HOW TO...Make your '03 Exo's into '04's

Bizzerker · Soul Rider Joined: 06 Oct 2003 Posts: 399 City: Wichita

So I got bored....again. And leave it to Valentines day to leave the evening wide open Evil or Very Mad

Anyway, that's not what I'm here for.

I was taking a closer look at the '04 Exos, and other than the baseplate (which is a pretty big deal), the '03's are exactly the same! Go to www.buywake.com and check out the pics of the two. Hmmmm, looks like the upper overlays have been moved forward. And that's it.

Now, all you gotta do is move the overlays forward to the front bumpers. I had to play around with placement of the upper overlays and the lower webbing to get it to fit nicely, but take a minute to figure it out. I tried them on tonight, and the bindings felt a heck of a lot better. The pressure was on the top of my foot (like where you'd kick a soccer ball) instead of at the joint angle. It should make exitting and re-entering easier without loss of support!

Check out the captions for the "original" and "new" positions.

Hope this helps!!!

Tyler~Moore · Posted: Feb 14, 2004 7:08 pm Post subject:

yep, my dad noticed that, we were gonna do it,.but were trying to sell em...

Maestro · Posted: Feb 14, 2004 10:13 pm Post subject:

Don't forget the Neo/Lycra lining as well. But I know how you feel - I always mess with stuff to customize it in the winter when I can't ride. Either that, or buy new stuff that I don't need Rolling Eyes

jeffrey_25 · Addict Joined: 05 Oct 2003 Posts: 811

Maestro

Maestro · Posted: Feb 14, 2004 10:19 pm Post subject:

Some other things relating to what? Things I buy, or differences b/w 03s and 04s?

jeffrey_25 · Addict Joined: 05 Oct 2003 Posts: 811

Differences

ontrider · Ladies Man Joined: 30 Jul 2003 Posts: 16491 City: Russia

Damn, I thought this was about how to put neo liners in! Mad

I already moved my overlays forward because I can't even get my feet in the way they came.

Bizzerker · Soul Rider Joined: 06 Oct 2003 Posts: 399 City: Wichita

Maestro,

The down time is what kills me. I start hoarding equipment. I'll even change my setup a couple of times without any other reason than messing with stuff.

ontrider · Ladies Man Joined: 30 Jul 2003 Posts: 16491 City: Russia

Bizzerker, I'd like to see you design your own pair of bindings for your new board.

Bizzerker · Soul Rider Joined: 06 Oct 2003 Posts: 399 City: Wichita

ROFL!!! They'd probably look like docs with a whole bunch of that silver, sticky stuff.....yeah, duct tape! I'd have to think of what I would make them out of. Maybe sheets of nylon for the overlays, some of those floaty noodle things you play with in the pool, and 1/8th inch mild steel, throw some Dr. Scholl's in there for arch support.... Yeah, that would go well with the quality control guidelines I followed with the board Rolling Eyes

ontrider · Ladies Man Joined: 30 Jul 2003 Posts: 16491 City: Russia

Do it man, if anything it'll be good for a laugh! Razz

Bizzerker · Soul Rider Joined: 06 Oct 2003 Posts: 399 City: Wichita

The board's already a side splitter! I just wonder if anyone would injure themselves (laughing at me) if I had a totally home-made setup! I may get the "creative" itch around spring break, but hopefully we'll be riding by then.

If anything, here's the newest creation!!! Believe it or not, this tube (duly named "Bomz") weighs in at 50lbs (Coors light for size comparison...and drinking).

jeffrey_25 · Addict Joined: 05 Oct 2003 Posts: 811

What is it made of?

finkle · Wakeboarder.com Freak Joined: 22 Sep 2003 Posts: 4067

what does ROFL mean?

jeffrey_25 · Addict Joined: 05 Oct 2003 Posts: 811

Where does it say ROFL?

Bizzerker · Soul Rider Joined: 06 Oct 2003 Posts: 399 City: Wichita

ROFL = Rolling On the Floor Laughing.

Our "Bomz" are made of lead. There's nothing else out there that's this easy to find and this dense. The way we've made them, you can hide them in storage compartments, and even out the weight from one side to the other without tripping over fatsacks, etc.

koltman · Addict Joined: 15 Jan 2003 Posts: 902 City: Sydney/Orlando

Those "Bomz" are awsome. Great for a smaller boat, get the weight you want without taking up all the space. I mean, ten of those can't take up that much space, and thats already 500lbs. Brilliant design!

Bizzerker · Soul Rider Joined: 06 Oct 2003 Posts: 399 City: Wichita

Thanks! Actually it was domslude that figured that one out!

darty · Addict Joined: 18 Mar 2003 Posts: 522 City: Lexington

so how do you make one?

Bizzerker · Soul Rider Joined: 06 Oct 2003 Posts: 399 City: Wichita

darty, you've got a new PM. I really don't want to broadcast how to make those (especially for the younguns)

jeffrey_25 · Addict Joined: 05 Oct 2003 Posts: 811

Bizz, you should go on junkyard wars. Is there anything you can't make? Do you have any ideas for a "rack" where you can have your board standing up vertically?

Bizzerker · Soul Rider Joined: 06 Oct 2003 Posts: 399 City: Wichita

jeffrey_25, I'm not sure I'm as good as those guys...but, I do have a track record! In undergraduate school, I won 4 out of 5 first place parade float competitions! I made moving characters...something other fraternities still haven't figured out.

Anyway, I've thought about an upward board rack. It depends on whether you'd want it to mount to a wall, or be free standing. Personally, I don't have the floorspace or wallspace for either type of design.

But, it would basically have the board leaning back, and look like a modified guitar stand. I'd say, if you want to have one, make one! Draw it out, it's always better to measure twice and cut once (even though I don't necessarily follow that as much as I'd like).

This is a quick sketch of what it could look like. You can play with the dimensions to fit the specific spots of your board, change the base size to change the angle of the board, and play with the height of the 2X4 so your board doesn't hit a wall. This is a "free standing" model, but it'd probably have to be backed against a wall or weighted with some bricks or something. Heck, you could probably bolt this up on a wall if you tagged it to a stud.

jeffrey_25 · Addict Joined: 05 Oct 2003 Posts: 811

Yeah I would want is free standing. The picture is awesome. Did you just make it up now?

Bizzerker · Soul Rider Joined: 06 Oct 2003 Posts: 399 City: Wichita

Yeah. I'm procrastinating going to the library... Thanks for the distraction!

jvanick · Posted: Feb 15, 2004 3:18 pm Post subject:

Bizzerker:
Did you do the turkey frier method to get the lead melted into the pvc?

What did you use to wrap the pipe with? It looks really great...

BTW, Here's some of my home made lead weights... I'm up to 800 pounds melted and ready for next year.

-J

CHiLi DaWg · Posted: Feb 15, 2004 4:15 pm Post subject:

Those lead weights are slick Bizz!!!
jvanick, yours are killer too! Is that Bizz's design?

jvanick · Posted: Feb 15, 2004 6:03 pm Post subject:

Nope, I came up with the PVC concept last summer... Although, we could have come up with the idea completely seperately...

his idea of coating/covering the outside is very cool... I still want to know how he's keeping his pipes from melting though. My method with the tape works, but isn't as
easy as I'd like it to be.

---J

jeffrey_25 · Addict Joined: 05 Oct 2003 Posts: 811

Where can you buy lead?

jvanick · Posted: Feb 15, 2004 6:23 pm Post subject:

I got mine from tire shops... they usually have it sitting in a 5 gallon bucket mixed in with all the clips and other junk...

a 5 gallon bucket is about 150 pounds and they typically ask for $10-$15 for it.

I was lucky when I got my new tires mounted last time, they gave 4 full buckets to me for free...

You may have to go around to find shops willing to sell it to you... offically they're supposed to turn it into a licensed lead junk dealer, but since you're walking in with cash and you're doing the work to take it out of there, the smaller shops will give it to you.

--J

jeffrey_25 · Addict Joined: 05 Oct 2003 Posts: 811

And how do you go abouts melting it?

jvanick · Posted: Feb 15, 2004 6:36 pm Post subject:

Get a turkey fryer from your local hardware store
a 2 or so quart cast iron or stainless steel pot
a slotted steel salad or pasta spoon (you want this to be large) attach a piece of wood or something to the handle so you can be far way from the fire/lead
some kind of pipe to use as a handle (I used a piece of 3/4" conduit that I flattened with a hammer until I could use it as an extension on the pot... (you want to keep your hands away from the boiling lead) make sure that you can actually pour the lead out of the pot using only the handle extension

put a bunch of wheel weights in the pot and wait until they fully melt. Try not to breath too much of the lead fumes... use the spoon to clear off the slag on the top of the pot (the clips and other junk will float to the surface). Then pour into the wrapped PVC pipes... Make sure you build a support to hold the pipe up while you're filling it.

BTW, melting the lead stinks pretty bad, so if you're in a neighborhood, the best time to do it is in the winter... first, the lead will cool quicker in the pipe, and second, everybody's windows are usually shut, so they won't complain about the stench.

I had everything except for the pot, spoon and turkey fryer... total cost was about $50 for "tools", another $30 or so in pipe and endcaps, and then the lead...

way cheaper than 2 leadheadz...

PS. Do a google search on melting lead, or making lead ballast... there's lots of discussions out there about sailboaters making lead weights... and the techniques to do so.

--J

jeffrey_25 · Addict Joined: 05 Oct 2003 Posts: 811

A turkey fryer? What is that?

jvanick · Posted: Feb 15, 2004 7:13 pm Post subject:

It's like a gas burner that you attach to a propane tank.
all that you're really interested in is the burner... not the vat or basket or anything else.

lead melts at 600F...

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B0000CAQ0Q/qid=1076900873/br=1-15/ref=br_lf_k_15//002-0122731-2032043?v=glance&s=kitchen&n=697492

Sportster4Tec · Posted: Feb 15, 2004 7:30 pm Post subject:

How did you funnel the lead into the pipes? And i don't really understand the flattening of the pvc pipe to use as handle extensions on the pot. Thanks.

Bizzerker · Soul Rider Joined: 06 Oct 2003 Posts: 399 City: Wichita

jvanick,

We used a 5 gallon bucket full of ice water (you can add salt to it to lower the temp more, but we didn't need it). We usually poor in about 3-5 pounds molten at a time. The caps are a lot thicker, and once you've got those full of lead, let it sit for a little while in the ice. The lead in the pipe will get as cold as the water, and aid the new molten lead in cooling. And, yeah, we used something similar to a turkey fryer.

We used spray-on bedliner, and we're going to attach some webbing to the white spots that we didn't paint so they're easy to carry.

One thing everyone needs to know about this is that LEAD GIVES OFF TOXIC FUMES, EVEN IN SOLID FORM. You should never store it indoors, and you really should use a fume hood similar to those in general chemistry labs. If not, fashion something. You won't feel the effects immediately, but it's progressive, and you could develop some nasty side effects further down the road. Plus, if there's any oil or sludge on the weights, you'll be breathing that in too.

I guess we both thought of the same thing without any collaboration. The PVC idea just felt right. I think we've got you beat on the price, though. We've got 400 lbs for free thus far, and it's looking like the next 400 will be the same!