Yamaha factory tour report (It was Awesome)!

[Eric Ballard]

Hey guys, just got home from touring the Yamaha boat factory in Vonore, TN. This is not something they normally do but since I had a 242X on order they allowed me and my family in to see the operation from start to finish. Unfortunately I was not allowed to take any pictures until the end of the tour where we posed in front of a "mostly" finished 242X ready for it's lake test (man that stereo rocks).

Anyway, overall impression is that everyone there is super excited about the product that they produce and they have one of the lowest employee turnover rates in manufacturing. They put a lot of effort into making it a good place to work which results in happy employees who are good at what they do. That said, robots spray the gelcoat into the mold and then the fiberglas layer is put down with "chop" guns that spray fiberglas, resin, & catalyst down at the same time. This mixture is rolled and smoothed by hand to ensure no bubbles. There is a great deal of effort put in to ensuring that each hull will last a lifetime. After this step the hull is mated to a deck, and closed cell foam is sprayed between the 2 to ensure your boat will never sink (even if filled with water). This is where the next robots take over and in 15 minutes they drill over 300 holes & cutouts. Next all the hardware and wiring gets installed in the 2 remaining halves of the boat before they are mated in final assembly. GREAT care is taken to ensure each engine/jet pump combination are precisely mounted to ensure a no vibration assembly. They actually test mount each and remove before final installation. Really wish I could have taken pictures of the whole process...way cool. Finally watching the two halves of a 242 come together was almost magical. Didn't get to do a test run but we were on a 242X cranking the stereo just before it went out the door.

Final thoughts
Winterization: I think most guys emphasize winterization too much with these boats. The two plan foremen both have these boats and said ALL they do to winterize is rev the engines for 2-3 seconds and put Stabil in the gas. That said, they said to always follow the owners manual (go figure). As a matter of fact most boats are made during the winter months and are run in freezing cold water and then stored on a lot with nothing more than a short rev when they get out of the water.

SurfPointe: So what's the deal with SurfPointe? All they do to certify a boat with SurfPointe is to adjust the linkage to each jet slightly to make the nozzles converge. They won't say what that angle is but it wouldn't be too hard to do on your own with a little trial and error. In short any of the twin setups can achieve this without spending a dime.

Engines: All engines are built in Japan and fully assembled before shipment to the US. They are mounted in the boats and wiring harness connected...wala.

BIG SURPRISE SOON: When we asked about all the new construction around the plant they said that something very exciting would be revealed in the next 24 months. They couldn't say what it was but there is a lot of construction activity and a great deal of space being created. View attachment 69552

If I think of any other interesting details I'll update this post. If you have any questions fire away.

Where was your hidden camera.... you needed to be better prepared!

 

[Beachbummer]

How about a wide 27-28 ft with outboards towards both edges, to allow a swim platform between the outboards.

Or...a swim platform on top of the outboards like this
https
://www.allatsea.net/outboard-motor-express-cruisers/

 

[JKallay]

What’s this 230 sea trial you speak of?
Link?

 

[haknslash]

Here's the gelcoat and hull construction for those interested.

 

[MattFX4]

This is cool. A lot of the wake boat manufacturers invite guest in for tours. I spoke with the owner of Supra and he invited me to tour the factory in Tennessee. Neat to see Yamaha following suit.

 

[haknslash]

This is cool. A lot of the wake boat manufacturers invite guest in for tours. I spoke with the owner of Supra and he invited me to tour the factory in Tennessee. Neat to see Yamaha following suit.

When I was demoing the Moomba Max I asked them about that as well and he said the same for the Supra/Moomba factory in TN. They will also send pics of your boat being assembled once the gelcoat has been sprayed and the hull halves are put together. That's pretty cool especially when you spec one out just how you want it.

 

[MattFX4]

When I was demoing the Moomba Max I asked them about that as well and he said the same for the Supra/Moomba factory in TN. They will also send pics of your boat being assembled once the gelcoat has been sprayed and the hull halves are put together. That's pretty cool especially when you spec one out just how you want it.

Yep pretty cool. I’ve seen pics on Facebook of some of the wake boats being manufactured and they are small busninesses for sure. No huge factories with assembly lines.

 

[jethrof16]

Where was your hidden camera.... you needed to be better prepared!

I know, I thought they would have allowed pictures

 

[jethrof16]

How about a wide 27-28 ft with outboards towards both edges, to allow a swim platform between the outboards.

Or...a swim platform on top of the outboards like this
https
://www.allatsea.net/outboard-motor-express-cruisers/

Pretty cool setup. Might work for my future salt water live aboard

 

[buckbuck]

Here is that video. Most of the video is testing the 212X and its tower.

 

[Speedling]

(Opens savings account in anticipation)
I/ we have been contimplating upgrading but keep delaying in lieu of projects.
2 years or so is cool so i can buy a used one in 4!
Go fast boat about 26' with the 300 hp motors? I bet that would clear 65 mph, and make bimini a good bit easier if designed right.
We keep going from AR240 to go fast to cruiser. Then we just agree a 212ss is perfect for us right now so we don't do anything.

 

[Murf'n'surf]

I would not be surprised if they try to capitalize on the outboard AND I/O market. How cool would that be for Yamaha to enter the i/o competition?

 

[Beachbummer]

I would not be surprised if they try to capitalize on the outboard AND I/O market. How cool would that be for Yamaha to enter the i/o competition?

Interesting thought.

In the past they have used other established products to build boats around (mainly pwc powerplants) it would certainly be a departure from this practice, but also the market seems ready for some innovation in this area. Nothing new in i/o other than Volvo forward facing prop in a long time.

 

[swatski]

Here is that video. Most of the video is testing the 212X and its tower.

Oh, what a treat! thanks for posting, this one is hard to find.

I know for a fact 2016 AR240 models have not undergone that kind of testing from factory, lol.

And no, this is not the footage of @Betik crossing to Bimini in 2017.

--

 

[buckbuck]

I believe at 1:39 is where they break the tower. You can see it again at 4:20.

 

[Speedling]

My wife watched that and said no thank you. Lol she thought it was a bimini vid!

 

[Jebinok]

Bigger pumps and HP to suit, will be a plus with larger boats and i know it can be done, I cant remember the other pump mfg. I think Berkley in one and the others? the little jet boats races run v-8's so i know it can be done

 

[Matt Phillips]

Given Yamaha's reputation in the outboard market and how popular outboards are becoming, I wouldn't be surprised if Yamaha goes the 26-28' outboard powered overnighter. My other other idea is they may go after the pontoon market with something outboard powered...

 

[M@__]

They already own http://www.suncatcherpontoons.com/ and G3

Yamaha is a pretty boring company. That’s a good thing in my opinion, no surprises. No idea what their big secret could be though. Outboard sounds reasonable. Larger would be pretty easy if not over the top.

 

[Seadeals]

That video is sick. My wife said, “Is there a person on that boat? It makes me sick just watching.” And I was thinking Bimini crossing too...? Good to know I have not even come close to pushing the envelope beyond their testing. I was actually thinking a remote control system had to be in play after seeing that recent video of the inlet where the guy got ktfo riding on the bow through the rollers.