Session boats

polkaking27 · Outlaw Joined: 31 Jul 2004 Posts: 142 City: Vancouver

Does anyone own, or know much about session boats. Quality, Wake, features, price, etc... I am looking into them and just haven't heard much about them. Thanks

Mobe789 · Posted: Oct 29, 2005 10:48 pm Post subject:

ive HEARD, that the 2003's have had many problems, alot of little things broke on that years boat, but the 04's and up, are great boats. great wake. we were gonna buy a 2003 for 24,000 with 606 hours.

polkaking27 · Outlaw Joined: 31 Jul 2004 Posts: 142 City: Vancouver

yea... that is kindof what I have heard, the first couple of years were kindof rough. I am wondering about the new ones? Did you end up getting the 03?

Mobe789 · Posted: Oct 30, 2005 7:22 am Post subject:

no, we ended up getting a mobius for 5 grand more, with 606 less hours. the 03 had an amazing wake though, with no ballast. it just had alot of broken stuff on it, and we heard some bad things about the '03s

polkaking27 · Outlaw Joined: 31 Jul 2004 Posts: 142 City: Vancouver

Well its good to know that they got the bugs out after 03. Anyone else know much about Session Boats???

andy mogg · Posted: Nov 02, 2005 4:28 am Post subject:

They look really cheap, I´ll tell you that much!

joe navy · Criminal Joined: 18 Apr 2005 Posts: 90 City: Camden, N.C.

polkaking27,
There is a guy on this site named ajwaker who had a session he was selling at one point. You should pm him and get his thoughts on the SESSION boats.
He is in the florida area

polkaking27 · Outlaw Joined: 31 Jul 2004 Posts: 142 City: Vancouver

Joe,
I'll check that out... thanks!

ajwaker · Outlaw Joined: 01 Oct 2004 Posts: 112 City: Deltona

Ajwaker here. A bud has a 2003XI and he has no real issues. The one nagging problem though is the ballast pumps. He never uses all the stuff in that media center, but it looks like it could break easy.

I have a 2004SI with @ 98 hours. The only issue/ problem was with the Merc engine. I had to replace the idle air controller.

I am going to keep my boat. After looking around, I don't think I could do any better wake and handling wise.

Here are some pictures from my friend's 2003 XI.

polkaking27 · Outlaw Joined: 31 Jul 2004 Posts: 142 City: Vancouver

AJWalker
The Wake on that 3rd Pic is HUGE, how much weight was in there and how fast were you going. Can you tell any difference of wakes between your si and your buddies xi.

Chocolate Sauce · Guest

is that a dd?

Mobe789 · Posted: Jan 05, 2006 1:46 pm Post subject:

Chocolate Sauce, noo, its a big, big v drive, that hump you see in the picture, is the v drive hatch, it goes up because on alot of session they put flat screen tv's, and an entertainment system in that. its pretty tight.

the wakes on these boats are great, they are big with very little weight in the back.

pilot_ryder · Posted: Jan 06, 2006 6:20 pm Post subject:

i dont understand why you would put a tv in your boat because most of the time you cant watch it because your riding or driving, "its 7 inces big", and the sun would shine on it and make it hard to see
does anyone have a tv in there boat?

Mobe789 · Posted: Jan 06, 2006 10:48 pm Post subject:

pilot_ryder, not alot, but some people actually have a tv in thier boat, many people ride, get it on camera get back in the boat, and watch it Very Happy

, some people have lcd screens on the tower that are quite small, but i believe that the tv in the session is a 13 inch flat panel display, with a dvd system or so called "entertainment" system.

some people take the boat out at night, with friends just to watch movies, some people watch football, if they have the right equpitment. But most of these tv's are surprisingly clear, and do a great job handling the sun.

pilot_ryder · Posted: Jan 07, 2006 1:49 pm Post subject:

i can see at night watching something but like you said the tv's in the tower they are like 7 inch tv's and those are the ones im talking about, i think the sun would shine off them and be impossible to see thats why a 13 inch 1 would be good somewhere other than the tower. i have a portable 7 inch dvd player and i have trouble cathing all the images when its a foot infront of me!

ajwaker · Outlaw Joined: 01 Oct 2004 Posts: 112 City: Deltona

Thats my wife in the 3rd pics. Stock ballast @ 920lbs. Four tanks, two in the back, one midship and one in the bow. I think we had four or five people in the boat. My lake isn't deep @ 10-13 feet deep, too. It will get bigger on a deeper lake. The 2003 XI and 04 SI are different. 03 wake is steeper and bigger with less weight. In 04 they pull more lift in the hull, so it made the wake less steep more ramp increased landing zone. This also decreased to size of the wake, but improved handling alot. My lake is small and the 04 is the only V-drive boat I can easily!! drive a good D-Up with. I usually run my boat 04 with @ 1500lbs.

-Cheap- Remark- From Germany- Has this guy seen one in person or in a picture?

I can tell everyone the boat is built well and is holding up great. These boats are built by Regal Boats in Orlando, Florida. I have owned other ski boats; 99 Moomba and 2001 Malibu. Both boats I bought brand new, same has the SessionSI. So, firsthand I think I have a pretty good idea about the build quality. I will tell you my RED gelcoat is not fading like a Malibu or MasterCraft. I kept my Malibu in a garage and the red still faded. The Session has been outside for over a year and still the red looks great. I have to say the Malibu interior is nicer and the vinyl feels a little thicker, but the Session interior is holding up great with no issue. On my Malibu, which was stored inside, it was starting to stain and fade. The Malibu had @ 200 hours and I don't have kids. Kids seem the be rougher on the interior and spill stuff thats just my opinion.

SMCboarder · Outlaw Joined: 09 Aug 2004 Posts: 111 City: Copperopolis

We purchased the first model of the Regal Session years back (shown above) and overall I think it was a great investment

Pros
-This boat puts up a great wake, with just the four factory ballast tanks it came with and just a few people. Every year we get skeptics who own Mastercrafts, Natiques, etc... and all of the riders who finish a session never have any complaints.
-The seating style and entertainment system. People ask me all the time whether or not I actually use the television, or if I like how the seats almost all face backwards. Yes and Yes. The entertainment system is awesome, watching dvds at night in the middle of the lake with a few beers is damn near impossible to beat, and the stadium seating keeps the focus of everyone in the boat on the rider and the two seats in the far rear are always the first to be snagged by people in the boat.

Cons
-We've have quite a few electrical mishaps over the past few years, pumps, ballast switches, battery failures, and having to reprogram the surround sound are all things that immediately come to mind.
-The only other complain I can think of is that some people who havent logged as many hours on our boat think the handling is very slow, and have problems docking, steering etc....for me compared to most other boats, it does make a little bit wider turns at slower speeds but thats probably due to the fact that its a 25 foot heavy heavy boat.

Thats just a little bit of information, if you want more, let me know. Back to work now.

Mobe789 · Posted: Jan 09, 2006 6:15 pm Post subject:

ajwaker, i may very well be wrong, but i don't think session is made by regal anymore. I think that Session, is its own company these days. not 100% sure though.

ajwaker · Outlaw Joined: 01 Oct 2004 Posts: 112 City: Deltona

Mobe789, You are correct. After the 2005 boats Regal quit making the boats for Session. Session is a brand of its own. Regal sold off the Session name/brand after the 2003 boats, but agreed to built the boat through 2005. The owner of Session is starting to built the 2006 boats in Orlando at the old Gambler boat factory I believe.

polkaking27 · Outlaw Joined: 31 Jul 2004 Posts: 142 City: Vancouver

Ajwalker-

do you prefer you SI or the XI that your buddy has?

ajwaker · Outlaw Joined: 01 Oct 2004 Posts: 112 City: Deltona

Thats a good question. Sometimes I wish I had the 2003 XI for its killer wake. If you have a chance to ride behind one of these boat you will know what I am talking about. I also really like those backseats on either side of the engine. When I am not driving thats were I sit. With the 2004 SI, I add more weight, but the wake will not get as big period. Now, why I like the 2004. I like the ramper wake and increase landing zone on the downside of the wake. I have bad knee and ankle and this type wake is easier on me. With the 04 you can go slower and have a clean wake way back. The 03 you need to go 1-2mph faster. Second, the 2004 SI handles better in my small lake were I have to make fairly tight double-ups. Please remember this is a 22FT/ 4,000lbs boat. Third, I like the interior layout better. It feels more open and your not stepping on someone to get out. The 2003 XI you have to crawl or climb over the boat to get out back and in. The 04,05 XI they changed the layout so its not as bad.