Pontoon Boat & Deck Boat Forum

Hey everyone.

Am just getting started at looking for a pontoon. We currently have a SeaDoo Speedster, and want something bigger and more comfortable to just lounge around on and entertain. Not looking for anything fancy. Just something to play with here on the local lakes of Arizona.

I have found one that I think I really like, but would like a little feedback. I like the SunCruiser GS202. It seems to have all the amenities that I would need and seems to be fairly reasonably priced. Does anyone here own a SunCruiser GS series? Anybody have an opinion on SunCruiser in general?

I have been looking at used boats, but don't see anything that really catches my eye. In addition to wanting too much for them, many of them are just not in very good condition.

Heres a link to the one I like. http://www.suncruiser.com/showroom/valu ... /gs202.php

Regards,
Bret

It is made by Lowe which s one of the oldest boat builders around.

lakerunner wrote:It is made by Lowe which s one of the oldest boat builders around.

Think Brunswick owns them now..........should be a well made boat
http://www.brunswickpontoons.com/suncruiser.html
doc

I have a Lowe Suncruiser 20ft. Trinidad....pretty much the same boat as yours but not the angler model. This is my first pontoon boat and i'm very happy with it. I have a Merc 60 4 stroke which is only good for about 16 with two on board. Get more power if you can. Although the website says 60 is the max for that boat....mine can take a 90.

Only other thing is the 23 inch logs don't do so great with more than about 6 on board. Last week i had 5 adults and 3 kids on board...with that much weight it got a bit low in the water and i had to slow down real gently so the front didnt plow under....

As long as you wont regularly be carring lots of friends i think you'll be happy.

Any other brands I should look at? I am looking for a basic boat that is a good value.

Look at Tracker Signature series. These are pretty good toons.

Yep tracker would be a good one to look at. Still like the bentley for the money. May be called encore now.
doc

BretAZ wrote:Any other brands I should look at? I am looking for a basic boat that is a good value.

A couple of brands come to mind, Tracker is one to look into for sure. I'm partial to Bennington, but thats only because I have one. It's a 2o SFi model, one of thier cheaper models without alot of the bells and whisltes, but I did get it with 25" logs and a 75 horse 4 stroke yamaha which up'ed the price alittle. Just curious, in the listing for the boat your considering, did that price include a trailer? Didn't see it listed, also I believe that particular boat for that price ( which is great by the way ) comes with a 25 horse motor. That's pretty small for a toon, so you might want to think about upgrading if you can. My benny is a 20 footer rigged for fishing and has a vinyl deck instead of carpet. I would highly recommend vinyl, especially if you're going to fish off of it, not to mention all the crud you will track on board just in general use over a summer. Vinyl cleans up easy and looks new after every cleaning. Just my opinion.. Good luck with your boat shopping.

thank your governor for me.

FloterBoter wrote:thank your governor for me.

AZ Governor?
I second that!

I Third that as well

Thanks for all the responses guys. I am not going to rush into anything, I never do. It will probably be a while before I pull the trigger on anything, but will be doing alot of research in the meantime. I will check out all the suggestions and will probably ask alot more questions.

The boat in the ad I think is a 25hp, which seems small to me. I was thinking a 40hp minimum, but would really prefer a 60. I thought it was interesting that one of the dealers I spoke to in CA stated that they could only sell me a 25hp because of the laws??? The trailer is seperate, and quite expensive. Did any of you purchase your trailer from someone other than the dealer? Some of the trailers that the boat dealers sell are expensive and really don't seem to be of very good quality.

When looking for a boat, is there anything I should look for, or stay away from? I know I want a 4 stroke. What about the pontoons, should I look out for any type of material, or construction? Also, what about warranty work? Does the motor have a seperate warranty from the boat? IE if its a Mercury can any Mercury dealer do the work on the engine?

I will let the governor know you guys support her!

Hell yea let me 3rd it , you have a great Governor

if you might change the motor, check the rating on the transom.

I stopped by Cabellas yesterday to just look around. They didn't really have many boats. I heard that they are not going to carry Lowe products anymore. They did have a few Monark. I couldnt believe the condition of these boats. Not only were they filthy dirty, the carpets had stains, the seats were burned from the sun on top and were cracking. Some of the red boats were fading. I don't know who would buy these. They were really bad. Honestly, they looked used and abused.