New to pontoons and boating

[kaptap]

Yesterday we rented a pontoon boat for the first time and the kids had a blast. We went to a dealer today and quickly saw how pontoon boats can be $25K and higher. I saw adds from Bass Pro Shops last week where pontoons were around $14K. Is it worth the 1.5 hr drive to Bass to look at those boats or are they not as good as Bennington and other brands we've seen online? We also saw at the dealer a Bayliner 217 Deckboat for $25K which has a lot of power compared to a pontoon, and the bayliner also had a lot of floorspace to move around. Any thoughts on a deckboat? We have 3 small kids under 6 so we want room to move around but also want something that will last and still provide excitement for tubing etc. with older kids. Since we hope to get into boating, I'm wondering if we should look for a less expensive model to try out this hobby that we could upgrade the engine later or do we buy used, etc. Any opinions are greatly appreciated as I know NOTHING about boat monitors - do we buy inboard or outboard, 2-stroke or 4-stroke etc. I'll keep reading posts from everyone, but at this point my head is spinning and would like guidance. Thanks all.

[Snider4]

Welcome Kaptap,
You are following the same path we took a few years ago, we bought new and have made improvements since. Don't hesitate in looking around at toons, the time you spend in shopping will be benificial in your purchase. I bought on a budget and found the biggest and best I could find at the time, and we have only wished it was faster. I have no experience with deckboats, but can say a 20 foot toon with a 2 stroke 50 hp keeps my kids happy on the tube, ages 14 and 10. We have ample room to move about and for storage. My toon tows very easily, loading and unoading the toon is a snap. The 2 stroke for me is very easy to maintain, it mixes the oil and gas I just have to keep both tanks full ! Your family knows what they want to spend, look around at new and used and buy the best boat you can with the biggest motor possible.
Good luck and keep us posted.

[jmiliz]

Just bough my first boat last week. A new 22ft toon with 90HP 4 stroke. I looked at everything, new and used but in the end decided to spend more on a new boat because I know nothing about boats. If something goes wrong I wanted a warranty (motor came with a 5 year warranty) and ability to call my dealer and say, here, fix it. My friends all tried to talk me into a used boat and the savings can be huge, but they have owned for years and are all mechanically inclined. They know how to fix engines and rebuild toons themselves but I do not and do not have the time. Maybe after a few years of owning I would be comfortable buying used but right now I do not even know how to determine if a used boat is in good shape or headed for troubles the minute I buy it.

[smltooner]

Hi kaptap.............welcome to the club.
You will definately find the answer you need here.
It IS worth your time to drive 1.5 hrs to Bass Pro to look at the SunTrackers.
They are nice toons. We love ours.
Good luck with your search.

[JohnO]

Hey kaptap!!

Welcome to the board.

Don't get into a hurry to buy a boat yet. I know you want to be on the water yesterday but take the time to figure out just exactly what you want. I shopped for my boat for years (we had some health problems that delayed things) But by the time I was ready to buy I knew more about the boat than my dealer did. This site (and the other one) were huge helps. read everything

1st step is to decide what you mainly want to do. If you're just going to cruise and play than a livewell would be unnecessary. But if you're going to do some fishing also a livewell would be needed. Know what I mean?

I wanted a boat that would do everything so I got a Manitou Osprey Pro SHP with a 175 Yamaha 2-stroke. It cost a bit more but it handles like a runabout and has more than enough power top pull skiers and tubes. PLUS its a fishing pontoon so I have two livewells and 4 fishing chairs. Plus I got teh double bimini and replaced the front two fishing chiars with the reclining luxery model. So I have a boat that does all I could imagine asking of it.

I have a two-stroke and have been very pleased with it. Only problem I've encountered so far is that the engine is too quite. I sometimes have to look back to see if it is running. I've heard good things about the fourstrokes also. I don't think there is a bad motor made today as long as you stay with the big names (Evinrude, Mercury, Yamaha, Honda etc). I've read reviews that rated one or the other higher, but then other reviews go the other way.

Get as much motor as you can afford. It's much easier to get the big motor as part of the boat deal than it is to add a 15-20K motor later. If you do not get the bigger motor up front you will want it later.

The boats themselves are kind of separated into performance boats and grandpas pontoons. (for lack of a better term). Some, such as Manitou, Playcraft, etc have performance pakages (third log, different "hull" configurations etc) that give better performance. If just cruicing around teh lake at ease all day is your cup of tea than a two tube with a small motor may be fine. (But those kids will want more excitement as they grow older)

Even if you don't go for a performance package I'd suggest getting a third log under the boat. It will improve your ride, fuel economy and carrying capacity.


So go look at a lot of boats and figure out what you want to do. Then go do it.

Have fun and we'll see you on the boards (and then on the water)

[cwag911]

Welcome to the party kaptap. We have a Bennington 2275rl with a 150 Honda and 3 tubes. We love it. You'll get a better ride on a toon and have more space. Buy what you can afford and the most HP you can afford, you won't regret it. If you've already ridden in a hi-end boat, it'll make it harder to look at other models. My wife had the final say in our boat because she liked the seats the best.

[dockholiday]

Welcome
Can't add much to what has already been said. One thought, ask the dealer when the 2010 models come out and buy a 2009 once they are out with the new models. You get a new boat at a used price. Should be able to save thousands and still have the new boat warranty. Since the kids are around six you might could go with 90hp or less (don't say that very often) then when they get to the age of wanting to wakeboard, ski etc. then go with more hp or a new boat. That way you could enjoy the boat and get more familiar with boating during this time, so you will know exactly what you want in about 5 or 6 years. Good luck just a thought.
doc

[lakerunner]

Most likely the toon you priced had a 25 hp motor. Thats the bad thing about tracker their package starts with a motor barely able to move itself.

You need to get on their website and select build your boat. There you can see what they cost for real use. I recommend no less than a 22 ft with a 90 hp motor.

Check dealers for carryover toons. I know there are a lot of them around.

Good luck and welcome

[HandymanHerb]

Since no one covered deckboats, don't have one but have listened to those who did and seen a few at the dock.

They usually have less deck room, a rougher ride as they have a planing hull that will hit the waves, like any other boat, pontoons are a displacement hull and goes through the waves and don't rock and bob and bad a a deckboat.

Now the deckboat will be faster with the same engine because of the planing hull, best way is to go ride all of them and make sure to sit some where you get traffic around you and see the difference in comfort while just sitting talking and swimming around the boat.

Don't be in a big hurry, bum rides with people who have both types if possible.

Welcome by the way glad to have you with us, there's no dumb questions so just ask and we will do our best to help.

[mikeherb]

I have three kids aged 8, 7 and 5 and wouldn't own anything but a toon. You can get enough performance to tube and even ski (especially while your kids are younger) behind a host of pontoon boats available. That's on why I would buy a toon instead of a deck boat.

Two more thoughts for you to consider:

If you want the easiest type of motor to maintain then consider a 2-stroke. There is very little maintenance compared to a 4-stroke and they are lighter and typically have more torque than a 4-stroke. 4-strokes are quieter but many of the new 2-strokes are pretty quiet too.

Even if you are concerned about maintenance you can still consider buying used. Buying used takes more time as you want to find the best deal and a boat you trust. You said you have friends that know boats so take them along and have them help you out when considering your choice. They would probably love to help...who doesn't want to go look at a boat? I bought our boat in the fall of 2006 for $12,900. The boat was a repo that went through the auction line a few times before I found it on ebay. It was in my home town so I called a friend who knows boats and he was able to see it first hand, had them run the motor etc. It's been a great boat and we got a smokin' hot deal.

Good luck and keep us posted.

[curtiscapk]

Kaptap,

I never had a boat till last summer, we had been on my bro's toon for the last three summers, we bought a lake lot by his and my Admiral Paula said we need a toon. I looked and looked for a good used toon. Found one 150 miles away 20 footer 75 horse, as I have it on my computer screen coworker sees it and says I'll sell you mine for that (24 footer with 115 merc) So after questions and pics I go down and buy his toon. Pics of "The Floater" follow. I stole it for 4350 bucks but he stole it 3 years before for 2500 (estate sale). LOOK AND LOOK SOME MORE.

We love our old ass tracker check out the smile on my granddaughters face!!!!1

'

[farmington river rat]

Welcome Kaptap,
I had to wait several years for the kids to finish collage before I could make a move. This gave me plenty of time to do my homework. I found Ebay very helpfull. I added boats to my watch list to see what price they sold for and Ebay has LOTS of photos. This will help you decide what layout you might like.... rear gate or not...port gate or not(i needed a port gate)..in or out board etc.... When I finally got the green light I knew what I needed.
I read this and the other forum for a long time. There are a lot of people here who know a lot of stuff and like to share.

Good luck
Jim.

[badmoonrising]

Yep, worth driving to Bass Pro to check out Tracker pontoons. We drove over an hour to buy our Party Cruiser in June '06 and love it. So do all the people in the larger cruisers in our raftups who jump on ours because they are cramped in their boats

[lady on the lake]

I HAVE A NEW G3 PONTOON- 20 FT WITH A 60 HP 4 STROKE- LOVE IT- HAVE TAKEN 2 NEPHEWS TUBING AND THEY LOVE IT; PLENTY OF POWER TO MOVE THE BOAT AROUND AND PLENTY OF ROOM FOR EVERYONE AND COOLERS; G3 DEALER AND SUN TRACKER WAS IN VERY CLOSE PROXIMITY- I LOOKED OVER THEM BOTH VERY WELL; I LIKE THE G3- SOME SAY THE FOAM FILLED LOGS ARE BETTER (G3) AND SOME SAY THE HOLLOW SEGMENTED (SUN TRACKER) LOGS ARE BETTER; ANYWAY, I HAVE ENJOYED MY TOON! DO GET A 4 STROKE- SPEND THE EXTRA MONEY- BETTER ON THE ENVIRONMENT AND BETTER FUEL CONSUMPTION- I RODE AROUND ALL DAY FOR 2 FULL DAYS AT LAKE GREESON, ARKANSAS AND ONLY USED 1/2 TANK.