Fi23 vs GS22?

[josh22 0]

I'm in the market for a new (to me) boat. Will probably pick up something used. We mostly surf and pull kids on tubes, with some wakeboarding and slalom mixed in. Originally, I narrowed my search down to a GS22 but I'm still uneasy about what I read about the surf wave. Even with extra ballast, it seems to be just ok. Someone suggested that I take a look at the Fi23. I can't find much at all about the ability of the Fi to lay down an ok slalom wake. Really, the only thing that I have found is a Boardco video comparing the two boats. That video speaks pretty highly of the slalom wake but I'm hoping for some more feedback. Any experiences here?

[InfinitySurf 302]

Here is another Boardco video showing the FI doing all 3 sports in 5 mins. Slalom, wakeboard and surf

 

[BoardCo 110]

On 5/13/2020 at 3:19 PM, josh22 said:

I'm in the market for a new (to me) boat. Will probably pick up something used. We mostly surf and pull kids on tubes, with some wakeboarding and slalom mixed in. Originally, I narrowed my search down to a GS22 but I'm still uneasy about what I read about the surf wave. Even with extra ballast, it seems to be just ok. Someone suggested that I take a look at the Fi23. I can't find much at all about the ability of the Fi to lay down an ok slalom wake. Really, the only thing that I have found is a Boardco video comparing the two boats. That video speaks pretty highly of the slalom wake but I'm hoping for some more feedback. Any experiences here?

I'm happy to shed some light on this in a format that isn't pushing it out the the whole world like we did with our video comparing the two. I can tell you we made the GS22 look a lot better than it actually was when it came to surf wave and wakeboard wake. We also didn't review the handling of the boat, and I can tell you, it wasn't close. I knew the Fi23 would out-perform the GS22 (it is better than the G23), but I didn't expect it to be THAT MUCH better.

I would STRONGLY recommend test driving both of them and MAKE SURE to actually drive both boats. If you do, you won't buy a GS22 unless you really really care about skiing. That said, you could get a Vi22 and be even closer in that regard.

[viking 491]

On 5/16/2020 at 1:49 PM, BoardCo said:

I'm happy to shed some light on this in a format that isn't pushing it out the the whole world like we did with our video comparing the two. I can tell you we made the GS22 look a lot better than it actually was when it came to surf wave and wakeboard wake. We also didn't review the handling of the boat, and I can tell you, it wasn't close. I knew the Fi23 would out-perform the GS22 (it is better than the G23), but I didn't expect it to be THAT MUCH better.

I would STRONGLY recommend test driving both of them and MAKE SURE to actually drive both boats. If you do, you won't buy a GS22 unless you really really care about skiing. That said, you could get a Vi22 and be even closer in that regard.

So how would the Fi23 and Vi22 Compare?  I was potentially considering the GS22 as I miss the slalom wake of my old direct drive and want a boat that will do both Slalom and Surf "decently".  My S226 is a surfing beast but slalom is less than desireable.  I know that the 2 sports are on opposite ends of the spectrum but don't want to get back into a ski only boat with terrible surf wave.  There has to be a decent compromise out there.  Will be travelling at some point to demo once I narrow down the short list because any dealers are a long way away from where I live

Thanks

[volzalum 280]

Viking, Though not ideal, I bet you could buy a different prop for your S226 that would do good slalom. You would need to switch the prop to switch sports, and you would also want to remove any lead from the rear of the boat while slaloming, but I bet you could get a pretty smooth wake at 32 mph with the tabs down and the right prop.

[NextLevel 0]

So, I find myself with the exact conundrum as Josh22. Which boat to get when you want at least a decent slalom wake, but also enable everyone on board to experience  wakeboard/ surfing. I have watched the vid from Boardco on fi23 vs GS22, Thanks Boardco for the added input in this thread. I am honing in on a Fi23, but feel the pull of a Vi22. There is a comparison  video on Vi/Fi/Ri, which coaches the Vi as lacking storage. due to the lower shear line. any thoughts would help- Thanks.