Hein

Water temperature is finally getting comfortable so glad to be out again today. Rear view camera worked well and was easy to see and use. Anti-glare film I applied did help. Photo below doesn't really do it justice. Driver's view is much better. This was late afternoon heading east. I think we had better luck with the wave today. We were light on crew with only 3 on board. I moved the 400lbs of lead from underneath the bags in the rear lockers to under the rear most seats. 200lbs on each side. All bags were full except for the starboard rear which was at about 60% iirc. Tabs were 0 and 60 with stinger at 40 and cats at 30. We ran into some funky current whirlpool/eddies which totally ruined the wave when I was riding. Here is a video of Sean riding. I'll have more footage to share tomorrow... All the best, Hein

I wasn't aware that we could display the rear view cam on the dash screen. Still, I think a separate monitor will be best because we want the whole dash screen to be available for making adjustments to the wave setup. I did put the anti-glare film on the rear view monitor which I think will help in the sun. I discovered that I could pan up and down on the screen so that will help if I didn't get the camera pointed quite right. Excited to try it out but haven't had a chance to get out on the water again. I did also purchase a microSD card so we can record our rides. That is also and added bonus we have with the dedicated monitor. All the best, Hein

Great that this thread popped back up. Gas strut mod for rear shoe storage areas is a nice idea. Rather than the push button ignition/start I might just connect the audio system to a constant 12V source and have a switch to toggle between that and the factory configuration. These engines are so quiet, we just leave it running when swapping riders. Thinking that would be easier on the starter and reduce engine wear from low oil pressure at startup. We would definitely drain the ramfill if sitting for more than 15 minutes. I am told that they did add a flapper valve which should slow the water running into the exhaust. Maybe some kind of sensor with warning beeper would be prudent. All the best, Hein

Glare could be an issue and thank you for bringing that up. I angled the monitor down slightly and decided to order a screen protector with anti glare to try if needed. It's for an Ipad but figure I can cut it to fit. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B071JPDP5R All the best, Hein

Next project on deck. Actually below in this case... Bilge alarm system featuring a float switch mounted to a self-made ABS plate with threaded inserts that will be bonded to the inside of the hull with 3M 5200 adhesive. If the water level comes up to actuate the switch then a 90 decibel alarm will sound. Also shown is a small fuse for the system. I have a friend who almost sank his boat when a hose came loose and they didn't notice it until the engine was almost underwater. This might help to avoid such a scenario. All the best, Hein

Nice work. Do those attach with VHB tape? All the best, Hein

Thanks for the insight, Gentlemen. We will try changing the setup as you have suggested. All the best, Hein

Nice work. I told the folks who bought our Enzo to contact you. All the best, Hein

Congratulations COCenturion! Both my sister and my daughter live in Denver. So glad to see another Fi25 ready to hit the water. Do like the black look. We are like Ying and Yang, ha ha. We had our first outing this week and sort of struggled with the wave at first. A quick call to Ian at NWBS got us on the right track and I was pretty stoked to get a decent ride. We are looking forward to dialing it in more. Please share your settings so we can learn from each other. On Monday I am ordering a extra bag that we can throw on the seat. Will add another pump and thru-hull port to fill it. Going to wire it with a reversible winch relay connected to a remote control to simplify the wiring. We don't often have more than 4 crew so thinking we need some more weight on the seat or on the floor on the surf side. I would prefer that over more lead. Also have some upgrades to the surf tabs in mind but need to design and fab some parts first. Here's a video of my first rides behind the Fi25. All the best, Hein Setup: crew of 4, ram fill 100%, All bags full except bow. 200 lbs lead in each rear locker. pt at 40%, stinger 50%, st 0% and cats at 30; iirc.

We upgrade to Michelin LTX tires (stiffer sidewall) for the truck and will get some Airlift bags to level out the rear while towing. They are due to release a kit for our 2017 Titan in May. Truck actually did very well towing. We have a weigh safe hitch and it showed 700lbs tongue weight. We had NWBS put 400 lbs of lead in the back of the boat to compensate for smaller crew and to reduce tongue weight a little bit. We are planning on a rear view camera instead of mirror for the boat. Hoping to work out that install this weekend. Will start a new thread on upgrades. Can't leave anything stock. It's half the fun. All the best, Hein

Brought the Fi home today. We did purchase it from Pat and his crew at Northwest Boat Sports in Oregon City. Very attentive hard working team. They are all ready to step up to help their customers. Ian took us for a demo to show how to set it up for wakesurfing awesomeness. Brian was great helping with the details. It has been a pleasure to do business with them. Looks like we might have light wind tomorrow so hopefully will get on the water. Picked up a new Soulcraft with the boat so ready to step up our game. All the best, Hein & Kim

We are bringing our Fi25 home on Tuesday. I'll be happy to answer questions as we get to know it. All the best, Hein

Our 2008 Enzo has been sold. All the best, Hein

This boat is for sale for $40K. It has 220 hours and is in immaculate very well maintained condition. Always stored in heated garage. Comes with three straight and balanced props. Engine and trans oils have been changed and the fuel tank is full of premium non-ethanol with Sta-Bil fuel treatment. Trailer has newer bunks and great tires with spare, surge brakes and regularly greased wheel bearings. Located in Hood River, OR Please call 541 490 5098

Below are images of the bags as released to production. The notch in the larger bag goes over the boxes I made for the sideswipe valves. We don't have trim tabs but don't expect there to be any problems installing them if needed. That was the next intended upgrade for our Enzo. In addition to the rear bags we have this bow bag with it's own dedicated fill and drain pumps. https://www.wakemakers.com/straight-line-sumo-open-bow-bag-500.htm We have a valved hose bib on that circuit that we can use to fill the bag on the seat when we use it. We surf with the bags mostly full so I estimate close to 3000lbs total. We do also put a 150 lb bag on the rear seat on the surf side if there are only 3 of us in the boat. Rub rail at the rear corner is above the water line by a few inches. The boat sits mostly level and throws up a really nice wave with a long pocket and nice clean little curl at the top. I must say that we have got it dialed in perfectly. All the best, Hein

Hello Packrat. Glad to help. Below are a couple shots that show how they are connected to the bag. The elbow is in the port in the bottom of the bag at the back. We can get most all of the water drained when we are done riding so we can get on a full plane when we head back to the marina. Then I run them again while going up the ramp to get the last of it out. I covered the tops of the pumps with neoprene coozies so the plastic would not wear against the bags. Each pump is wired with a weatherpack connector so we can easily replace them if they start acting tired. We carry a spare pump on board. Our beloved Enzo 230SV is for sale because I just made a down payment on a 2019 Fi25. We can't wait for the new season to start. All the best, Hein@DIYvan.com Until then I've been riding the pump track to give my legs a work out.

Hello and thank you for asking. The channels are ordinary Unistrut that I purchased at the Home Depot and painted with Rustoleum Truck Bed Coating. We support the DIY and professional van up-fitting market and have a number of manufacturers around the state who produce the products that I design. We also do CNC machining in house. We have 250 of the part that bolts onto the Unistrut (using 1/4-20 bolts and unistrut nuts also from HD) that the boards sit on in process and will have them available for sale at our ebay store and for local pickup at our warehouse in Hood River. Still have to work up the cost and we probably won't have them painted to reduce the final price to the consumer. Totally manufactured in Oregon, USA. We had a paid intern design the parts as part of her CAD learning experience. She is off to a top engineering school next year. She did some other projects and ran our CNC equipment as well. Top flight gal! We are also kite, windsurf and paddle boarders and know a lot of folks who are boardheads so these will likely go fast so we'll have more made. I've used them for years and had the first ones made many years ago when I designed construction equipment for CASE. All the best, Hein@DIYvan.com

I would suggest making the bags a little large. It's better not to have them stretched tight when full. All the best, Hein

Below is a photo of the rear and under seat bags. Same on the other side. They are custom. I can dig up a dimensional drawing if you like. The notch in the bottom is so the bag can go over a cover I made for the sideswipe tubes and valves. Bow bag is Sumo 500lbs V-shape but we probably fill it to about 400 before it starts lifting the seat cushions. Crew of usually 3 sits on surf side. We have a 200lbs bag we put on the seat if light on crew. All the best, Hein

We run all bags full and a suck wedge on the opposite side just ahead of the sideswipe port. no lead. Low and level with rub rail at rear corners are just above the water. Bow bag helps keep the boat more level front to back which seems more efficient through the water. Less rpm needed.

Thanks for the tips, Infinity. I double bag with paper towels but then have trouble grabbing the filter to spin it off. It get's quite slippery inside the bags and I always manage to spill a little oil. Emptying the vacuum tank into the milk jugs is nice. For the transmission, I have a case of RP Max ATF which is compatible with Dexron III so will use that. Also ordered a check valves for the 1" fill line running to the bow bag. Searched for an hour trying to find some that are more affordable than the ones ballast bag folks sell. Whale makes some that appear good but decided on these instead: https://www.ebay.com/itm/TRUDESIGN-One-Way-Hose-Connector-Non-return-Valve-1-25mm/142477839142 Will report how they look and work when I receive them. (guess I got the last ones from that seller) All the best, Hein

We never had any problems draining with the stock setup in our '08 Enzo. We have since upgraded to bags and do see a trickle out of the surf side vents. We just check and top off as needed between sessions. We also have a bow bag on a separate pump which has started draining back through the fill pump. I need to check the impeller and probably add a check valve after the pump. The bag is quite a bit higher than the pump while surfing which places more back pressure on the pump. All the best, Hein

Happy New Year! To get ready for a fun 2019, I changed the oil in the boat. I use a vacuum pump and reservoir to suck the oil out. Then empty the reservoir into milk jugs. Happy to have the remote filter. I put a plastic bag over the filter and then remove it. Even then, it's tough not to get some spillage in the bilge. 409 to clean that up. Oil used is Royal Purple full synthetic 10W-40. Plan on changing the oil in the transmission (not v-drive gear box) this year. Anyone have an fluid recommendation? All the best, Hein Put up some more board racks while the oil was being sucked out. Can't have too many boards!

I have and 08 SV230 and interested in adding some OEMish surf tabs. Could do some CAD work and have them water jetted.

Thanks for your reply, Infinity. Appreciate your words of caution. There are a lot of foils around here with the windsports and SUP foiling. A number of pro level guys like our friend in the video. We have an LP carbon foil and Slingshot hoverglide foil but just haven't had the gumption to give it a go. I suffered a shoulder injury right after I bought the LP (not related) so figured I better wait until I got stronger before paying my dues on a foil. We picked up the hoverglide with a shorter mast to learn on. We also ride kites so learning behind the boat has added benefit going forward. After seeing this guy we are all totally committed to foiling next season. We might get out a few more times but days are getting shorter/cooler so will dedicate T.O.W. to wakesurfing. All the best, Hein