What to look for and what are some of the costs?

[Rook]

The whole financing and cash thing is still on the outer edge of the process right now but it is a big part of the equation.

Being in southern WV (homey) there's not many local boat dealers of any kind much less any with a stock of pontoons to shop so chances are we're going to be traveling to get one. We're within 3hrs or Charlotte/Lake Norman, Smith Mtn Lake in Virginia and if we have to we can go farther (in laws in Myrtle Beach).

I have cruised by one of the marinas to check out what other folks had but didn't do a walkabout yet.

We do want to crawl around on a few, hopefully the ends of the spectrum so we can get a feel for what "budget" and "luxury" really mean. Quality items can come in both flavors and that's what is really important...bang for the buck.

LocoCoco....why vinyl flooring over carpet? Doesn't is get slick when wet?

We have a Chevy Avalanche, which I believe should pull just about any except for the monster toons...

[LocoCoco]

...LocoCoco....why vinyl flooring over carpet? Doesn't is get slick when wet?...

I can't say first hand since I've never even been on one with it, but every single person on any pontoon forum who has vinyl swears by it.

I obviously have carpet and hate it. It's a nightmare to keep clean with all the twigs, leaves, sand, pollen and especially dog hair. So what I have is some nice, plush carpet that always looks dirty.

The slipperyness and hot-on-the-feetness I believe is an issue with vinyl, however, everyone says it's still far worth it.



LC.

[Bamaman]

I've talked to a # of dealerships this last week. Observations:

1. Dealers are having a better selling year than the last two years, but the boat business still sucks.
2. After taking a conservative approach to product ordering, the more desirable merchandise is about sold out for this year.
3. Most dealers are going to new boat shows 8/12-9/12 and placing their whole years' orders. They're looking for discounts and freebies from manufacturers.
4. The new dealer stock is going to be more expensive--expecting 6% price increases.
5. Dealers are still having problems anticipating customers' needs. One dealership will sell 20' boats with 75 hp motors. The next lake over, they're after boats in the $45-55K price range. On my lake, everyone still has their old pontoons from 20 years ago, and the dealer's selling $25-$35K boats--twin toons only. There is no rhyme or reason to what the customers are buying.
6. There are vast geographic areas where popular boat brands have no dealers. Tracker is the only boat brand that seems like they're everywhere.
7. Dealers are not expecting future sales to improve over this year, and are not stepping out to overstock situations. Only the good will survive in these times.

[Mr Geets]

I got vinyl by default. The only colour/engine/layout boat that I wanted had it. I just carry a broom and the place looks perfect. Carpet is nice but a real pain after pulling up on a beach. Spills? Just grab a bucket of water and slosh it down. I have a 5" decal at each gate "NO SHOES" and get a hassle from maybe 10% but sure makes a difference. I used to have similar signs on my boat to save the gel coat from anyone that would step on the gel coat and turn and unknowingly grind the sand into the finish

[Texoma Toon]

I am going to stick up for two toon pontoons. While there are advantages to Tritoons as has been said above, we have owned our two toon for 6 years and boat on one of the largest lakes in the country.."Texoma". We have 50 ft cruisers and large wakeboard boats that all make huge wakes. We don't take more than 8 adults out and usually 4-6. If the wind is 20 mph or less we we are good to go. Our idea of crushing on a pontoon is not going 50+ mph and I am sure a lot of you would like to trade gas bills.....lol. We cruised all over Texoma this past week and didn't use but one tank.

[Drago]

I was always wanting vinyl flooring when we got ours in early '08 but was totally overruled by Joy. Ours has premium boat carpet and I really cannot complain. Except for our friends dog that got sick while we were yanking the kids around on a tube and crapped the runny stuff from one end of the boat to the other, I've found everything easily cleans up. Even that we got cleaned up in several minutes and , I'm not kidding, it was from bow to stern! Some stains, bourbon and coke, can be difficult to completely remove. I find some stains on the high quality treated vinyl seats harder to remove than crap from the carpet.

If you have a family that likes to park and listen to the stereo all day, make sure to get a Perko switch and an extra battery. I also installed two high amp cigarette lighter plugs near the back wired and fused directly off the Perko switch for blowing up the toys.

We looked for two years for ours since I had never owned a boat before and I will say, I spent more hours sweating and studying all the details like screwed or bolted decking, etc. than one would think sane. All the name brands mentioned are of very high quality construction and I ended up choosing the dealer because we liked Jerry Rinker and did not choose the Premier due to the fact they only sold I/Os even though they were closer and were a fantastic bunch to deal with. Also check Godfrey Sanpan and JC pontoons both very high quality.

[martys]

There's a lot of great advice here. I did the same thing just a few years ago trying to decide what type of pontoon to buy. You will not go wrong with a Premier. The seats and quality of construction is just great. My set up works for us. The 150 e-tec, while cruising around, I'm not running the motor hard but I have plenty of punch when needed like skiing or tubing. The tri-toon has great stability. In my area, white caps are normal, a 1 or 2 foot chop is constant. It's a tough decision. My advice is NOT making a quick buy, look for a deal you can afford.

[Bamaman]

I picked up my new Bennington 24' SSLX yesterday with the 150 Yamaha. With the rear facing recliner, it's a pretty plush boat. We put one hour on it @ 7 mph yesterday (2000 rpm's) and one hour @ 14 mph (3000 rpm's). I have the Performance modified tritoon package and virtually every option Bennington offers except the color fishfinder.

Water was pretty choppy late yesterday, and the boat appears to be very buoyant, especially on the front end. I think my old 24' Starcraft two pontoon boat actually rides better in the chop, but it's obviously plowing through the water and waves. The new boat will have speed my old boat never had, and I expect that we'll be cruising much faster than we ever did with the old boat.

The Bennington dealer had the same boat with a 115 hp Yamaha and less options for $4K less. All of the mid line and high line boats are pretty expensive things, but when they've got such a long life span, they can still be considered great values in recreation.

And to think that I could have bought it for only $325 per month for only 144 months. Heck, everyone could afford one of these things.

[Rook]

On vacation and checked out a 2012 G3 LX322C....nice boat! Vinyl flooring throughout, tri-toon w/strakes, big changing room, comfy cushioning in the seats, nice helm layout w/ tilt wheel and a 115 Yamaha. Also had a galvanized dual axle trailer w/brakes included

Quoted us $38.8 with the 115 and $41.5 with the 150....seems like an "OK" deal, not a run to the bank right now deal but certainly not whitewashing me either. Guy offered to take us on a demo ride and even said he could probably be talked into a freight delivery. Was a super nice guy

My wife was ready to hook it to the truck! I still want to look around at other boats (this is only the 2nd boat we've climbed on).

[STEVEBRENDA]

We have finished our 9th year owning our current tritoon. It is probably the best recreational money we have ever spent. Our 22.5 ft by 8.5 ft boat has plenty of room. If I were to buy again today, I would probably buy the same size. I just feel thery are easier to turn and probaly easier to haul. We have a 125 HP, but I would always want a little bigger. 1) Your 7 year old is going to be a 20 year old before you know it. She and her friends will like a little more HP. 2) Cruising with a larger motor can soemtimes be more economical than running a smallr motor harder.

I think our boat is mid grade, even though they call it an Elite. We have taken care of it and the vinyl is all still in great shape as is the rest of the boat, but as I mentioned, we take care of it.

Things we like are rear entrance for swimming at the dock, sunning platform over the motor and lotsa storage.

I have been drowling over a new Suntracker Regency that someone recently purchased on our dock. It is really nice.