Which Tige to Buy???

[JreisRZR]

theres 2 types of nav lights, the shark eyes are set into the hull, the non shark eyes stand out from the hull.

[chpthril]

Not sure we're talking about the same things....

My 24Ve has colored nav lights that look a lot like these "docking lights", mounted below the rub rail on either side. There are no other color nav lights on the bow. This photo is a bit distant but shows my port nav light below the rub rail and above the bow roller:



There's a matching starboard light, and that's it.

Are you saying there's generally a different nav light set?

Tige offers a standard Nav light assembly, which is a surface-mount light assembly that looks pretty typical. It mounts on the top side of the bow, and the "Shark Eye" Nav lights. These are flush-mount and are located on the sides and are just below the rub rail.

The Tige docking lights are just white docking light.

Your 24Ve has the Tige Shark Eye Nav light option and no docking lights.

[IDBoating]

Your 24Ve has the Tige Shark Eye Nav light option and no docking lights.

OK, thanks for clearing that up. That means another switch is safely available for cool accessories!

[talltigeguy]

Thanks for the feed back.. The dealer has a new Z3 coming in next Friday to show in the January Boat show. It will give me a chance to see the boat in person and finally make a decision.
Either boat I know I will be very happy with. This will be my Third Tige.. Best boat I have owned for the money..

Forgive for not memorizing every detail of Ragboy's thread, but I would have to ask if Tige made many of what I would call the '1st generation' Z3. Certainly I have seen threads with at least one other that was made at the same time as the one Ragboy gave back.

What I am saying is, and it might be already answered, but I would make sure that the new Z3 will have the changed hull. If there are some 1st generation Z3's out there in the market, then someone is going to be sorely disappointed when they cannot get a great wave or wake out of it.

I would go with the RZ2, and ask them for a basic trailer, he can put it under another RZ2 he orders this year without any problems, as long as the color might match. Those upgraded rims are not cheap.

I guess with the RZ2, I would sort of consider it 'tried and true' vs. 'new and improved'.

[ecutter]

Forgive for not memorizing every detail of Ragboy's thread, but I would have to ask if Tige made many of what I would call the '1st generation' Z3. Certainly I have seen threads with at least one other that was made at the same time as the one Ragboy gave back.

What I am saying is, and it might be already answered, but I would make sure that the new Z3 will have the changed hull. If there are some 1st generation Z3's out there in the market, then someone is going to be sorely disappointed when they cannot get a great wave or wake out of it.

I would go with the RZ2, and ask them for a basic trailer, he can put it under another RZ2 he orders this year without any problems, as long as the color might match. Those upgraded rims are not cheap.

I guess with the RZ2, I would sort of consider it 'tried and true' vs. 'new and improved'.

I had the same concern about the Z3.. If I go that route I would have one built with the colors and options I like and make sure it's the new hull design. The proven design of the RZ2 appeals to me as well. When the Z3 comes in next week I plan to compare the boats side by side. If the RZ2 wins out I think I will step up and just order a new '12 with the options and colors I want. If I'm gonna spend this kind of money on a toy, I want to be happy with the color and the 2011 Graphite colors scheme doesnt wow me.. I think half the fun of buying a toy is picking out the options, colors etc.

[robert theisen]

I had the same concern about the Z3.. If I go that route I would have one built with the colors and options I like and make sure it's the new hull design. The proven design of the RZ2 appeals to me as well. When the Z3 comes in next week I plan to compare the boats side by side. If the RZ2 wins out I think I will step up and just order a new '12 with the options and colors I want. If I'm gonna spend this kind of money on a toy, I want to be happy with the color and the 2011 Graphite colors scheme doesnt wow me.. I think half the fun of buying a toy is picking out the options, colors etc.

That is exactly how i felt.I ordered my 2011 and paid more than i would have for the boat my dealer had in stock.But i got the colors,graphics and all the options i wanted.If your paying for it,you should get what you want.

[ecutter]

I like the colors on both Robert's and j2dna boats. I'm leaning towards the black right now but love that blue as well.. Lets get a vote going.

Robert.. I have you down for the blue one lol..

[IMG][/IMG] [IMG][/IMG]

[robert theisen]

LOL those are the two colors i was chosing from.My wife liked the black/white with blue accents for me and i liked the one we bought.

[Iwndr]

BLACK

[IDBoating]

Any gelcoat experts on here? Is there any technical reason to prefer one gelcoat color over another?

Example: We're whitewater kayakers and our boats are made of various types of polyethylene (linear or crosslinked, blowmolded or rotomolded). The polymer experts say not to get a kayak in "white" because the lack of pigments makes the plastic less resistant to shortwave UV solar exposure.

Any recommendations like that regarding gelcoat?

[thtrog]

I vote Black with Blue!

[Ewok]

I like blue and white and grey.

[IDBoating]

That looks like Liberty Lake to me... am I correct?

[Ewok]

That looks like Liberty Lake to me... am I correct?

CDA, near wolf creek.

[ragboy]

I would suggest you are going to end up upgrading the ballast on both boats. I have a 2010 RZ2 with a Custom Fat Sac on the port side (see Mike's Liquid Audio for that bag). We bought our RZ2 because our slip only allows a 22' boat. I would have happily bought an RZ4 given the opportunity.

I have watched the videos of the Z3 surf wake along with the Wake9 Team's 24VE. Unless you are surfing professionally I think you are going to struggle to see the difference between the RZ2 wake and the Z3 wake (if weighted and driven correctly).

The thing that is appealing about the Z3 is that it seems to sit higher in the water. My wife drives me a lot and is not a big fan of the boat sitting as low as it does in the water when fully weighted. That said, the weight does not bother or concern me at all. Who is driving you, what kind of lake are you on, etc...? If it is a rougher lake then I might lean toward the Z3.

In the end...newer is almost always better. What is the price delta between the two? $20K? You are already talking about buying a $70K plus boat. Does $20K more really matter?

As for getting the colors you want...that is important. BUT...I would again suggest that whatever color you buy...you are going to live with it for 2-4 years. After that you can get the boat wrapped in whatever new color or scheme you want. Therefore, I was not as worried about the color.

As for engines...we have the 409. The 343 seems to operate at the same level (we live in Austin) but with more efficiency.

As for the trailer...I don't give a crap what the trailer looks like (our boat is in a lift on the water). I would never spend more for a 'nicer' trailer.

My two cents. Feel free to email me if you want to discuss the RZ2 in more detail.

Good luck. You can check out our ride at www.surfaustex.com.

Disagree (respectfully). I would say the opposite is true, if you are a pro, you won't mind so much, and if you are not, you will DEF notice the difference. Here are some points to consider, and remember that the Z3 was engineered with these issues in mind.

1. The Z3 is as easy or easier to weight.

2. Z3 is not only more tolerant of weight on the opposite side, but likes it. It doesn't matter how much room you have when you have to keep most or all weight on the surf side. You lose a lot of the room on your boat. On the Z3, it NEEDED weight on both sides, allowing you to place people all over, huge benefit.

3. Z3 requires only about 7 degrees of list and everyone will feel much safer.

4. Z3 has higher rub rail, so added freeboard and feeling of safety surfing. But there is also a much safer perception due to the lack of the walkthrough down the side. When you have the walkthrough down the side and surfing goofy, water comes up from the back sometimes a bit, but also the seat is lower on your back when sitting in that corner. The Z3 walkthrough in the center and seating config makes the entire boat, even that corner feel safer. As an added benefit that corner is SO MUCH more comfortable. That is ragboy's seat, and this one was a huge deal to me. The Z3 is THE most comfortable boat to ride in while surfing, hands down.

5. The Z3 wake is MUCH more adjustable. The 24Ve wake is more adjustable than the RZ2, and the Z3 was more adjustable than the 24Ve. I have LOTS of video of newer riders, especially skim riders and kids that have a hard time on the RZ2 steepness. Get a skimmer with not so much fin on that steep wall and they can't hold an edge, same with kids at times. I took one lady, good skim surfer on our 24Ve and she loved it, we had taps all the way down for her to shallow the wake. Then we took here the very next week on the RZ4, same steepness as RZ2 and about the same in adjustability as the RZ2. Should couldn't surf the RZ4, too steep. Couldn't hold her edge. This is one of the videos that we showed to tige in development of the Z3 and one of the things we stressed to them. A boat that could adjust from shallow for skim to steep for surf. The Z3 does that. In my opinion, this is huge for those of you that want to share your awesome surf wake with lots of folks.

We had the RZ2 for over a year, the 24Ve since 2007, the RZ4 for about a month or so, and have tested several times with the new Z3, we want the Z3.

I would agree on the 409, we didn't get a lot of time on it, but it does seem very efficient, and LOTS more power.

Hope that helps, and good luck with your purchase.