MN/NM Newbie

[Underblog]

What a great resource you have here! The challenge will be finding the information I need.

I recently bought a boat-access-only cabin in Northern MN, and folks up there are telling me that a 'toon is the way to go. Certainly we can look forward to hauling stuff out to the island for the next couple of summers.

I am going to look at a used one at the local boat guru's shop in November; aside from the obvious (size, motor, overall condition), what should I be looking for in a used pontoon boat? We won't be pulling any tubes or skiers, and since the island is small no more that six people at a time.

[HandymanHerb]

Welcome, Glad to have you with us, so tell us what size lake are we talking about, if it's a small lake a 20 to 22 foot may work for you.

[Underblog]

From the MN DNR website, here is the info about the lake. I know that most of the lake is in the 40-50 ft deep range.

Lake Area (acres): 7313.74
Littoral Area (acres): 1478
Maximum Depth (ft): 126
Water Clarity (ft): 22.2 (20-25)

Over 100 islands of various sizes on this lake, ours is on the west end:

http://files.dnr.state.mn.us/lakefind/d ... 245010.pdf

[Thin Ice]

Welcome to the club.

Dont underestimate the importance of the motor, it can be a very large portion of the boats overall value and the largest expense shall you need repair or replacement. I dont know what you like or what you expect from a pontoon so you should research as many topics/threads on here as you can to educate yourself. As for opinion, I would never get another pontoon with carpeting..... Vinyl flooring only for me next time....Thats just

Good luck in your search

[Underblog]

Thanks for the comment about the motor. I was given the same advice by a pontooning boat friend of mine on the same lake. He's got a 90 and he says not to skimp.

What is the problem with carpeting? I would think that vinyl might get a little slippery!

[bassn386]

Other than hauling stuff out to the cabin you didn't mention whether or not you'd be fishing from the toon. If so, you'll want a good size trolling motor. Knowing it can get kind of windy, I'd be looking at a 24 volt, 80# thrust as a minimum, with remote control. I've never had a remote for my trolling motor for my bass boat, but from some of the comments I've read on this forum from those that have one on their toons, they'd rather lose a body part than not have the remote.

If you buy a used toon, other than the usual items on the boat itself (decking, upholstery, cover and top, logs), make sure you take the boat to a reputable marine mechanic to have the motor checked out. A compression check, especially on older model 2 strokes, is essential.
Good luck!

[ROLAND]

underblog... welcome to the group... about the vinyl flooring.. we ordered our toon with vinyl instead of carpet because we use our toon for fishing trips and we didn't want the carpet to get nasty from dropped bait, fish, and just general foot traffic.. The vinyl they use on pontoon boats is not like the old "kitchen" vinyl... it has a slight texture so it's not the least bit slippery.. I like it because you can wet it down, put a little soap down and scrub it with a stiff bristle broom, rinse it off and it stays nice and clean. as for the size of the boat, our's is a 20 footer and it's very comfortable with 4 to 6 people... over that it starts getting pretty crowded... if you plan on carrying 6 or more on a regular basis I would consider a 22 footer... as for motor, depends on what you want.. as someone else mentioned, the bigger the faster.... and the more expensive.... we only have a 75 hp - top speed with 2 people on board on a smooth lake is about 23-24 mph.. fast enough for us, but I would recommend getting as much motor as you can afford and that your boat is rated to have... toons are great..... stable, comfortable, very relaxing... good luck with your purchase.

[Thin Ice]

Thanks for the comment about the motor. I was given the same advice by a pontooning boat friend of mine on the same lake. He's got a 90 and he says not to skimp.

What is the problem with carpeting? I would think that vinyl might get a little slippery!

I do not know first hand of the benefits of vinyl other than what I read on most posts here. I can tell you that my 30 oz marine grade carpet looks awful. Even with routine cleaning and care, it just doesnt hold up to water, and Ive only had my boat for 2 1/2 seasons.

Fortunately, i am in the floor covering business and my plan next season is to remove the carpet and install slip-resistant vinyl plank or tile with an antimicrobial, pressure sensitive adhesive. Im not sure how the vinyl will hold up but Im almost positive it will be better than the carpet.

[Bamaman]

If you're in MN, you're close to the largest pontoon dealer anywhere--T&M Marine in Grand Rapids. See their website T&NMARINE.COM for great info.

They buy dealer closeouts and overstocks from manufacturers--and can sell cheaper than other dealers. We're talking hundreds of units in stock, including trades.

This is where I'd start.

[Underblog]

I went ahead and pulled the trigger on a used 1985 16' Liess pontoon with a 25hp Johnson. Nothing fancy until I can afford to spend more time at the cabin and the water.

I think it will be sufficient for getting out to the island and back.

[ROLAND]

Congrats on the new boat!.. Boat's don't have to be "fancy" to be enjoyable... Mine's a relatively new boat ( 2 years old this month ), but it's a stripped down version with just a few bells and whisltes...only has a 75 on the back end, but it gets us where we want to go with no issues and we use our 90 % of the time for fishing... don't forget to post some pics....and again congrats on the new toon.