Ready to Buy - Brand Thoughts?

[brianbo]

Getting ready to buy a new pontoon boat. Want to be in the 20-22 foot range and looking to spend $25k or less. Visited a couple of area dealers and looked at Sweetwater, Premier, and South Bay. Also considering Sylvan. Anyone have anyone opinions/experience good or bad with any of those brands. Will likely put a 60hp outboard on the back end.

Second question: What is people's experience with snap-in carpet. Seems like a great idea but wondering if the snaps/rivets will hold up over time without ripping the material. Any experience/thoughts on that?

Appreciate any input.

 

[The Rooster]

Re: Ready to Buy - Brand Thoughts?

I'd say it's hard to go wrong w/ any of the modern Pontoon manufacturers these days, Brian. Go for the floor plan & colors you really like. If that's going to be a Merc. 60 hp., make sure its the "Bigfoot" edition w/ the larger gearcase. Realize the 60 isn't going to provide much excitement for watersports, ie: tubing / skiing if you guys are planning that. I haven't heard of any real negatives concerning the snap-in carpet option. Seems like the best of both worlds. A relatively close, friendly dealer is always a plus for warranty / service work if needed. Good luck shopping. Let us know how it goes.

P.S. Where will you guys be boating ?

 

[lakegeorge]

Re: Ready to Buy - Brand Thoughts?

I agree with Rooster, most pontoons on the market are pretty much bullet proof. The only thing I would do is go with Yamaha. I have a Merc and I wish I had gone with Yamaha.

 

[brianbo]

Re: Ready to Buy - Brand Thoughts?

I'd say it's hard to go wrong w/ any of the modern Pontoon manufacturers these days, Brian. Go for the floor plan & colors you really like. If that's going to be a Merc. 60 hp., make sure its the "Bigfoot" edition w/ the larger gearcase. Realize the 60 isn't going to provide much excitement for watersports, ie: tubing / skiing if you guys are planning that. I haven't heard of any real negatives concerning the snap-in carpet option. Seems like the best of both worlds. A relatively close, friendly dealer is always a plus for warranty / service work if needed. Good luck shopping. Let us know how it goes.

P.S. Where will you guys be boating ?

We are in the Lincoln/Omaha Nebraska area. The 'toon will be used mostly for chugging around. We have a Crownline runabout we use for the watersports. Thanks for the input.

 

[brianbo]

Re: Ready to Buy - Brand Thoughts?

What is about the Yamaha that you prefer over the Merc? I've had Merc and Mercruiser before but not very familiar with Yamaha outboards.

 

[craigmack]

Re: Ready to Buy - Brand Thoughts?

We love our Sylvan. We had problems with the RPT tubes last season with the nose sections leaking. They redesigned them by adding bracing in the nose to stop the flexing so any new model will have it. I'm happy to report no leaks this season. I think they under estimated the forces the bigger engines put on them with the higher speeds. With the 150 we get 37 MPH via GPS which is actually down a couple MPH with the addition of the center toon (from what I can remember anyway). The tri toon is much more stable in the rougher water though, not as much flexing when going over wakes/waves. We generally cruise in the 3500 RPM range for best MPG at around 20 MPH. Regardless of brand you decide on get the double bimini. It make a world of difference in providing shade from the sun and protection when caught out in the rain.

 

[Dr. Evil]

Re: Ready to Buy - Brand Thoughts?

I know its not one you mentioned but I purchased a new 2013 Bennington 20SL, Hustler trailer, upgraded radio, 10' bimini, vinyl swim deck out back, carpet inside the rails with a YamahaT50 for just a shade over $20k out the door. Just throwing that out there for you to use for comparison since its a new, recent purchase. Good luck.

 

[lakegeorge]

Re: Ready to Buy - Brand Thoughts?

What is about the Yamaha that you prefer over the Merc? I've had Merc and Mercruiser before but not very familiar with Yamaha outboards.

They are more reliable in my opinion. We have the new 150 hp 4 stroke merc and the first one blew up as the dealer was testing it out. The second one on our boat will only get 5,200 rpm's ( book calls for 5,800 ) dealer & Merc rep tried several props and motor heights and they all ran the same rpm's and speed.
The 2nd merc on our boat broke down 1 time last year, this year so far it's running ok.

Our old pontoon had a Yamaha and it ran flawlessly.

 

[brianbo]

Re: Ready to Buy - Brand Thoughts?

Wow...that's interesting. Thanks for the feedback.

 

[cruzin24/7]

Re: Ready to Buy - Brand Thoughts?

We have a 2012 Xcursion RF with a 115 merc. on the back we love it. The snap in carpet is great, easy to install and remove no problems with the snaps. We did go and get a half enclosure for the toon and its the best decision we made. If its raining,cold or just bugs eating us alive we throw it up and enjoy the day/night. Good luck shopping

 

[Old Screwball]

Re: Ready to Buy - Brand Thoughts?

Surprised you didn't mention Tracker Pontoons. We bought an 18' Party Barge. Optioned the vinyl floors and a 75hp Merc. Biggest engine for the transom. Boat, motor, and trailer was $19,300 at Cabella's in Las Vegas. After futsing with propellers last season, we settled on a cupped 14 X 12 Michigan prop. Good for 26.4 mph (GPS) with 4 adults.

Good Luck, happy hunting.

 

[cak56]

Re: Ready to Buy - Brand Thoughts?

We just purchased a 220 Sunsation from Premier.It has a 115hp Yamaha.We have the rear lounge model. We love it so far! Shopping for stakes for cove camping. Good luck on the shopping. It gets so confusing. Many new ideas out there. Just get what makes you happy for your situation and desires. Get quotes from the brands you like. And if you like Harris, Costco will give you a no hassle price.We love our Premier! Happy Shopping!

 

[cak56]

Re: Ready to Buy - Brand Thoughts?

Just another thought,I loved the vinyl floor also. Ours came with carpet inside most of the rail area,but We were at the dealer yesterday, and I saw a boat with vinyl floor, and the snap in carpet was only in the helm and dining table area. It had a nice rolled edging on it. If the carpet went bad or wore out in this small area, it wouldn't be too expensive to replace I would imagine. Looked great too. Just a thought.

 

[newcomlr]

Re: Ready to Buy - Brand Thoughts?

Aluminum deck would be a must have from my perspective. My 97 Sun Tracker has aluminum deck and plastic seat boxes, but the console base is plywood and it's not holding up well.

 

[Bamaman1]

Re: Ready to Buy - Brand Thoughts?

Sorry you're getting some rambling opinions. If you want really good info, repost your question on pontoonforums.com.

1. You don't want less than a 20' boat (for seaworthiness) and a 22' boat is just slightly more expensive and worth the money.
2. The top brands are Bennington, Harris, Premier and Manitou. There are another dozen brands of boats I'd be perfectly happy with.
Bennington is the largest seller with about 20% of the retail market and their sales are increasing. The Forest River brands of boats are also seeing increasing sales (Berkshire, South Bay & Excursion). The rest of the retail market is flat.
3. Even the luxury pontoons/tritoon brands have budget lines of boats made just like their expensive boats.
4. Unless you're elderly, go for much more horsepower. 60 hp is boring. I suggest buying the maximum rated hp for any boat.
5. The 2013 sales year is essentially over, and any remaining 2013's or 2012's should be available at a good deal.
6. People that have snap in carpet generally don't keep the carpet in the boat. They usually run with just the vinyl flooring.
7. Go on to Boattrader.com and filter to 200 mi. around you. It's easy to get a feel of the retail market, and figure out who's willing to compete for your business with a fair price.
8. Buy a boat that suits your present AND future needs. Many buy too little boat/motor and are back a year later for a boat that better fits their needs.

I've had pontoon boats since 1985. I bought a Bennington 24' tritoon last year with a Yamaha F150 motor. A big tritoon will spoil you. Little did I know we'd have another set of young grandkids that will be into tubing shortly.