Pontoon Boats-need the Good, Bad and Ugly??

abalmuth

abalmuth

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So I’m down sizing for my 53’ Voyager and the plan right now is some sort of blue water express in the 35-40’ range and a Knock around boat to explore the Local creeks, sightseeing the water front homes etc.. And maybe a run in the bay for tubing etc for the kids-

I’ve notice a few pontoon boats running around and giving it some thought-
So any feedback would be great
 
Pontoons have their place: lakes, protected waters. IMHO stay away from big traffic wake. I see a few on the Hudson, and wonder what they do when a 9-pack of barges making way to keep the tide - and kicking a proportional wake - comes their way. Let alone that 50' somethin' sport fish at cruise. . .. I chuckle at the fishin' bass boats out on the River (not in protected areas) when the imported mega Yachts head to West Point for football games in the fall.

perhaps a smaller center console could meet your needs, assuming you're still looking at the LI south Shore.
 
I think a center console is a lot more practical than a toon boat...
 
Agree, unless you have a lot of young passengers and need plenty of room and shade.
 
True that! I've earned my place among that esteemed group. 😎

My last 3 boat rides were taking grandkids on a pontoon.
 
The key with wakes and pontoons is to take the wake at 45 degrees, NOT head on like we do with V-hulls. The wake boats on my lake have swamped us a couple of times with water on the deck, almost to the cabin. When they pass too close to you, they can roll the hell out of you if you can't cut in behind them quickly enough.
 
Pontoon boats are great ‘hang out’ boats for groups of people, and they are practically indestructible and unsinkable. They draw just inches, so if you put a little electric kicker on it, you can really explore shallow creeks and coves. Of course they’re not real fast or sexy, and while they can pull a tube ok, any type of skiing isn’t optimal. As with any boat, it all depends what you plan to do with it.
 
Tim R said: "Of course they’re not real fast or sexy, and while they can pull a tube ok, any type of skiing isn’t optimal."

My son bought a 25' Crest tri hull pontoon with a Merc 250hp OB. That boat flies! 42.5 GPS mph tops so far. Power to spare with the 250hp!
I've been on it at full speed, and it is rock solid! The hull is rated for up to 400hp!

FWIW, they're making tri hulls now with twins!
 
Yup, suglibert beat me to it...Have you guys looked at the new breed of pontoon boats? We looked them over at a dealer last year, they put some big horsepower on them these days, and they can be damned fast!
 
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