Pontoon Boat & Deck Boat Forum

I always thought of pontoon boats as the minivans of the water and was never interested in one -- until we had kids! Once we came to the realization that it wasn't so easy to take little kids offshore fishing on out other boat, we picked up a used Bennington pontoon with a 50 hp 2-stroke.

While we have thoroughly enjoyed the pontoon world and our beautiful little Bennington, our family has outgrown that Bennington so we are going whole hog into toning and just traded up to a 25' Avalon tritoon that will have a 150 4-stroke hanging on the back.

It will be equipped with a Garmin GPS/fishfinder, center toon storage, SS pedestal grill, interior and exterior mood lights, underwater lights, lighted cupholders, teak vinyl deck and a few other goodies. Avalon did mess up a bit on the layout, but between the dealer and Avalon we couldn't have asked for a better response at making things right.

We have not yet taken delivery, but I have to say, the guys at WMF Watercraft & marine http://www.wmfwatercraft.com/Home have been nothing less than fantastic to deal with, I'd highly recommend looking to them for your pontoon and jetski needs in Delaware.

Looking forward to getting this bad boy on the water...

Nice Dan! I got your PM. You did great on buying it! Congrats, Buddy!
Ya.... Lets get it wet!!! Your patience and shopping savy paid off big time!

Thanks Brayden, we couldn't be happier with the boat and the way the deal worked out. The dealer has been fantastic and so has Avalon. Cant wait to get this gal on the water!

Yea Baby !!!!!! Now we're talking'

Congrats on your new toon ! Sounds great.

We too also thought of pontoon boats as the "mini van" of boats until we started enjoying our friends Bennington 2 summers ago. You already know all the reasons why..... and we came from an awesome Sea Ray 250 SLX with the big block 496 Mercruiser and it had the side exhaust among many other really cool features...... as much as we enjoyed THAT boat, we're already seeing that this Tri-toon is way better suited for us now.... and we don't even have kids, or grand kids

Enjoy the new ride !

I noticed your in floor storage locker door is the same plastic as our's is....... TOO BAD they can't do them in the fake teak vinyl to match....

We too have the teak vinyl (gray) and as our boat came with a gouge across the in floor storage locker door, the dealer has just ordered us a new door under warranty....... at the same time, they ordered a 4 ft X 4 Ft piece of the gray teak vinyl for me to try gluing it down to the damaged door..... nothing lost if it doesn't bond correctly, or it looks bad.

I should get both the replacement door and the piece of vinyl next time we are down at our lake in the next 2 weeks and I'll post how the outcome is, including pics. Has anyone tried glueing vinyl down to the plastic locker doors? I'm thinking of using 3M 5200...... it's really powerful stuff.

Excellent Toon you have there.
I wouldn't mind upgrading ours to match that some day.

Good Job!

Don't dis the mini van, either I had a toyota loaded with everything you can think of. best car I ever drove, plenty of room smooth ride and lots of power.

Just curious. How would you apply the 5200? That stuff is so thick and sticky I was wondering how you would get a thin, smooth even coat. Plus, it would be a pretty expensive carpet glue. You might test some marine carpet glue or contact cement. Either would likely be easier to work with and much cheaper.

TDJ2591 wrote:Just curious. How would you apply the 5200? That stuff is so thick and sticky I was wondering how you would get a thin, smooth even coat. Plus, it would be a pretty expensive carpet glue. You might test some marine carpet glue or contact cement. Either would likely be easier to work with and much cheaper.

Not sure how...... was thinking of using a putty knife to spread out an even coat. Would be interested if anyone else has tried to glue down vinyl to a plastic hatch. Open to any suggestions. the hatch door is approx 19" X 47" if I remember correctly.

Given the unique railing of the Avalon, what are some good fender sollutions?

Beautiful boat... congratulations...

Strake wrote:
Not sure how...... was thinking of using a putty knife to spread out an even coat. Would be interested if anyone else has tried to glue down vinyl to a plastic hatch. Open to any suggestions. the hatch door is approx 19" X 47" if I remember correctly.

Have you looked into Hydro-transfer (aka 'Dip coating') That might be just the thing to cover your locker door. Here is a video of the process.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GwGEH7f1eiw

Tim

Capt. Dan wrote:Given the unique railing of the Avalon, what are some good fender sollutions?

EZ Fenders will mount just fine on top of your top rail.

Cowracer wrote:

Strake wrote:
Not sure how...... was thinking of using a putty knife to spread out an even coat. Would be interested if anyone else has tried to glue down vinyl to a plastic hatch. Open to any suggestions. the hatch door is approx 19" X 47" if I remember correctly.

Have you looked into Hydro-transfer (aka 'Dip coating') That might be just the thing to cover your locker door. Here is a video of the process.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GwGEH7f1eiw

Tim

Thanks Tim...... yes I am familiar with dip coatings...... it's also the rage for carbon fiber (faux) in the Corvette world. Not what I'm looking for. I want to keep the faux teak vinyl pattern going.

About a month after we got our Avalon LS 2500, the vinyl floor on the bow started to bubble. My dealer tried to re-glue it with no luck, so he contacted Avalon to get the "special glue" they use to put it down in the first place. Problem solved. Might have your dealer contact them.