Hello from Florida

[freebird1963]

We don't have the boat yet. Been looking. Either they sell it before we get there or its not as what they say it was.
Hopefully its Karma looking after us till we get the right one .

Wifey use to go out on the pontoon her dad had all the time so shes anxious to get back in the water as now the 3yr old granddaughter is back living with us and we have a 2 yr old foster son that are both water lovers and she wants to take them out on the water.

What should I be looking at and for when buying a used Pontoon boat ? Any engines to stay away from ? Model boats ?
etc ?

Thanks and look forward to being on the water.
THanks
Mark
Semper Fi Devil Dogs

[HandymanHerb]

Welcome, come on in, the water is fine

[jeffybear]

Welcome to get best pontoon forum on the internet. Best of luck with your purchase. Here you can find answers to almost any question pontoon related and if it's not pontoon related we can always make things up.

[Ron Burgundy]

Welcome. What part of Florida are you going to be boating in...fresh or salt water?

[Bamaman]

You can make as much or as little out of a pontoon boat as you wish--they're pretty generic. Some have nicer seats than others, but they all remain pretty trouble free boats. All comes down to money.

All the major brands of engines are good--Yamaha, Merc, Evinrude and Suzuki. Stay away from any others. 4 strokes seem better suited to the pontoons, as most people don't run them at full throttle all the time--and they last longer and use less fuel.

Boat length is an issue--depending on how far you're going to have to tow it, the size of your tow vehicle, and if you're going to leave it in a marina. In Florida, I wouldn't want to leave it in the water all the time unless it was fresh water. Pontoons are not necessarily heavy, but their length and wind resistance makes them tow heavier than they actually are.

Motor size depends on what you're going to do with your boat--how fast you need to run. If you are going to have kids aboard, get plenty of horsepower to pull tubes, etc. The kids may be young now, but many people keep their pontoon boats for many years. (Mine is 26 years old.)

[smltooner]

Welcome to the club.

[freebird1963]

Salt Water. Gulf of Mexico. We were hoping to be docking at friends house on the river which was fresh but not gonna happen as they also just bought another boat so no room now.

The wife's son's truck will do the pulling. Big ol redneck 4x4.

What we talk about doing is hanging out at the island and bbq and swim. Go out and snorkle , little fishing and scuba. We won't get far enough out to go deep with the scuba but thats fine for now as its been close to 5 yrs since we dove so can just get back in the grove. When we want to go out real deep we will just go on a charter anyways.

Want it more as a relaxing sit back, get away from the house and stress and have a few beers on the water boat. Thinking of getting a jet ski again so that would be our speed demon fun.

Thanks for all the welcomes and input.
Mark

[Ron Burgundy]

What we talk about doing is hanging out at the island and bbq and swim.

What Island? We might be neighbors. Fiesta boats are popular down here.

[freebird1963]

The one right off Hernando Beach channel.. Not even sure if its got a name.
And hope to hit Anclote Key Island. Tho only been there a few times when I had the jet skis. In fact theres were the jet ski died on me. Had to be towed back in by the boater I went out with.

THanks
Mark

[Ron Burgundy]

Cool. Anclote Key is my hangout.



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[jlbutl]

Ok, you guys in South/Central are making me want to take a trip down there and hang out one weekend! The are looks great. Oh, and welcome aboard Freebird! These guys will set you straight when you find a boat and ask opinions. I, too, started looking for a good used boat, but ended up going new. Best I can say is keep an eye out there on all the forums, cl, etc and one will popup eventually. Just have to be ready to jump when it does! I missed a good deal on a deck boat because I wasn't ready to pull the trigger, but it did get me into a brand spanking new pontoon...

[freebird1963]

Thanks. I see alot of them. Cosmetic wise I think we could fix that but its the engine stuff that kinda scares me.
Just don't have enough knowledge on them to know whats good or bad and if its the right size to push etc.
Like a new one but that we can't afford right now. Wifes life insurance but there be alot of questions.

Thanks
Mark

[Ron Burgundy]

If you are buying used get a pre-purchase inspection by a marine mechanic. It should be in the neighborhood of $150, but they will check out the motor and everything else on the boat.

[freebird1963]

Thanks. How does that work. Do you haul it to the mechanic or does the mechanic come out to the boat ?
What if its in the water with no trailer ?

Thanks
Mark

[badmoonrising]

Call a local marine surveyor, they will come to any marina and do a bow to stern inspection.