97 super sport Ballast question GG bags

[Sbt3]

Hi all I am new to the site.
Tonight I am picking up a 97 super sport. I am basically going to be installing tower and ballast over the winter so it is ready come spring time. My question is on the ballast: has any one tried to use the Gravity Games bags that they put in the Supra and Moomba boats? If I remember correctly they are around 2600lbs. I was wondering if they fit the boat correctly.
Also what are the biggest bags most of you have been able to put in the rear lockers and how big in the center ski locker. I know that I am going to want around 2500 lbs total in it. Any suggestions would be great.
I am so happy to get this boat and can't wait for spring.

[sperbet]

I have a 95 ss that I just got at the end of the summer and am a also installing a ballast system this winter. I don't know anything about the gg bags, but would suggest having custom bags made. I am going to run a 4 bag system. I think the company that makes the bags is lets go ride. Right now I am planning on 2 600 lbs vdrive bags, ski locker sack, which most people around here say weighs in around 700 lbs or so and the a 400-500lbs bow sack. Hopefully all together it will be right around that 2400 pund mark. I would look for custom sacks instead of the gg bags. Those bags are made for a Supra(??) and may not fit that well in a ss

[sperbet]

here is the link:

www.bigwake.com/products.asp

[Sbt3]

Thanks for the link.
How about hard tanks- What is the biggest tank people are able to get in the rear locker? I have found some tanks but need to remeasure to make sure they will fit.

[sperbet]

I think the biggest tanks that come in the SANs are around 300-350 lbs. I think your better off going with bags.

[jonfo]

Here is my setup for my 1995 Super Sport
-2 vdrive bags in back 350lbs each. Note the battery and lift arm are on helm side so there is limited room. Also, too much weight in back will make it porpoise and make it hard to drive and hold speed.
-1 large bag in ski locker at about 600lbs , its a big ski locker. you can route hoses from back over the gas tank and into the locker.
-6 lead bars in bow - about 300lbs total.
-filled cement in under rear seats. 150lbs X2. put in a garbage bag liner and fill with quickcrete, put in good rope handles so you can lift out after it dries. fits perfectly, heavy, and removable.

So i am at about 1900lbs before you count people and 40gal gas tank, 1300 of which is water and can be drained. I use a Jabsco wakeboard pump with reverse. It fills and empties the sacs from the driver seat. All sacs have overflows on them that go to a thru hull outlet in back so if i overfill it comes out the outlet rather than bursting the bags. I have a thru hull pickup to fill and empty from the pump. I routed the water from the pump up to the driver and have a 1 into 4 way valve (Sears - $10) so i can control which sac i fill and empty independently. it probably fills them all in 20 minutes or so. I find this weight is about right considering we sometimes have 5-6 people in the boat when riding. If it is just a driver and spotter we sometimes put another 550lb sac in rear seat.

[Sbt3]

jonfo- thanks for the info. I have been doing some research and am going to probably go with something like this. Let me know what you think.

Rear- get rid of engine cover lift arm and move battery so that I have both areas open.
Custom 21x21x48 sacs which should be around 700 each= 1400 total in back.

Ski Locker- Custom 11x26x67 sac 625lbs

Nose haven't figured that out yet but probably a few hundred in sand where I can fit it.

For the pump I ordered three switches already they say ballast fill and empty on them and I can run them to 3- simer reversible pumps one for each sac. I will have thru hull fittings to prevent over filling as well. All sacs will be controlled by thier own pump for easy adjustments on the fly. I am not sure yet if I am going to tee into the raw water intake or put in another thru hull scoop.
In my last boat I went to the raw water intake with two pumps and never had any problems.
The boat is in storage so all I can do for now is plan. I am sure things will change a little once I get going on it.
Total weight should be 2k plus whatever sand I can get in.

[JWAT]

I will be installing a ballast system in my '97 Super Sport this winter and I have a couple questions.

Sbt3,
Where did you get the switches that say ballast, fill and empty and if you don't mind me asking, how much did they cost? Also, did you get any breakers for the switches or are you just going to run the wires directly to them?

jonfo,
I will be adding a thru hull pick up like you and I was wondering if you used a scoop type thru hull or a thru hull that is flat and sits flush with the hull of the boat. I was going to go with the flat thru hull thinking that it would empty faster, but wanted to hear your opinion. Thanks.

[Sbt3]

Jwat- here is the info that I found on the switches. I am not 100% sure that they say fill and empty because I haven't received them yet. They should get to me later this week. According to the research that I did they are the same switches that come with the Ballast Puppy pump from Jabsco. I haven't thought about the breakers yet. I may get a small breaker panel to run the pumps as well as the heater that I am going to install. I know that the simer pump that I am using has a inline fuse that may be good enough protection.

Ballast Switches-
Company: Wes-Garde 800-554-8866 Spoke to Melinda

The part# is VJD1D66B-GNCXX-1XX-XFJ1

FLOJET NO P/N NO PRINT
DIST: WES-GARDE
SUPPORT CARD INFORMATION
IMPRINT "FILL" ON TOP PORTION OF ROCKER
IMPRINT "BALLAST" IN CENTER OR ROCKER
IMPRINT "EMPTY" ON BOTTOM PORTION OF ROCKER
IMPRINT ROCKER PER PS-5020

$11.70ea switch, currently a $50 dollar min order

part # VM3-01 3 Switch Mounting panel - $3.75 ea also make 1 and 6 panel mounts

She said that they had around 20 instock and once they are out of those it would be a $250 min order.

I am also curious what people have used for the thru hull fittings. If you use a scoop fitting do you need to shut off the lines after the bags are full. In other words will the water continue to fill the bags thru the pressure of driving or does the impeller hold the seal?

[Sbt3]

The switches came today and they do say Ballast fill and empty just thought I would let you know.

[jonfo]

I used the pickup that has a bit of a scoop on it. It seems to pump out fine though even when under way so that has never been an issue. The jabsco pump has not let water in, so i havent needed shutoffs. Make sure you use good hose clamps on all your fittings, i have had a clamp nearly come loose from the pressure. If i were to do it again i would use the separate pickup. I have seen them at West Marine for pretty cheap, although the dealer acquired and installed mine.

I dont know what you will do if you remove the lift arm, how will you lift the engine cover? Its the battery and the blower hose that are in the way the most, not really the lift arm so much. also, i dont think you will get a good drive or wake with 1400 lbs all in back, but it will be interesting to hear how it works for you.
-Jon

[JWAT]

Sbt3,

Is there any way you could get a couple pics of the switches you received and post them on here? Maybe one of the front of the switch and one of the back where the terminals are. If you can't do that, can you tell me how many terminals there are on the back. Is it a DPDT switch? Thanks again.

[Sbt3]

Jwat,
here is a link to the forum that I first saw the switches on. They go through wiring and everything. It is a good post.
http://forums.wakeboarder.com/viewto...ht=wire+switch

jonfo, So you think 1400 is going to be too much in the back. I figured I would put as much as possible in the rear lockers and then the bag in the ski locker. When I bought the boat the rule my wife layed out was no ballast laying on the floor which is why I am trying to get it all buried in the lockers. I know that the boat will need over 2k to make a big wake.
I may leave the lift arm for the engine cover, it depends if it is in the way. I personally think that is a crap design anyway cause if the battery dies you screwed. Of coarse I haven't even used the boat yet but that is what looks like would happen.

[JWAT]

Sbt3,

Thanks for the link to that post. Do your switches look exactly like the one in that post?

About your ballast situation. . .like I said before, I have the same boat as you do. I would not mess with removing the lift arm and battery. I initially thought those things would be a problem too, but it ends up that the sacks just form around the arm and battery. If you think about it, the battery probably weighs as much or more than what a sac would if it was taking up that little space. The lift arm doesn't get in the way at all for me. For your front sac, I would get a custom one made for your front ski locker. The lockers in our boats are huge and will hold a very big sac. I had a custom one made from www.boarders-paradise.com and I am really happy with it. I just measured the locker and had a sac made to those dimensions. I tried to calculate how much weight it would hold and it was somewhere around 700-750 pounds, which is a lot more than if you just threw a regular sack in there.

Anyways, if you put a regular 400-500 lb. sac on each side of your engine, a custom one in your ski locker and maybe 100-200 lbs. of lead or something under the front cushion, you should be good to go. Once you get above 1200 pounds in that boat, the wake is respectable and anything above 2000, it's going to be pro level. Hope this helps and thanks again for the link.

[Sbt3]

Jwat,
That is the exact switch that I got. It is really nice looking. If you order the part number in the previous post you will get that switch. The plate that I ordered holds all three switches but you will still need to cut out a hole somewhere to mount the plate. Since my boat is in storage I don't have easy access to figure out where I am going to mount them yet but I plan to go look at it this week sometime.

Thanks for the input. Do the boarders paridise sacs have the waterbed style fittings or are they more like a plastic screw fitting? I like the fittings that Barefoot international uses on their custom sacs and am thinking about going with those sacs. I am really looking for that prolevel wake. I don't know exactly what I am going to do with it, but it will be fun.

Also where do you ride in Indiana? I get down there a few times a summer for work and it would be cool to ride together if you have room. I sometimes ride with a friend down on Brookville lake near Cinci. I basically travel all over Indiana for work though. Likewise if you are up in the Milwaukee area let me know I could hook you up with a pull if I am around.