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bought a used pontoon a few months ago
its been quite an adjustment from my center console...I've had a 20 ft Carolina skiff with a C70 Yamaha for about 13 years....
the first thing about having a pontoon...its freakin HUGE
you have to climb up and down and up and down when working on it...go ahead and put an 8 ft ladder near the rear if you are working on it..
next thing...it has to be covered up when not in use. My old carolina skiff I can just blow it out and pressure wash, its had one old cushion in front of the center console and it has lasted years and years. The furniture on the pontoon has to covered or stored under something or in something.....I have covering my with tarps and harbor freight clamps. I in fact just put money down on a storage shed near twin dikes in Rayburn and they have about a nine foot door. I don't know if it will fit it will be close...the boat is in the water at Rayburn right now so I haven't tried it. I'm worried about the fairing above the console, that is the highest part.
next thing is the gas mileage...not as good as my little center console. but that is understandable. bigger motor, bigger boat.
I'm not bitching about the pontoon but it is a different animal if you are a long time "normal" boat owner making the transition. It really kinda freaked me out.
I have a habit of wanting to constantly look at my motor to see if it is pumping water. In my pontoon I can not see the motor from the drivers position. So I just walk back and look periodically. I also can't tell how far up or down it is so I walk back and look at that while making trim adjustments.
all that being said, I do love mine and having the room on board is awesome, a bimini top w/shade to kick back and tons of room and tons of storage and tons of room.....and tons or room!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
on the water the beast is a tank. I can cross other boats wakes and just plow on through. in my center console I have to reduce throttle and take it slow because it will rise up and down with dental work loosening impacts BAM!.........BAM!...........BAM!....and water spraying everywhere.
so yeah dude I still have my Carolina Skiff and use it to fish the hell out of Sabine Lake.
as of now I just absolutely will NOT put the pontoon in salt water. I viewed the topics where Matt or FunMachine went out in the gulf and it blew my mind....awesome. I didn't even think something like that was possible.
I want to get a smaller 18 or 20 pontoon that is a little ragged out already and use it in the salt. It takes so long to clean my carolina skiff and trailer (2nd one, used McClain after the original EZ loader disintegrated). I can't imagine trying to clean a pontoon boat of saltwater. Also on mine there is a lot of wire rigging that runs under the deck....why did they do that?
anyhow sorry for rambling...high five to all at Texas Pontoon!
its been quite an adjustment from my center console...I've had a 20 ft Carolina skiff with a C70 Yamaha for about 13 years....
the first thing about having a pontoon...its freakin HUGE
you have to climb up and down and up and down when working on it...go ahead and put an 8 ft ladder near the rear if you are working on it..
next thing...it has to be covered up when not in use. My old carolina skiff I can just blow it out and pressure wash, its had one old cushion in front of the center console and it has lasted years and years. The furniture on the pontoon has to covered or stored under something or in something.....I have covering my with tarps and harbor freight clamps. I in fact just put money down on a storage shed near twin dikes in Rayburn and they have about a nine foot door. I don't know if it will fit it will be close...the boat is in the water at Rayburn right now so I haven't tried it. I'm worried about the fairing above the console, that is the highest part.
next thing is the gas mileage...not as good as my little center console. but that is understandable. bigger motor, bigger boat.
I'm not bitching about the pontoon but it is a different animal if you are a long time "normal" boat owner making the transition. It really kinda freaked me out.
I have a habit of wanting to constantly look at my motor to see if it is pumping water. In my pontoon I can not see the motor from the drivers position. So I just walk back and look periodically. I also can't tell how far up or down it is so I walk back and look at that while making trim adjustments.
all that being said, I do love mine and having the room on board is awesome, a bimini top w/shade to kick back and tons of room and tons of storage and tons of room.....and tons or room!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
on the water the beast is a tank. I can cross other boats wakes and just plow on through. in my center console I have to reduce throttle and take it slow because it will rise up and down with dental work loosening impacts BAM!.........BAM!...........BAM!....and water spraying everywhere.
so yeah dude I still have my Carolina Skiff and use it to fish the hell out of Sabine Lake.
as of now I just absolutely will NOT put the pontoon in salt water. I viewed the topics where Matt or FunMachine went out in the gulf and it blew my mind....awesome. I didn't even think something like that was possible.
I want to get a smaller 18 or 20 pontoon that is a little ragged out already and use it in the salt. It takes so long to clean my carolina skiff and trailer (2nd one, used McClain after the original EZ loader disintegrated). I can't imagine trying to clean a pontoon boat of saltwater. Also on mine there is a lot of wire rigging that runs under the deck....why did they do that?
anyhow sorry for rambling...high five to all at Texas Pontoon!