Pontoon Boat & Deck Boat Forum

Looking to get some insight from the experts here.

I am looking to buy a new toon primarily for fishing but still need to be able to pull a tube.

Do certain vendors have better resale? as this will not be my last boat

I have been impressed with Palm Beach and Premier. are there other Dealer's with similar quality and finish?

From what I have seen Dealers here in Minnesota aren't really giving discounts on last years models only like $1000 less then current years model. is this typical?

Thanks for your time.

John McCann
2004 Crestliner 1850 Sportfish
2003 Mercury 135hp Optimax
2004 Mercury 15hp Bigfoot Kicker

Hey John, welcome to the forum!
When I buy a new boat, I treat it as it "will" be my last. I get perty much what I want (not the wife). I'll tell ya what, I've looked at a lot of boats, helped build a lot of boats and have yet to find one (now days) that really sucks. They all have to meet National Boat Manufacturers and Coast Guard standards for durability and safety. So they are all in the game. Some have better fit and finish, options and all will say they are the best. The best thing I can tell you is hit a major boat show and just start picking them apart. You see things on one that is better than another. Look at the wiring, the controls, the steering. Pull the seat cushions, are the bases plywood, or plastic. Do they self bail. Look at the nosecones, the transom, the hats where the pontoons are mounted to the cross members. Talk to the rep and see what discounts are out there.
A pontoon is going to pull a lot differently than your Crestliner, can you pull it with what you now have?
All kinds of things to consider.
My personal preference? It has to have lots of cup holders and a spot to put a big ass cooler!
Good luck on your shopping! If ya need anything, this is a great place to start!
Bryan

IMHO Bennington has the best fit and finish and the best warranty, 7 years bow to stern.

Thanks for the replies pulling shouldn't be an issue I have a F250 5.4l 12,000 lb towing capability.

Yeah I have been to the St Paul Sportsman show, and the Minneapolis Boat show. one more show to go.

Bennington are nice haven't really seen any "fishing" models at the shows. The one I did see was overkill with 5 livewells lol.

Been doing what you have talked about digging into each of them to get the most bang for the buck.

Most of what I have been interested in are around 27k for 24 foot toon w/150 hp motor. Since I am pretty set on the setup of the 4 fishing seats and the small L couch for the wife

Going to go up to the tracker dealer this weekend as they quoted me a 24ft tritoon for about the same money.

Be sure to look at Manitou.

Also check out Premier.

We got our good deal at the Northwest Sportshow last year. It's coming up in a few weeks if you weren't already aware - http://www.northwestsportshow.com/

We really struggled to get dealers even willing to negotiate on price, hence why we ended up going with a 'boatshow' special.

We saw some Avalon toons that were set up pretty nice for fishing at the Tulsa Boat Show. You might check them out as well.

Bennington, Harris, Manitou and Premier are the big 4 brands, with many other good boat brands that are perfectly good, like Avalon/Tahoe, Berkshire and a dozen others. I would be proud to own any of them.

In retail sales right now, Bennington and Berkshire's brands are the ones with increasing sales. The other brands of pontoons are stable in retail sales.

I bought Bennington because of the fit and finish and the fact that they had 4 different model boats in every price range. And my wife told me that's what she wanted. They have a 7 year warranty "bumper to bumper", too. And resale is tops in the industry.

But you're doing right going to the boat shows. What catches your fancy will be right for you. Just make sure you get the biggest motor you can afford, and go tritoon with lifting strakes on the hulls if you can afford the stretch.

I went with a Bennington 24' SSLX tritoon with the 48" rear facing sun bed and a F150 Yamaha. It's good for 41 mph @ 6100 rpm's on top end, and gets pretty good fuel mileage. We've done some long distance river cruising.

Thanks!

We have looked hard at Premier, Palm Beach and Lowe. Did some negotiating with South Bay. We have the Northwest sportsshow in March hopefully have it all dialed in after that