MUST have Option

[LeoNCrissy]

My wife and I are preparing to purchase our first Pontoon, not first boat. Luckily for us there are about 80 manufacturers each with several dozen options to make it real easy.

We have narrowed down things like size and floor plan and are on to the options part. But, having never owned a Pontoon before and just being a bass boat guy where I don't need or want luxury items to catch fish we are not sure what the MUST have options are. So I'm asking the experts.

What Option did you pass on when purchasing your Pontoon that you wish you hadn't?


Thanks for the input folks!

[Bamby]

Would or could you throw us a bone? With such a vague question I can't fandom a reasonable response.

[ArkieBoater]

I wish I had gotten double bimini tops, instead of just a single. We are getting to the age where laying around out in the hot sun isn't as great as it used to be, and most of the time the front of the boat is in full sun. Of course if you are buying a pontoon for fishing, you probably wouldn't want the extra bimini.

[Bamaman]

You might also let us know if you're looking at 2 toons, 3 toons and size of the engine. Sure there are a bunch of brands of boats, but what brands do your local dealers sell?

In one way, pontoons are generic. But there's a difference in the quality of seating, fencing and how good the companies are.

I prefer Bennington, Premier, Harris and Manitou boats, but there are another dozen brands that are really good and I'd be proud to own. Luxury boat builders often have 3-4 models of boats from very reasonably price to very expensive and plush.

On my Bennington, I really like the extended rear deck. And I like the seating that has rear facing sun lounges behind the driver. Most come with upgraded driver's seat and I also like the GPS speedometer. Our lake is wide and deep, and I like a 22-24 foot boat with 115 hp or more to handle the big waves on big water.

[zoom650]

Give us a budget range too.

We can help you spend the hell out of your money.

[PlaynDoc]

Give us a budget range too.

We can help you spend the hell out of your money.

agree.

[mpilot]

I wouldn't give up my double bimini and full enclosure option for anything. In fact, when we were looking at boats there were a couple of manufacturers that either didn't put an enclosure of any type on the boat or were ridiculously priced and those manufacturers were eliminated from our decision process immediately. We live on the water and it really extends the boating season year round. Even if you don't want to use it year round it's great on those warm spring and fall days that have the cool nights. My favorite time of year to boat is in the winter because we basically have the lake to ourselves and don't have to worry about other boaters running you over.

[Team Bristow]

In Floor Storage. We don not have a spot to store anything that is long. Fishing poles, sandbar anchors, knee/wake boards, noodles etc...

[zoom650]

Another thought for you is go to the manufacturer's web site and build your ideal boat. At least you'll see what options are available to you. You can decide what is important that will fit in your budget.

I didn't leave too many options on the table when I ordered my boat, but if I could have a do-over, it would be horsepower.

[BobL]

....and just being a bass boat guy where I don't need or want luxury items to catch fish we are not sure what the MUST have options are.

Based on your above quote, my first answer is do NOT get carpet. Boat 1 had carpet, boat 2 had snap in/out (waste of $$), and my third boat was only vinyl. I will never go back to carpet and we don't fish out of our boat.

I agree with others on getting more info on what you are going to use it for (cruise, fish, water sports, all of the above), average # of people on board, big water or small lake, trailer a lot or keep on lift, budget, etc.

Not to be an ass but don't be short sighted with this purchase as I PROMISE you, it will be used a lot more than any boat you have ever had...my bet is that you will eventually wish you had more amenities once you see how much you use it.

[smoker62]

Third toon and big motor. Never again will I have a twin tube. Fine boats but just not my style . Double bimini, in floor storage, nice GPS mapping , no carpet, rear recliners.....

[wwind3]

Underskinning---and run rated horsepower

[jediger]

Love our in floor storage. A good gps fish finder for navigation. The half enclosure is great.

Wish I had: vinyl floors. 12v usb charger at the helm. satellite radio. 2nd battery.

Don't miss a front Bimini but I like to fish.

[LeoNCrissy]

Thanks for all the input thus far, sorry for the generic first post, but honestly it helped being generic so the answers were not pigeon holed to a specific make and model so we could keep out search wide open.

Here is what we currently have our eye on:

http://apexmarineinc.com/qwest/qwest-ad ... rt_cruise/

The three main reasons are, the layout, the size and the manufacturer, I like how the make just about all the components in house.

The size, is there is just the two of us, my son is 19 now and not here, but we do have a lot of friends and nieces and nephews, which is why the pontoon, current boat is max of three people, so some kids get left on the dock. But most of the time it will be just two of us, and the storage area is small. I spent today out the driveway working on it as we will be widening it to prepare for the pontoon arrival.

The layout is really what drew us to this boat, the fishing seats up front WITH the low profile rails that you can mount rod holders on and it still has the swim deck on the back.

The closest lake to us, and the one I am at the most is a 10 hp max lake, so by keeping it small I have the option of putting a 9.9 on it and not being too underpowered. However, the quote I currently have is for a 40 hp. Current boat Is a 9.9

Absolutely there will be nothing but vinyl, no carpet, the current boat I carpet and my buddy spilled his worm container in it yesterday and I about threw him over board, I hate the carpet.

Give us a budget range too.

We can help you spend the hell out of your money.

You sound just like my wife, minus the budget part. Our budget was 22k, but the current quote with the options we have is 27k, she said to sell the boat for a down payment and I laughed histerically at her. It also goes duck hunting, something the pontoon won't do.

We got a quote with the bigtime lighting package, is that needed I haven't seen anyone mention extra lights. Same for the minn kota anchor thing that raises and drops the anchor, I don't think we need that and no one has mentioned it.

Anyway thanks for the input thus far and the continued input.

[ralph]

The haves: Vinyl floor, 27"tubes

Wish I had: double bimini top and 2 batteries w/switch (getting them installed soon)