Pontoon Boat & Deck Boat Forum

I have a 2012 Misty Harbor 16' for fishing / putt putt rides. It has a the max rated 40 hp Honda 4 stroke, two batteries and two 6 gallon gas tanks in the rear. trolling motor up front, live well in the center. My issue is it seems to plow through the water and not plane. my top rpm is at 5000 with two people on board. That can go up to 6000 with prop change. I'm planning on relocating the two batteries up under the the two front fishing seats to help with balance. it has 23" dia tubes. One of my questions is how much would putting 25" tubes on instead of 23". I'm thinking it would raise it out of the water more, less drag. Then check the rpm's to get it close to 6000 rpm. From what I've been reading the third tube is more for "faster" pontoons. Would skinning the underside help me at all? It does seem that a lot of water does pound on the underside of the deck. We do like the small size to get places other may not and for maneuvering to retrieve stuck lures etc. Thanks, Kurt

I don't think with a 40HP engine that you will plane. It's just not enough power I don't think.

A third pontoon would still need more power I believe and larger ones should do much either, except for riding higher out of the water.

I have 27" pontoons with a 90HP outboard. After a certain RPM I plow through the water too.

Under-skinning will protect the underside deck and should make your ride a little less noisy.

I'm not a hull designer, but I doubt 25" tubes will make much difference....they will weigh more and the total weight of of your "toon" will increase...when you increase the weight, you increase the amount of water displacement your vessel will have and increase the amount of HP required to move your boat at the same speed it goes now....(I think)....

You might consider selling the pontoon in the future and buying a larger pontoon that might better suit your needs.

I cannot remember seeing any pontoons under 20' for a number of years on our lake. The larger toons just are so much more seaworthy when it comes to water sports and general cruising around.

I have an old Landau 18 foot with a 30hp Nissan 2-stroke. It's a canal cruiser/fishing boat. Top speed (by GPS) with 3 adults and full fuel (single 6 gallon tank) is a whopping 13mph. But considering the Erie canal speed limit is 10mph in open spaces and 6 mph in developed areas... the speed is fine.

I have a single battery in the stern.

At canal speed of around 7mph, when we're toodling along... if my wife walks from the rear couch to one of the front fishing chairs, the boat posture "flattens out" a bit and we pick up 1 or 2 mph. My pontoons are only I think 19" flat tops. The point is that the weight distribution makes a big and noticeable difference in these smaller and lower powered boats. You can't power it up onto plane like the bigger-motored boats can.

I want to add another 6 gallon tank and a second battery. The tank will go opposite the current one at the rear on the other pontoon.
The second battery will go inside the console. (a "starter battery" and an "accessories" battery.)
Eventually I'll add a third battery for the trolling motor that I haven't mounted yet at the front. That battery will go up front, off to port side to somewhat counterbalance my weight at the console.

So.... balance. Before you consider something as drastic as swapping out pontoons (and expensive!)... check the trim angle on your motor and try some balance adjustments. Very easy to do. Just have someone walk to different locations on the boat while under way. I did some walking around while we were moving (so.... nobody at the helm!) and found I could almost steer the boat by walking around to different places. It makes that much difference.

I'm going to keep one 6 gallon tank in the rear in the center. I'll carry a small 1 gallon can just for reserve.That will eliminate 30 pounds from the rear.That will lighten the load. I think I'm going to make battery storage under each of the front fishing seats. That will transfer about another 100 pounds from the rear to the front. I'll make those changes first and then see where I'm at. Thanks for the input.

Sell it buy something bigger why go to all the work of another toon??? would be cheaper in the long run