Pontoon boat owners
Who on here has a pontoon boat and what brand? Wife and I are thinking about getting one for fishing/cruising and I am looking for any feedback on pontoon owners.
Thanks in advance.
Thanks in advance.
0
-
I had a Sun Set Bay 18" with a 50hp Johnson 2 stroke. I had a Garmin GPS and a Nice fish finder along with a trolling Motor.
I think it was a 2001 and I sold it in 2011 mainly because I did not use it as much as my 17" fishing boat.
I had fun on it. I took my dogs and sometime the wife and cruised around on Falls lake(I live 2 miles away).
Plus and Minus:
+ Easy to tow and ramp with a 1/2 ton pickup or even a SUV.
+ Stable and fun on the water. Throw on a Grill and soem supplies and stay out for 2-3 days.
- Kind of a pain to store because they have a large foot print.
- Slow but mine got good gas mileage.
It was fun and I enjoyed it.0 -
We have a 23' Bennington with a 175 HP Yamaha outboard.
Love the boat. Got rid of a 21' Malibu Wakesetter (wakeboarding is probably long in my past at this point) and the sea-keeping of the pontoon boat is night and day over the wake-boat.
The 175 Hp motor is very quiet at cruising speeds (20 knots) and will get the thing up to around 40 knots. (It has a landlubber GPS and we have seen over 45 MPH when pushed.)
We bought one off the floor and it has three tubes. These do better in smooth water and small chop than the two tube boats, but if you are going to be cruising in water where you get 2' or 3' chop/swells, I would seriously consider a two tube boat. The lake we have ours on regularly has 2 - 3 foot swells and we have compared ours to a two tube boat and my opinion is that the two tubes do better in heavy chop as they cut through it better than do the three tubes.
We spend a lot of time on it. There are lakeside restaurants around the lake, and a 20 mile cruise for dinner followed by a 20 mile twilight cruise home is something we do almost weekly in the summer; something we would never do on the smaller mono-hull.
While ours is rated for 10 people, it is much more suited for 3 couples. The sound systems they put into these today are excellent, and after a few cocktails, it is not unusual to find us dancing to Benny Goodman as we meander our way back.
Lastly, take a good look at what is offered in the way of sun covers/biminis. We went ahead and got the full coverage type, and wouldn't consider anything else. 100% of the deck space can be shaded, which makes a world of difference when you find a small cove, drop anchor to sit a spell. Also, if you want the sun, it takes 5 minutes or less to stow them.
Hope this helps.
Didn't mean to pontoonicate for so long.0 -
Another Bennington owner here. Very well built boats! Pretty hard to beat the 10 year warranty also and they stand behind the product.
I have loungers in the front and fishing chairs in the back. It's geared more towards cruising vs fishing. My previous pontoon had fishing seats front and back and I much prefer the loungers up front. It's not any more difficult fishing out the front vs the fishing chairs. Imo pontoons aren't the easiest to fish out of anyway so I'm going to be comfy on the loungers if I'm fishing up front and when cruising there is no comparison on comfort between the chairs or loungers.
The one thing I strongly suggest is get large diameter pontoons! The difference in ride on a 2 log pontoon with 23" vs 25" tubes is huge! If you are looking at tri toons get the full center tube. Also get as much engine as you can afford the first time... you'll be glad you did. All the other options and frills are just icing on the cake.0 -
I have a 20' Lund with a Mercury classic 50 on it.
Hasn't been in the water this year, and probably won't be, as the lake a mile away is frozen over.
It's been a lot of fun, but with work schedules, don't get out much.0 -
Bennington was always my dream pontoon, especially the triple toon version[:p]. We've had a 24' Monark for years with a 150 Honda. Great boat. Nothing fancy but we enjoy the hell out of it. The key in my estimation is the motor. The Honda outboard sold me on the boat. Enjoy, they are alot of fun[^] 0 -
My parents have a 22? SweetWater. Outboard 60HP evinrude ETec.
Dad did a lot of research and is still pleased.0 -
quote:Originally posted by jkbt1
Another Bennington owner here. Very well built boats! Pretty hard to beat the 10 year warranty also and they stand behind the product.
I have loungers in the front and fishing chairs in the back. It's geared more towards cruising vs fishing. My previous pontoon had fishing seats front and back and I much prefer the loungers up front. It's not any more difficult fishing out the front vs the fishing chairs. Imo pontoons aren't the easiest to fish out of anyway so I'm going to be comfy on the loungers if I'm fishing up front and when cruising there is no comparison on comfort between the chairs or loungers.
The one thing I strongly suggest is get large diameter pontoons! The difference in ride on a 2 log pontoon with 23" vs 25" tubes is huge! If you are looking at tri toons get the full center tube. Also get as much engine as you can afford the first time... you'll be glad you did. All the other options and frills are just icing on the cake.
this is right on info! we are on the main channel of lake of the ozarks where the rollers are a consistant 3 fters. if your in rough water or think you will sell , get 3 toons and as big of tubes and motor you can swing.0 -
I work with several Canadian?s who have ?Tritoon? boats, all were previous Pontoon boat owners.
They have nothing but good to say about them. Some have over 200 hp engines and can pull multiple skiers or big inflatable toys, all are happy they upgraded and got an increase in use, stability and no loss of deck space.
Mule0 -
Saw one in the middle of Washington St last month, wasnt lashed to the trailer well. 0 -
We have a 95 18' with a 50hp fish and fun grumman that was my dad's
its fun to cruse around on and if you've got more then 3 folks wanting to fish its ideal.
But not real fun if your wanting to pull tubes with kids
dont use it much now and may be selling it next summer0 -
I had 24'Sweetwater that had 2-150 hp outboard motors on it. That thing got up and boogied... I could pull to big slalom skiers behind it no problem. Plus it was really nice when my friends and I took out our wifes out on it, they (the wife's, not my friends) would lay around in their Skimpy bikinis showing off their hot bodies[:p]
Before that I had 21' v bottom boat,although I liked it better than my pontoon boat, I got rid of it because of my wife. She wore a 34 double d cup bra and hers were boobs natural, so you could well imagine if the lake was choppy, after a few hours in the boat she would be hurting,[V]. Although I couldn't take my eyes off of her when it was,[:p] and neither could my friends[:(!].0 -
I'm a boater, but do not own a pontoon boat. Many of my friends do.
The Bennington seems to be the choice amongst those that can afford a little better. Most pontoon boat owners love them. easy on and off, comfortable seating, lots of room, etc....
I'd suggest as much power as you can handle. Running a big boat at 1/3 throttle is way more efficient then running it at 3/4 or full throttle most of the time!
The Tri-toons are getting more and more popular around here for sure!
However, what Don mentions about rougher water certainly is worth keeping in mind!
A local dealer had a big Bennington Tri-Toon on their lot last Spring with twin 400HP Mercury's on it!! $70,000+- in power!0 -
quote:Originally posted by remingtonoaks
I had 24'Sweetwater that had 2-150 hp outboard motors on it. That thing got up and boogied... I could pull to big slalom skiers behind it no problem. Plus it was really nice when my friends and I took out our wifes out on it, they (the wife's, not my friends) would lay around in their Skimpy bikinis showing off their hot bodies[:p]
Before that I had 21' v bottom boat,although I liked it better than my pontoon boat, I got rid of it because of my wife. She wore a 34 double d cup bra and hers were boobs natural, so you could well imagine if the lake was choppy, after a few hours in the boat she would be hurting,[V]. Although I couldn't take my eyes off of her when it was,[:p] and neither could my friends[:(!].
[;)][:D][:D]0
Please sign in to leave a comment.
Comments
13 comments