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**Tequilasun** · 06-09-2006, 01:35 PM

Well, I for one would be concerned about why there is a new motor in the Maristar. If its a simple reason, no problem, but if its a motor abuse issue, it makes me wonder what else they abused.

That being said either boat will get you on the water.

A great deal of us like the crossover aspect of the Tige, with Taps.

It will ride smoother in rougher water than the Maristar. If I remember correctly, it also has a higher freeboard than the Maristar, which is nice when you have little ones running around the boat.

I think it should be obvious the types of responses you will get on Tigeowners.com, but I would look really hard at both, and find the one that fits your needs the best.

**grberglund** · 06-09-2006, 01:44 PM

I figured I would get Tige bias here but that's okay. It would be great to hear from someone who has owned or ridden in both and could share a story.

The owner of the Maristar was very upfront about the engine. He said right after they got it and had it de-winterized, the cooling tube/hose was not hooked up to the motor and their first time out they burned up the engine. It sounds like it was lack of knowledge on their part and a big screw up from the dealer. The engine is a brand new crate motor LT1 that was done in 2000, so they've been running it only about 40hrs a year since then. Kind of an older guy with grandkids so he sounds like a gentle driver but maybe not the best for keeping up on maintenance. Hard to say.

Both boats are a few hundred miles away from where I live so getting out for a close inspection and test drive is challenging if not impossible. I have to rely on emails, lots of pictures and phone calls.

The Tige owner seems to know less about his own boat than I do when I've talked to him and asked about it which makes me a bit curious about how he's maintained and used it.

**pilot_ryder** · 06-09-2006, 01:46 PM

Be diligent on the inspections mechanical, visual etc. Take both out for test drives...then follow your heart and head.

**Tequilasun** · 06-09-2006, 01:59 PM

Ok, The motor issue wouldn't worry me much in that case.

Since you can't get a close inspection of each boat, how about hiring a Marine Surveyor in that area. For a couple hundred bucks you could learn more about each of those boats than you really wanted to know! The surveys would be a great help, I think.

**grberglund** · 06-09-2006, 02:31 PM

Thanks for the tip. I may just do that. I've been going over this in my head a lot this morning and I'm leaning towards the Tige the more I think about it. I do wish I could find something closer to home but there just isn't anything in my price range.

I do have little kids so I want a little more freeboard. I'm also a better skier than wakeboarder so I want to do both and my kids as well. Plus I just like the boat, love the TAPS system concept, and it doesn't hurt that none of our boating friends have one! They're running Mastercraft, Malibu and Moomba so we could really have some good comparisons this summer.

Any idea if there are Tige owners manuals in PDF format on-line that I could get my hands on?

**Tequilasun** · 06-09-2006, 04:19 PM

Tige Owner's Download section

Check here!

And good luck

**bfrank** · 06-09-2006, 07:27 PM

The last two boats I bought were hundreds of miles away, one was in Alabama, and the other was in Texas, and I'm from Wisconsin, and like you I had to rely on the owners descripion and make the leap of trust. One thing I did do was bring a fake a lake with me so I could at least fire it up and let it get up to temp. I figured at least if the motor was sound and I inspected the hull and all the switches and stuff I should be OK. You are always going to have stuff you want to fix or replace on a boat either way you look at it, you just dont want any major repairs right off the bat!!!
Good Luck and If you get the Tige post some pictures!!!!

**grberglund** · 06-11-2006, 04:14 PM

"fake a lake" - where can I get one? I've used the ears that go over an outboard or outdrive's water intake that you hook up to a hose to but I've never seen one for an inboard with direct drive or v-drive. Does that go right onto the engine manifold somewhere? I imagine it would be hard to stick to the hull where the water intake is. Any pictures of this setup would be nice so I can get a better idea of what it is.

**bfrank** · 06-11-2006, 04:23 PM

This is one they have at Overtons. it attaches directly to your water inlet on the bottom of the boat. You hook the hose up and start it up, your water pump will suck the water to your motor!!

Inboard Engine Adjustable Motor Flusher

The telescoping tube of this adjustable motor flusher allows precise alignment for hard-to-reach areas. No tools required; flusher installs in minutes. Large cup prevents water blow-by or fall-off during usage.

74920 Qty

Sale: $34.99
Regular: $39.99

Stock: In stock

Attached Files

74920m.jpg (5.2 KB, 273 views)

**bfrank** · 06-11-2006, 04:27 PM

This is the one I have, you put the hook through the water inlet screen and push it up.

Attached Files

21605.jpg (5.0 KB, 268 views)

**jsz** · 06-12-2006, 12:26 AM

The last one is called a "Pro-flusional". I have it and it works great. It's about $30.

**NICKYPOO** · 06-13-2006, 05:34 PM

I have both of those and I prefer the adjustable plunger. 10 times easier to put on/ take off. Just wedge it up on there and turn the water on. When your done you can just pull it out from the hose. The other one you have to hook onto the the intake grate and it can be a real pain sometimes both putting on and taking off. I used it for a couple of seasons before I picked up the plunger and I now use the plunger exclusively.

**NICKYPOO** · 06-13-2006, 05:44 PM

By the way, I'd get the Tige. But you probably knew that. Seriously though, once you have Taps you never go back. Why do you think all the new MC's have it? That is also a good solid tower on the Tige. If the tower on the MC is the Zero Flex Flyer from back in the day I would get the Tige just for that reason. Those things sucked. Almost as bad as the old factory Metcrafts on Tiges back in the day. Those Phat towers were some of the first real good, solid towers on the market. Good luck!

**grberglund** · 06-16-2006, 08:28 PM

Well I had nailed down a 99 2100V and had almost closed the deal but the guy ended up selling it out from under me stating that he felt uncomfortable with the deal since I was about 1,000 miles away. I felt that a non-refundable security deposit of $700 for him to meet me a little closer in the middle was a little out of control as well...

So now I've actually come across a 1998 Tige v-drive that is in my own backyard (okay 2 hours away as opposed to 12) and looks very promising. I guess this would be the PRE 2200V model. What does the PRE represent anyway? Just a naming convention or hull design?

I'm trying to track down some pictures of the interior and rest of the boat as the seller is out of town until next week - I imagine it doesn't look much differnet than a '99+ but I don't know for sure. It has the same setup for the most part with TAPS, etc.

Can anyone share with me what they know and like / don't like about this vintage boat?

Thanks-
Greg

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Tige vs. Mastercraft - help me decide

Tige vs. Mastercraft - help me decide

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