New Member Kansas

[Kcsteve4]

Hi everyone.

I am new to pontoons but not to boating. My last boat ( Rinker 232 ) was destroyed when the storage building it was in caught on fire.
I am looking at buying a pontoon I have narrowed my search down to Bennington or Manitou. I have been reading posts in this forums and others and have a couple of concerns. It seems to me alot of people have problems with leaks in there pontoons. How common are leaks? Also are the tubes easily damaged? My home lake is Truman Lake in Missouri. In this lake there are areas that have alot of submerged trees. It seems that once or twice a year ( at low speed ) I will hit a tree I know this lake very well yet it still happens especially when trying to get to some of my favorite fishing spots. My question is would these types of encounters puncture or dent the tubes? With the fiberglass hull I would just kind of slide off with little damage other than a scratch or two in the hull.
I see alot of toons on this lake making me think damage is not a big problem, however I thought I would ask you experts.

Thanks
Steve
No Boat
Stilwell Ks

 

[lncoop]

Re: New Member Kansas

Hi Steve. Welcome aboard. A barge from either of those lines will be a great choice. There are two types of pontoon. The one that has developed a leak and the one that hasn't. Just kidding, sorta. Don't let all the leak posts scare you. First, leaks are somewhat common, especially on older barges, but they're also easy and cheap to fix in most cases and are rarely caused by the type of low speed collision you've experienced on your lake. Plus, if you buy a new or even newer rig your tubes will likely be under warranty for quite some time any way. So when you're ready pull the trigger with confidence, then show us some pics so we can all be jealous.

 

[EGlideRider]

Re: New Member Kansas

Hi everyone.

I am new to pontoons but not to boating. My last boat ( Rinker 232 ) was destroyed when the storage building it was in caught on fire.
I am looking at buying a pontoon I have narrowed my search down to Bennington or Manitou. I have been reading posts in this forums and others and have a couple of concerns. It seems to me alot of people have problems with leaks in there pontoons.

How common are leaks? Pontoon leaks are very uncommon.

Also are the tubes easily damaged? Easily is a relative word but I don't find them 'easy' to damage.

My home lake is Truman Lake in Missouri. In this lake there are areas that have alot of submerged trees. It seems that once or twice a year ( at low speed ) I will hit a tree I know this lake very well yet it still happens especially when trying to get to some of my favorite fishing spots. My question is would these types of encounters puncture or dent the tubes? Very unlikely at low speeds. I boated on a similar lake in Ga. for many years and hit lots of trees but never had any damage.

With the fiberglass hull I would just kind of slide off with little damage other than a scratch or two in the hull.
I see alot of toons on this lake making me think damage is not a big problem, however I thought I would ask you experts.

Thanks
Steve
No Boat
Stilwell Ks

And welcome to the forum. Buy either boat and you'll be very happy. And then ride them with same respect as you do other boats and you'll have no major damage.

 

[5150abf]

Re: New Member Kansas

Well, the tubes are hollow and fairly thin aluminum so yes they will get some damage if you hit something but being aluminum they will normally just dent a little but no more than any other type of hull and actually puncturing a tube would take a pretty good hit on something sharp, I have seen it but it is really rare to go all the way into a tube.

Leaks are actually not that common, noone is going to come to a forum like this and say "Hey, my tubes don't leak" so it may look like a big problem but really isn't.

Both the boats you are looking at are very good toons, look at warranty and build quality, don't be afraid to poke your head under the boat and choose the boat that you think will fit your needs best.

As a disclaimer I work for Bennington and we do build the best pontoon boat on the market but I am extremely biased.

 

[lncoop]

Re: New Member Kansas

As a disclaimer I work for Bennington and we do build the best pontoon boat on the market but I am extremely biased.

You may be biased, but I know that's what I'd have if I could afford one.

 

[curtiscapk]

Re: New Member Kansas

Steve,

I talked to you on the other forum. I only boat at Truman. I never sit when I am driving THE FLOATER I am always on the lookout for logs and stumps. Granted you can't see them all but in 2 summers I have not had any issues. My bro has been tooning on Truman for 13 years and he has only busted a prop. Toons have been fine.