Dilemma.

That's a nice job 78...I like it!

Yeah I had a local guy do it after pricing new ones. I dont know how it compares with others but the price was right and it works great. Looks like he added the flaps after cutting the slits so that the two pieces of velcro overlap 100% and lay flat. The drawstring thing is kind of cool he basically un-hemed the cover edge lenghtwise, and velcro-ed that too to make a pocket that will wrap around the string between the two pole cut outs. Just peel this open, unhook the S hook and the drawstring drops out of the way. Good luck on yours!

Speaking of covers, does anyone have any pix of how they modified a stock cover after a wakeboard tower installation? I've got an idea on how its done, but would love to see the actual thing. Thanks

Mostly for Dank...

Here are some pictures of how my cover was modified to attach to and go around the extended pylon. The overlap has velcro on it...





-Joe.

That's just like, I ski better on my new ski than my old one because it's new and more expensive.

TRBenj wrote: great78 wrote: 2 Nautiques has it right(as do others)however the lever arm is longer on a pole as it attaches to the floor and the tower attaches to the gunnels. torque is force x lever arm so would be greater with a pole. I disagree. 2_Nautiques has it right. The point of the force is equidistant from the point of rotation (the hull) in both cases. It shouldnt matter how the pylon or tower is attached, as both are attached securely to the hull.

This is what I was wondering after my first posted question.The point of rotation is the same no matter what,so I guess it would make sense that the list would be the same if the tow point was the same distance from the pivot point.It's settled then...Towers list less because we want them to after spending all that money on one!! Thanks for the insight guys.

        Mike

great78 wrote: 2 Nautiques has it right(as do others)however the lever arm is longer on a pole as it attaches to the floor and the tower attaches to the gunnels. torque is force x lever arm so would be greater with a pole.

I disagree. 2_Nautiques has it right. The point of the force is equidistant from the point of rotation (the hull) in both cases. It shouldnt matter how the pylon or tower is attached, as both are attached securely to the hull.

the kid and i were discussing a topic for his science project. i think we found it.

skicat and Dchris. Not trying to be a smarta$$, and I would really like to know the answer to this question...and...since both of you must be engineers...having the torque generated below the boats Vertical Center of Gravity (VCG) with a Pole or above the VCG with a Tower could possibly be the difference.

I take no credit for my Towers design since I basically scaled down a CC design (see recent post) and started welding. But I did notice that compared to other designs, the geometry of the legs will try to place load on all 4 supports. If you take a look at the Tower I built you could do pull-ups from the Tow Point on the shop floor (not bolted down)without the thing turning over. The point being was the geometric nature of the design tries to load all four supports when in use. When transfering some of the "pull out" load to both sides of the boat..even a small amount on the high side..the list is reduced.

I basically scaled down the CC design to fit my small boat...I think the Engineer who designed their Tower really knew what he was doing. The CC design is not just an elevated Tow Point...some smart guy sat down and did some head scratchin'.

A factor much greater than Pole vs Tower is the width of your boat. Mine is a narrow 16' Tow boat. IMHO a wider model (like a Martinique) will do well with either a Tower or Pole since it's a lot wider than my ride.

You can build your own...a lot of us have...but believe me, it's a lot more work than you think. Building is simple as well as installation, but there is so much more to it than just that. The Companies that do this for Profit IMHO don't charge enough. I buitl my own Tower because it's the kind of thing I like to do. Labor or Love!

Hope this made sense!

No hint Tate. I don't recall what your boat looked like. All I was saying is that if you took the time and effort to restore it to orignal, then my vote would be go for the pole so it stays that way. I'm sure your boat looks great. BKH

Now that we've taken care of the physics questions, go for the tower! They really do add another dimension to the boat. I'm partial to Monster Towers for older boats (lets say... pre '95). Nothing beats FCT for newer boats('96+). I've never heard of anyone regetting installing an after market tower.

It's still going to roll, tower or no tower. I say, if you restored it, go with the pole. If you fixed it up, go with the tower. My $.02. BKH

QUESTION, Not to threadjack, but do most states have a problem with towers/skylons and running at night with conventional aft, deck anchor lights?? Don't anchor lights have to be at the tallest point on the boat? If so, all these "add-on" aftermarket towers don't come with a retrofit or anchor light option, or at least what I've seen available?????

Just wondering..
Moj'

From a mechanical engineering perspective, I have to agree with the sentiment that the listing SHOULD be the same regardless of whether you use a tower or a pole. That's the way the physics work, at least at the level of understanding you get from college level static/dynamic force cla$$es. There is a difference in the amount of torque exerted at the attachement points, but I don't know why that would affect the tendency of the boat to roll.

That said, my experience is the same as BK's. Boats with towers rock less. I can't explain why. I didn't believe it until I bought a tower and put it on my boat (not my M17). Everything I studied in college tells me it shouldn't matter, but it does.

Aesthetically, I wouldn't have any problem putting a tower on your 80 Martinique. I have seen a Martinique with a tower on it and I think it looks great. Since it's open bow, it kind of looks like all the other open bow ski/wake boats.