I have replaced the original cover on our '97 Bass Buggy with a much heavier material. Cover is snap on all the way around with snaps approximately 10 inches or less apart. Have to tow about 100 miles to our local lake on secondary (state) roads and do not exceed 65 mph. Good idea to tow covered or uncovered?Also on the subject of towing. Bought this boat used last spring. I have noticed that in several pictures of 'toons that they have tie down straps on the rear of the pontoons to the trailer when towing. No straps on this one. Only attachement is winch strap and safety cable at the bow. Does weight of boat allow tailering without tiedowns. I realize that extreme circumstances (hard swerve, bad pothole) could cause it to lift off the trailer. Seemed to do just fine during several trips this summer.
I do not have a cover so I don't have advice on towing with a cover. But on a 100 mile tow I would recomend the transom straps from the toons to the bunks. Well worth the money IMO. You should already have the eyes there and the straps are adjustable. Straps= Cheap assurance!
Location: Recently moved to high rise waterfront condo on Pluto. What a view!
Posts: 3,079
Re: Towing 'Toon with cover
I think you will find out real fast that towing that boat with a cover isn't a good idea. It is almost impossible to get material heavy enough to span that rig (it isn't like a bass boat)tight enough to keep it from flogging. Flogging causes chafe and can damage paint or interior furnishings. Alway secure the boat to the trailer. They come off the trailer easier than most folks think. I've owned a 20 pontoon boat since 96 and they are draggy to tow. I hope you have a big tow rig because my 5.0L V8 struggles to make 70mph wide open with the toon behind it...there's a LOT of drag with pontoon boats. In comparison, it barely breaths hard at 70mph towing a 3500lb regular 20' outboard boat and it weighs 1000lbs more.
John/Jackie I agree with BillP that towing with the cover in place is not a good idea, too many things can happen with the added resistance, all bad. Now for the question on using tie down straps to securing the boat to the trailer. I can tell you first hand use them, always secure both ends of the boat to the trailer. In 1991 I bought a new Bass Buggy and just as yours it had only the winch strap and the safety cable on the front to secure the boat. I noticed this prior to the purchase and the salesmanÂ’s reply was that the weight of the boat and the depth of the bunks make additional securing unnecessary. This was my first Pontoon boat so I believed the salesman, first mistake. For the first year or so all was well, then it happened. I was pulling out of a parking lot on to the main highway and I made the turn a little sharp to the right. The right wheel on the trailer went up over the curb and when it came down on the other side the springs worked perfectly. The wheel came down the springs contracted to absorb the shock (just as they are suppose to) then expanded to dissipate the energy. Unfortunately this acted as a catapult and with the winch strap and the safety cable fastened the boat had nowhere to go but sideways. Yep sideways, the boat was still on the trailer just not in the bunks. Four hours, two wreckers (one at each end) and $150.00 later the boat was back on the trailer, without damage. Oh I almost forgot the damaged pride, almost everyone that passed came back to ask, just how did that happen? Secure the boat to the trailer or I guess you could just say the wife was driving, provided she never hears about it. Seriously, this happened at less than 5 miles an hour, do all you can to secure that boat to the trailer.
WOW if that don't beat all...I believe perhaps that story will make me more diligent. Many times when running to and from the local ramp I do not. It is about 4 miles, but something like that would sure make it a long day!!
I used to tow a 20ft pontoon all over the place. I had straps in back and in front. I was using a float on trailer and the straps hleped to keep the rig centered on the supports that went down the middle of the deck. If you hit a curb wiht that trailer you wouldn't want the pontoon to shift.
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Thanks for all the feedback guys. Looks like I am going to look for a set of straps soon! As far as covered towing, again, thanks. Guess the cover just stays home for our trips. BTW, I tow with a 97 Dakota w/318 and auto trans. Seems to have all the power I need for our trips to the lake. Granted, it does not tow the pontoon as well as when I pull one of my Hudson Hornets on a flatbed. They come in at 6000 lbs with the trailer and I can get around 12 mpg on long haul. I have pulled them over 8000 miles total to national meets with no problem. Lucky to get anywhere near the mileage with half the weight with the 'toon. Again thanks for the feedback.
I got a 24' pontoon last spring. The previous owner only had to tow it twice a year, it was docked for the summers. The only thing holding it to the trailer was the winch line, and it was 1/4" cotton rope!I changed the rope to 3/8" cable, and put a safety chain on it. I also use generic ratchet straps on the back.I tow mine every trip twenty miles each way. I tow it with a 1976 Dodge D100 Custom that has 6.6 liters of Mopar big block under the hood. It doesn't even know it's back there.
Livebait - You got me convinced! Got my straps and have them mounted. Used cross over method to go from right pontoon to left trailer mount and left pontoon to right trailer mount. Used two inch nylon with rachet style cinch mechanism. Also placed a piece of foam pipe insulation on each rear attachment plate to prevent chaffing of straps on the mounts. Don't think you could rip that boat off there now without removing it from the pontoons. Thanks for all the feedback and advice.
John/Jackie, The two-inch nylon straps are the way to go. You can relax now you have done your part, well done. By the way the myth about the bunks being too deep and the weight so great that it will not move on the trailer still lives on. I bought a new Bennington Pontoon in November from a dealer 250 mile away. It was the closest dealer that had the model I wanted in stock. After I was satisfied with the water try out I watched them reloaded the boat, you know what kept the boat secured to the trailer? One two-inch nylon winch strap, nothing else. The sales rep repeated the same reasons for the lack of securing the boat to the trailer as I had heard 10 years ago. Two hours later the boat had a 3/8-inch safety cable on a separate U-bolt and four two inch nylon straps securing the boat to the trailer, the sales rep had a check and we were all happy. Think about it for a minute, which one is lighter aluminum or fiberglass, for the most part the fiberglass boat is heavier. So if the weight was the major factor that is securing the boat to the trailer a fiberglass boat would definitely not need the transom straps. I just donÂ’t recall seeing one without them in place. I donÂ’t think I will try to convince someone that they can leave the straps unhooked because their boat is so heavy the weight will keep it on the trailer. This reasoning may hold true until you put the trailer in motion then there is this force called inertia. Now all I know about it is from experience it tends to act on separate objects differently, do all you can to make the trailer and boat one until you decide to separate them.
Livebait,Sorry about the long dely in replying. Haven't had a chance to get on quite some time. Glad to know that I am doing the "right thing". Shouldn't take but an extra minute to unhook those straps during my prep time. One extra feature is that the straps are bright yellow. Anyone coming up behind the boat will see this huge yellow X. Should catch their attention.
John/Jackie Glad to hear you are using the straps and the time to hook and unhook them will be offset by the piece of mind you will enjoy. Good thought with the Big Yellow X and the impatient driver behind you. Some of them think that 6-foot away from an outboard with the prop at about windshield level traveling at 65 miles an hour is all the distance they need. Reminds me of a story from my youth: I’ll keep it short. I was raised on a farm and most of the fences were barbed wire except for a few close ones that were electric fences. Now I had Uncles (on my mothers side) that were city folk. One day down at the barn one of these uncles drives up and stops while I was inside one of these fences. He gets out and proceeds to walk towards me where upon I say that is an electric fence. He puts his hand on the top wire to push it down to step over ZZZZZZZZZZZ . Afterwards I said I told you that was an electric fence to which he replied, “Yea but I thought you meant it was retractable”. Same fence different uncle, carefully that is an electric fence; (slight pause by uncle) ZZZZZZZZZZZZ . I told you that fence is electric “ Yea but everyone knows you have to have two wires to get shocked”. Sometimes it is really hard to help people. Enjoy the Bass Tracker; Pontoon Boats makes one of the most relaxing forms of boating that I have ever done.
Towing 'Toon with cover
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