Help configure my new RZ2/4

[robert theisen]

The RZ2 will be easier to maneuver than the RZ4. The RZ4 will hold more people and ride a bit smoother in rough water.As far as room in the bow you gain a little,but most of the room is in the middle of the of the boat.The RZ2 will be better on fuel and easier to ballast for wake boarding or surfing.You have to decide what is most important to you.Good Luck.

[EricU]

Hello Everyone!

We are in the process of picking up a new RZ2/4. Having a hard time trying to figure out
which one to buy and hoping to find some answers here.

First of all, is the bigger engine worth it? We are leaning towards the 455hp engine. I know that these boats are not meant for speed, but the salesperson told me that the top speed wouldn't increase with the bigger engine, so it it mainly for when the boat is loaded up?

We have an old '08 RZ4 with the 340 hp 5.7L Marine Power motor and we are running the ACME 1235 (14 1/2" diam.), switched from a 1617 (14" diam.).

Plan on getting the 1235 (or call ACME direct and talk to them after you decide which engine).

We run two 1,100s in the back lockers and two 400s up front, the boat has no problems running up pulling me and I weigh right around 210lbs and that is usually with a boat full of teenagers. I don't think you will have any problem with either of the engines, but the more torque the better and the bigger engine should help at resale.

The only gripe that I have with the RZ4 is I am having a hard time dialing in the starboard side wake for either surfing or wakeboarding. When boarding and fully weighted, my heel side wake is HUGE and clean, while the toe side (starboard) wake is usually whitewash. This weekend I am going to try bringing an extra bag and put it up front to see if that will help.

But what great problems to have!!! Good luck and have fun!

[Cloud]

Any more info on this boat? Will it have the picklefork design?

Yes, there is a little extra room in the bow but it's not any wider, just a little longer, and the cabin is a little longer as well. If you have a chance you should try to get out on each one or at least climb around on them in the dealership. I went with the RZ2 because I keep it in my garage. I've been out on Dingleberry's RZ4 and the extra room is very nice, you won't regret it. If you plan on doing any surfing I would go with the convex VX, it should help weighting the RZ4 and get a cleaner wave on both sides, but it doesn't make any difference for the wakeboarding wake.

If you haven't heard there is a newer boat coming out soon that is more wakeboarding specific and it should be somewhere between the RZ2 and 4 in size. Wait until after 2 Oct before you make up your mind.

[Cloud]

We already have a boat right now and we went wake boarding almost every weekend this summer. There is a group of us that like to go so this boat will definitely be towing people.

At the same time we also love having the space on the boat. It's not about holding 17 people, it's about having the room to relax and not being cheek to cheek with somebody else.

Then altitude will not drive your engine selection.



Yeah, that's what we said when we got our boat. Guess what? The wakeboards (we have four or five, I've lost count) never even went on the boat this season. Not even once. Last season we might have pulled a wakeboarder one time, maybe. And we put well over 100 hours a season on our boat, live on waterfront property, and our boat ties up at our own dock on our own beach so it's not like it's inconvenient. We'd go wakeboarding if anyone wanted to, but nobody does. Once people surf, that's what they want to do - even the wakeboarders. Choose your boat with that in mind!



The RZ4 adds two (17) to the adult capacity of the boat over the RZ2's rating (15). Give serious thought to just how often you might really need those extra two. Unless it's 90%+ of the time, I'd favor the RZ2. It will cost less, have higher performance with a given engine, be easier to ballast (the bigger boats CAN give you a bigger wave but require a real commitment to ballasting to get there), trailer easier, etc. Usually it's a poor decision to optimize for rare events, so unless you honestly think you'll have more than 15 people most of the time, those extra two seats will go empty most of the time but you'll be paying for them ALL of the time.

Congratulations on your upcoming purchase, and report back! Everyone here loves to stay involved in the buying process. We sort of live vicariously through other people's wallets....

[Cloud]

We are leaning towards copying this design



Do you guys know if this is the electric blue, or the pacific blue? I can't really tell from the boat designer on
tige.com since it's not of a real boat.

[Coop]

Any more info on this boat? Will it have the picklefork design?

From what I've heard, yes, it will be a picklefork. The brief glimpse you get of it in the first teaser video looks like a picklefork.

[Bruizza]

If your main focus is wakeboarding DEFINITELY wait until after October 2nd to make your decision. The new boat they are releasing on the 2nd is supposed to compete with the G23 and new Xstar wake wise. I have no idea what your skill level is but generally the bigger the boat the faster you have to ride to clean the wake up. So if you go RZ4 and run full ballast and 10 people in the boat expect to have to ride in the 24-25mph range. this is fine for some people but others will never want to ride that fast. We wakeboard first every single weekend too. We don't surf until the water is chopped out. The RZ2 is going to be much better for wakeboarding IMO than the RZ4 if you aren't into riding fast. New boat hopefully allows a ton of weight and the ability to ride 23.5mph or under.

[Cloud]

Appreciate the post. Do you have a guess where the pricing for the new boat is around?

If your main focus is wakeboarding DEFINITELY wait until after October 2nd to make your decision. The new boat they are releasing on the 2nd is supposed to compete with the G23 and new Xstar wake wise. I have no idea what your skill level is but generally the bigger the boat the faster you have to ride to clean the wake up. So if you go RZ4 and run full ballast and 10 people in the boat expect to have to ride in the 24-25mph range. this is fine for some people but others will never want to ride that fast. We wakeboard first every single weekend too. We don't surf until the water is chopped out. The RZ2 is going to be much better for wakeboarding IMO than the RZ4 if you aren't into riding fast. New boat hopefully allows a ton of weight and the ability to ride 23.5mph or under.

[robert theisen]

October 2nd is the release date to the Dealers.We should all know then.

[boardman74]

@ Cloud. I am guessing and hearing in the ball park of a Z3.

[Cloud]

Just an update, we are leaning towards the RZ4 at this point.

We just put down our deposit for the boat and it should be sent for production early next year. Since the rain is back in WA we decided to wait for the weather to get better.

Option wise we went with the following.

Indmar S62
Flex Paint
Sunbrella Covers
Cockpit Table
Under Water Transom Lights
EIDB
Z Cline Captain's Chair
Additional Pull Up Cleats
Snap In Carpet
Surf Package Ballast System
Alpha Z Tower Custom Colour
Alpha Z Swivel Surf/Wake Racks
Alpha Z Accent Light
PreWire Tower
Bimini Top & Boot
Wet Sounds Tower of Power w/ Rev 10s
Custom LED Tower Speaker Rings
Tandem Axle Trailer
Stainless Retractable Transom Straps

Pretty excited for the boat! We are not sure of the colour scheme yet, and thinking of booking a factory tour to help us decide.

Thanks for all the help!

[robert theisen]

I would recommend the pro ballast.We have friends with the surf ballast and they ended up getting the pro ballast equivalent. The Rz4 likes weight up front.

[boardman74]

For sure go with the pro ballast. Also you can drop the tower prewire if you are opting for the tower of power. Unless you want to pay them twice for the same wire!!

[Cloud]

For sure go with the pro ballast. Also you can drop the tower prewire if you are opting for the tower of power. Unless you want to pay them twice for the same wire!!

The dealer said it was requires for the tower of power, but I'll ask again, thanks.

[chpthril]

Hummm. The pre-wire option is typically ordered when the boat is not getting OEM installed tower speakers. But if you are ordering the ToP, then it will come wired and fully functional. To me, it would be a duplication.