Yamaha WakeBooster Vs Gantlin Wake Wedge (Comparo) - 2016 AR240

[swatski]

YMMV, there are so many factors.

But, with the best and closest comparison we could do, using everything the same but the WakeBooster OR the Gantlin Wake Wedge, the results are pretty dramatic - in favor of the Wedge - as far as the best wave. Honestly, not even close.

The WakeBooster has many attributes that warrant very positive comments, and I could easily surf ropeless behind it for as long as I wanted to. Frankly, it's surprisingly good at some level, better than it looks. It's just the wave is more mushy. The best wave with the WakeBooster is with the most ballast, just like with the Wedge. Without the transom bag filled - so w/only "factory" ballast - I could not go ropeless (using my beginner skills).
I will post more comments tomorrow, this is just a quick synopsis w/pictures.

Again - this comparison is done in the context of a specific setup (that we run), I'm sure there may be ways to see it in a different light. So - don't shoot the messenger!

Our setup is with only a driver in the boat, no passengers, half a tank of gas, full ski locker bag (800lbs SUMO - probably at 80-90% capacity), surf side full rear compartment bag (800lbs SUMO - probably at 60-70% capacity), full transom bag (800?lbs Gantlin - at 100% capacity). Non-surf side rear compartment bag empty. Boat listed/pitched w/surf side corner of swim deck submerged approx. 1-2".

Today's conditions: speed is 10.7mph by @Ridesteady, RPM around 6,000, two factory pitched 6CW impellers, WakeBooster w/factory setup, Wake Wedge - 3 full turns of the turnbuckle from a flat-out straight; Slingshot Coaster 5'3"; 25-30ft of water depth; 80deg air, 76deg water; the Moon is in "New Moon" phase, lol.

Here are the pics - taken with the closest matching conditions and camera angles I could find.

W/Gantlin Wake Wedge:



W/Yamaha WakeBooster:


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[BigAbe75]

Keep playing with your speed. The Booster definitely has a sweet spot that will clean the face of the wave up. I’m not sure what the magic number is, I was only able to find and hold it a few times. But, I think your ridesteady may do a better job at those adjustments.

Overall, I concur with your assessment.

 

[buckbuck]

@Brian eilrich has a 21 foot boat that he can surf ropeless with the Booster in 5 feet of water and 0...zero... ballast. I believe you guys are putting too much ballast in the boat to surf the Booster efficiently. Could also be the difference between the 21 and 24 foot hulls.

 

[BigAbe75]

I suppose that’s possible. I don’t think i tried it without the transom bag. I know I’ve seen several posts on FB exclaiming the positives of the WakeBooster. So far, it just isn’t doing it for me.

Unfortunately, I’m done for the season already and will have to leave further testing to others.

 

[swatski]

Keep playing with your speed. The Booster definitely has a sweet spot that will clean the face of the wave up. I’m not sure what the magic number is, I was only able to find and hold it a few times. But, I think your ridesteady may do a better job at those adjustments.

Overall, I concur with your assessment.

We will experiment some more for sure. It must be a combination of ballast and speed. Fully ballasted, we tested various speeds - adjusting on the fly - in the 10.5 to 11+ mph range searching for a sweet-spot, just couldn't find it. Strange thing is, while the wave looks kinda crappy it actually has a lot of push. It is very surfable.

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[swatski]

I suppose that’s possible. I don’t think i tried it without the transom bag. I know I’ve seen several posts on FB exclaiming the positives of the WakeBooster.

We did try it without the transom bag. I was hoping that would work, at least somewhat, so we could do quick sessions without transom ballast - but there's no way, not even slack in the rope. Without transom ballast, it does not work at all. I'm sure several heavy passengers in the corner of the boat could compensate for this, and then some, so there is that. But, without extra human or transom ballast, with the full "factory" ballast (full rear compartment surf side and full center locker) - there is no ropeless surfing.

I tried very, very hard to even briefly get some slack on the rope - with no luck, there is just no push. And that's with Slingshot Coaster 5'3", and my integrated ballast adds a bit more weight than factory actually. I do not believe one can get a good, surfable wave behind a WakeBooster rigged 240/242 - without swim deck ballast.
In our boat more ballast and more list - up to the conditions described in the OP - the better the wave/push. Of course, some have been making all sorts of claims about the TVWs, and the Wakebooster, and JBP centered ballast, etc., I can not address that. For us the more tilt/roll/pitch to the rear corner with transom ballast pushed back and to the side the better wave, same for Wedge and Booster.

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[swatski]

@Brian eilrich has a 21 foot boat that he can surf ropeless with the Booster in 5 feet of water and 0...zero... ballast. I believe you guys are putting too much ballast in the boat to surf the Booster efficiently. Could also be the difference between the 21 and 24 foot hulls.

The Booster is very impressive, no question. If I needed to switch sides often I would consider it as a viable alternative to the Gantlin Wedge, in some situations. The Booster is super easy to put on, super easy to store, very nicely fabricated, it is kind of awesome. The wave it helps generate has a ton of push - I can surf ropeless as long as I want to with absolute ease. Which - BTW - is not possible for me without the Booster (or the Wedge). So, wave looks aside (at least for us) the WakeBooster works VERY well.

The negatives of the Booster, other than the wave "morphology", would be a much shorter/smaller "pocket"/sweet spot with the Booster (compared to the Wedge). Also, the necessity to take it off after the session - not a big deal, but not ideal.

And one more thing - I did NOT feel the Yamaha Wakebooster puts a lot of extra load/pull on the boat. The RPM required to get up and to maintain surfing speeds appeared similar when running with either the Booster or the Wedge.

I acknowledge, we run a pretty robust pump/impeller setup so that may override any potential differences. But I don't feel like there is anything to worry about with the Booster as far as putting additional stress on the boat or the drive train, at all (which is the beauty of jet propulsion, actually, but that's for a different thread, lol).

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[BigAbe75]

And one more thing - I did NOT feel the Yamaha Wakebooster puts a lot of extra load/pull on the boat. The RPM required to get up and to maintain surfing speeds appeared similar when running with either the Booster or the Wedge.

Interesting. I definitely notice a difference between the two (with the Booster requiring a bit more grunt by the engines)

 

[jcyamaharider]

I agree with this. The Wedge is just better at making a smoother wave...

 

[2kwik4u]

Are there any points to be awarded for a more "attractive" wave? The wave from the wedge just looks nicer than from the booster. I have no idea how that impacts the actual quality and usability of the wave, but in pictures it certainly looks better.

 

[swatski]

Are there any points to be awarded for a more "attractive" wave? The wave from the wedge just looks nicer than from the booster. I have no idea how that impacts the actual quality and usability of the wave, but in pictures it certainly looks better.

I would settle for less pretty if it worked better, no problem! But no, it is not just the looks.
I'm sure there are some tricks we have not tried and we are relatively new to this. But, the bottom line is this: we could not get the Booster to throw a wave that would be the same quality as what we now get with the Wedge - functionality-wise, all pretty looks aside.
Kate was funny, she compared the Booster wave to older style tennis racket design (she used to play) as those had more restrictive "sweet spot", apparently, compared to the newer ones which are supercharged and easier to hit. Same with the Wedge, it just seems to give more usable smooth surface with enough push for a ropeless ride.

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[ks9mm]

I would settle for less pretty if it worked better, no problem! But no, it is not just the looks.
I'm sure there are some tricks we have not tried and we are relatively new to this. But, the bottom line is this: we could not get the Booster to throw a wave that would be the same quality as what we now get with the Wedge - functionality-wise, all pretty looks aside.
Kate was funny, she compared the Booster wave to older style tennis racket design (she used to play) as those had more restrictive "sweet spot", apparently, compared to the newer ones which are supercharged and easier to hit. Same with the Wedge, it just seems to give more usable smooth surface with enough push for a ropeless ride.

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Where do you surf? Hopatcong?