Question:
I began my search for my next boat a few weeks ago and I have bounced around
all over the place. Of course, my wife doesn't want me to get one at all.;-)
However, she knows that I am going to buy one sometime before next spring.
She insists that I should get a pontoon boat if I get a boat at all. In
other words, "If you simply MUST get a boat, at least get one that I can
enjoy and we can fit a lot of friends on."
Pontoon boats aren't my thing. I would prefer a center console in the 15 to
21 ft. range. But I am open to listen. My use of the boat will primarily be
on lakes and rivers and some inlets like Fripp inlet near Beaufort, South
Carolina. I have seen lots of pontoon boats in these areas. I have never
been on a pontoon boat before, but to me they seem to be slow moving, slow
turning, giants in the water. They do look comfortable though. How are they
on fuel consumption, speed, etc? I have heard estimates from dealers ranging
from 22MPH WOT to 36MPH WOT with the same motor size and boat and weight
size. (20 footer w/75 2 stroke Merc) I have heard similar claims about much
bigger boats in the 25 to 26 ft. range. Another dealer told me a 115 would
only get a 22-24 ft. pontton boat to about 30 max, lightly loaded.
I don't know who to trust. I am no speed demon, but I want to be able to
pull the kids on tubes or even skis. I am looking for something that can
cruise at around 20-25MPH and go 30+ WOT minimum.
I really like the looks of the Bennington and Smokercraft as well as the
price.
I have looked at deck boats, but they weigh too much for my vehicle to tow.
My van can tow 3500 lbs.
I would appreciate any input on this, especially from people who have a
pontoon boat. I have lots of questions.
Answer:
-I have a 20' Harris with a 75 mariner. It runs out about 25-26 according to the
built in speedo. It seems about right. I am pretty light too, no furniture or
top. Just a glass center console and 3 poly boxes for gear. Mine cruises at
20-22 at a nice 2500-3000 that sounds better and is better on gas. It does seem
to hit a wall tho and more gas ain't much more speed.
I doubt any round pontoon would go 30 in the 20' class with a 75.
They are great for banging around in skinny water or general cruising in the
backwater but it ain't a ski boat or a speedster. They are very "wet" in rough
water.
-Part of the equation is the weight of the pontoon you are looking at. I went
with a 20' Landau Bandit pontoon. The Cruise model that I decided on weighs
only 1200#, the fish model was only1020#. That weight coupled with U shaped
pontoons should get the desired speed with a 75hp.My complete rig; boat motor
and trailer weighs in under 2000#. I am wanting to do approx. the same things
as you stated with my pontoon. I pick it up this Saturday and after that I will
know for sure. I did test a 24' with a 50hp and it did mid 20s.
The Benningtons are really nice but were kinda pricey compared to the boats I
was looking at. They are a very high quality pontoon. More and more pontoon
manufacturers are doing things to up the performance with different shapes of
pontoons and or adding fins or ridges to promote planing.
Don't let pre-conceived notions or non-pontooners comments prevent you from
checking into a pontoon.
-Careful -- styrofoam only adds additional buoyancy in the event of a rupture to
the pontoon. Otherwise a hollow (and therefore lightweight) pontoon will float
higher. Since any decent manufacturers installs bulkheads to make at least three
sealed chambers on each side, you'll have no problem getting home even if you
open one chamber right up. And what about minor leaks that cause that water to
soak right up and stay put
-What's the deal with the foam in the individual pontoons? Yeah or nea?
I've heard both stories from the salespeople, of course the argument
being the best for the type they happen to sell. "styrofoam adds
buoyancy" - I can certainly buy into that. But what about " the
styrofoam soaks up water, that's why our boat doesn't have it in the
pontoon"?
I happened to stop by four different new pontoon dealers today, none
of the boats have styrofoam in the pontoons. Others I seen do.
What gives? I thought all pontoon boats were required by law to have
styrofoam.
-There are about 20 pontoon boats in my little neighborhood and I don't know of
any of them that have styrofoam in them. I do know that it would be a pain in
the ass to get the water out of a pontoon if it had styrofoam in it and from
the fiberglass hulls I have seen with waterlogged foam in them I am not
convinced it is that great.
One question I have is who would want to weld up a pontoon full of foam? It
sounds like welding on a gas tank to me.
