by it. Note that I also came to the river with previous disappointment in Yamaha. They promoted the Surf Point config like it was the solution to jetboat surfing. In my opinion it turned out to be little more than hype. We tried a number of ballast configurations and ended up with all three full. We also tried many differing speeds. Thanks to @Ridesteady this was easily achieved. However I wish we could have gone a tad slower going upstream. Ridesteady minimum is 8 mph and I feel the wave could have been better with more push had we had the option.
The booster completely flooded the jet area of the boat on the port side. This would explain why Yamaha includes a cover for the scupper valve. I suppose they discovered that water was being forced up the scupper when set up for starboard (goofy) surfing. The stream of water converged with the jet stream approximately 8 inches behind the nozzle.
Very interestingly to me was the boat ran level with no list. I know the ballast was even with no bias but the boys in the port corner did not influence the list. Even when Brian abandoned the helm and joined them the boat did not list. It seems to me the Booster is pushing the boat up on the corner. We are going to need well fed friends and family to overcome this and push this down in the water more. I think we will experience an even better wave with more weight.

The results of this testing led me to believe Yamaha spent some time developing this. It is not Surf Point hype. It had significant influence on the shape of the wake. Particularly in smoothness and steepness. They have produce a credible wake enhancer and those of you with newer boat should consider it if the goal is surfing.
Thanks for reading this.

EDIT 1 June 2019 Here is a video of deep water surfing on a choppy lake. Approx 2000 lbs ballast and 1000 lbs people.

Could you please explain the measurements. I have a Seadoo 230 Wake and want to try and build one for my boat. I am sure I will need to modify, but looks like the sterns are similar. Thanks!

 

[Newmaniak]

I have had the pleasure of using both



and



I my opinion the Wake Wedge with ballast listing produces a much better surf wave! Hopefully Yamaha will keep fine tuning their attempt at a surf boat so we can stop stacking weight on the swim decks to get the perfect wave.

 

[SCP1]

My understanding is that the surface of the booster is flat and the older hulls are not completely flat on the underside of the swim platform. Also its likely the trailer tie down point is in a different location on older models so there's that too.

Just a thought but if the older boats could have an add on to make the area flat to attach the WakeBooster maybe you should make some. Start with the 19’s, lol.

 

[swatski]

Just a thought but if the older boats could have an add on to make the area flat to attach the WakeBooster maybe you should make some. Start with the 19’s, lol.

Or... buy the Wedge. Those are compatible with all twin yammies.
I would like to experience the Booster - out of shear curiosity at this point - but I wouldn't buy it at this point.

The apparent paucity of those Booster units is also giving me pause. Something just does not seem right, almost like Yamaha is not wanting those to be deployed in large numbers. Why could they not meet the demand making hefty profit selling those exttemely simple and easy to fabricate devices? It could be a kind of a smart hedge to push something that makes 242X sound more cool and surfable but throttle the supply so the thing is not readily available, if they know there may be some issues. IDK. But it's weird. Everyone can have a group sale to push their products but Yamaha can not make enough. lol.

--

 

[MidnightRider]

Or... buy the Wedge. Those are compatible with all twin yammies.
I would like to experience the Booster - out of shear curiosity at this point - but I wouldn't buy it at this point.

The apparent paucity of those Booster units is also giving me pause. Something just does not seem right, almost like Yamaha is not wanting those to be deployed in large numbers. Why could they not meet the demand making hefty profit selling those exttemely simple and easy to fabricate devices? It could be a kind of a smart hedge to push something that makes 242X sound more cool and surfable but throttle the supply so the thing is not readily available, if they know there may be some issues. IDK. But it's weird. Everyone can have a group sale to push their products but Yamaha can not make enough. lol.

--

Yeah, I have a booster and so far it works great without issues but I too can't help but suspect that Yamaha is limiting the supply to limit their liability if something happens. Just too weird that they couldn't keep up with demand. Although I guess that is only one in many possible reasons, but its the first that came to my mind as well.

 

[Surfgirl78]

So we made the plunge and bought the wake booster. SO HAPPY we did! Used it yesterday for the 1st time and it was amazing! Filled the port side bag 100% starboard side 70%. Drive weight is about 225lbs, and other 5 passengers were about 600lbs. The wave had great push and was long and tall. Definitely a keeper!