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Newbie Pontoon Advice

Posted: Wed Feb 07, 2018 8:58 am
by jwbsub
Hi all, just joined the forum. Excited about getting a new pontoon but I am new to this style of boat and I could do with some advice.

First some background. I am located in the western suburbs of Detroit. I am a long time boat owner, primarily great lakes with fiberglass fishing boats up to 26'. The wife and I have just moved into a lakeside home on a small 1000 acre lake and are now looking for a dock and hoist to go along with a pontoon. I am comfortable with fiberglass boats but have no idea whats important construction wise with pontoons. I have seen information on multi-chambered and foam filled logs; through bolted decks verses self tapping screws etc. What is important and what is meaningless promotional material?

We have decided we need an 18-20' fishing pontoon, there will be only us two plus dog most of the time, we want space for up to 6 adults on rare occasions, we foresee mostly have one other couple when we have guests (4 people). The smaller the better so 18' is the preferred size. We have narrowed our search to:

Qwest Adventure 818 VX Fish or 820 VX Sport Cruise
Bennington 188SF or 188SF3
Southbay 220F
SunTracker Fishing Barge 20'

All models with a 50 or 60 HP 4 stroke. Dealers for all are reasonably close to us. We prefer the Qwest for layout but like Bennington as a manufacturer. Bennington has positive reviews for quality but we find very few opinions on Qwest commenting on the construction and design quality. Owners seems to like all the boats we have listed. Dealer is going to be a big part of the selection and we have only experience with the Southbay dealer. We have not looked at the hoist or dock in any great detail yet.

Our plan is to not to purchase a trailer but have the boat delivered to our lake and rent a trailer if needed for service. Our budget is $25K for boat, $10K for dock and hoist. We are going to start going to the local boat shows to make our final selection, in order to prepare myself I could use advice on:

1) What do I need to look for construction and design quality wise for pontoons, hoists and dock.
2) Are there any other models I should consider?
3) Recommendations on good dealers in the Metro Detroit area.

Thanks

Re: Newbie Pontoon Advice

Posted: Wed Feb 07, 2018 9:11 am
by ron nh
I have a Qwest and love it, If you're ever going to take it on the great lakes don't buy a Qwest. They're smaller, lighter and not made for that. If you're sticking to that small lake Qwest will be perfect and you'll get more for the $ since they specialize in smaller boats. I bought a tri-toon with a 115hp top of there line loaded for $32,000. So if you buy a 2 tube for 25k you can load it up with everything. you'll be looking at there top line helm, flooring, seats etc compared to the others entry level. BUT I wouldn't buy another one since I'm in big water more often than I thought I would be.

Re: Newbie Pontoon Advice

Posted: Wed Feb 07, 2018 9:16 am
by ron nh
I also should say that I've been in the ocean many times and some huge lakes when I shouldn't have been for the last 3 years and have never had an issue with the boats quality or build. Haven't gone back to the dealer for anything and i'm very hard on it.

Re: Newbie Pontoon Advice

Posted: Wed Feb 07, 2018 9:33 pm
by jwbsub
ron nh. Thanks for the fast feedback. Definitely going to use the pontoon exclusively on our 1000 acre lake. Good to hear you have had a good experience with this toon. Like I said, I think they use the best layouts in the limited room of a small deck.

Re: Newbie Pontoon Advice

Posted: Thu Feb 08, 2018 2:31 am
by ROLAND
Jwbsub... welcome to the forum.. I think all of the boats you mentioned would serve you well... You mentioned one of them on your list is a bennington. That's we have and ours is rigged for fishing,which is something I thought you said you were interested in.. Ours is a 20 footer with a Yamaha 74 four stroke.. No not a huge / fast motor but it serves our purpose just fine and it sips gas. I probably wouldn't go below a 20 footer if you will have six on board from time to time... I think the most I have had on my boat was a total of 8 at one time and it was getting a little crowded.. I've also gone out numerous times with 6 total on board and that was a comfortable trip for all of us.. Our bennington is a 2010 model and we haven't had any issues with the boat to speak of.. I did have an issue with the trim motor on my yamaha last year... cost me $295 bucks to get her fixed, but that's been the only thing that's gone wrong. Like I said, you listed some nice boats there.. I'm sure you will be happy with whatever you decide on... good luck - boating season is just a couple of months away..

Re: Newbie Pontoon Advice

Posted: Thu Feb 08, 2018 7:44 pm
by NonHyphenAmerican
Given your specs, if there is a Suncatcher/G3 Dealer near you, I'd seriously look at one.

We like the one we have and it's been a good toon.

Re: Newbie Pontoon Advice

Posted: Fri Feb 09, 2018 3:17 pm
by Nate
I bought a Qwest two years ago and have been very happy with it as well. I like the smaller size for the lake we are on.

Re: Newbie Pontoon Advice

Posted: Sat Feb 10, 2018 9:04 am
by Gonefishing
I have an excursion which is made by the same company that makes southbay. I have had it 5 years now and love it. If you are only going to use it on your private lake 18 foot 50 hp should do you while. But if you have any plans to go out into any of the Great Lakes think hard on a 20-24 foot with at least a 115 hp. Toons are great for fishing most company have a fishing model and toons have plenty of room. The reason I went from a regular boat to a deck boat then back to a toon. They are great enjoy.

Re: Newbie Pontoon Advice

Posted: Mon Feb 12, 2018 3:22 pm
by bg5
I highly reccomend a coach tritoon. There is a dealership in you area that has a great deal and if you look on boat trader you will see it. Think you can get it for $40,000