My First Pontoon!

Newbie to the forum here..just finalizing the purchase of my first pontoon; a very sweet 2006 Misty Harbor. A real gem that's a 20 footer toting a Merc 60 2-stroke. Picked up a new Yacht Club trailer to haul it around with. I'm in Winnipeg, Canada and have to travel to Texas to pick it up, but I saved a load of cash by getting it Stateside. Hehehehe...Winnipeg, Manitoba to Fort Worth, Texas and back...about 3,000 miles round trip, but hell, it'll be worth it. Can't wait to get her home and in the water (as soon as the ice is out here, of course). I've been surfing several different boating sites, but it seems to me that this forum has a lot of experience and enthusiasm for pontoons and I've been able to glean a lot of information so far. Anyway, just wanted to say hi and to show off a couple of pictures.

Re: My First Pontoon!

Congratulations, "RT". She looks real clean. Be careful on that road trip, and let us know how that goes. Good luck !!!

Re: My First Pontoon!

Congratulations, She looks real nice.

Re: My First Pontoon!

looks like you bought a real nice pontoon, good luck on your trip
Jack

Re: My First Pontoon!

Welcome to the forum, and welcome to the wonderful world of tooning. Looks like you found yourself a gem there.

glenn

Re: My First Pontoon!

Thanks for the warm welcome folks! This is actually the third boat I've owned, but its my first pontoon. I started with a little 14ft aluminum with a 9.9 on the back probably 10 yrs ago. I eventually sold that boat and moved up into a 17ft Alumacraft bass boat sporting a 115 Johnson. The bass boat was a blast..fast, functional and a whole lot of fun. Unfortunately, my wife isn't a strong swimmer and therefore wasn't very comfortable in the bass boat. Heheheh...sitting in the passenger seat and being able to simply reach over the very low gunwales and touch the water kind of freaked her out. She didn't like being that low in the water. Since I generally fish the Red River which has a very strong current, she really didn't like being in the boat with me. I've been married for almost 26 yrs and learned early on, "happy wife, happy life". With me being on the boat most weekends, she was beginning to feel left out. Needless to say, I finally sold the bass boat in favour of a really nice pontoon. She very much likes the idea of being able to lounge on the toon in the shade of the bimini while I fish to my heart's content. I can't wait to get the new toon home!! This summer will find us either on the boat, or on our Harley. Again, thanks very much for the welcome and I look forward to picking your brains for advice in the future.

Rob

Re: My First Pontoon!

Welcome to the forum, looks like you did real good on the toon. Good luck with the road trip. Looks like we have a little in common, I went to another state to get my truck and even farther to pick up our camper. Just bought a pontoon myself but got lucky and found that 5 minutes down the street. My wife and I also ride a Harley. Again, good luck with it and welcome aboard!

Re: My First Pontoon!

davesparks2001 said:

Welcome to the forum, looks like you did real good on the toon. Good luck with the road trip. Looks like we have a little in common, I went to another state to get my truck and even farther to pick up our camper. Just bought a pontoon myself but got lucky and found that 5 minutes down the street. My wife and I also ride a Harley. Again, good luck with it and welcome aboard!

Click to expand...

Thanks Dave. Appreciate the kind words. What do you ride? Ours is an '04 Harley Road King Classic, highly customized. Here's a pic of my other favourite toy.

Re: My First Pontoon!

Your boat looks like a very deluxe pontoon boat. Suggestions:

Make sure you have a spare tire, and good hydraulic or scissors jack to change a tire--if need be. Also, take a good lug wrench.
If your trailer is new and unused, I suggest putting bearing buddies on the hubs--if they don't already have them. Make sure you
have a grease gun with a tube of marine style grease.

Check with the Canadian government to see if there are any problems bringing in a U.S. boat into Canada. You don't want to get to the border and have issues.

I don't know what they require for boat license documentation in Canada, but I think Texas titles boats, and you'd want that and a bill of sale in hand before hitting the road.

Re: My First Pontoon!

Welcome RT,
Just remember a boat from Texas does not know what it means to "Winterize."
We title the boat and the motor and kinda title trailers.
Just for grins I would jack up the trailer and take a tire off before you start your trip just to make sure you have the right tools. My trailer tires are set way back under my trailer frame and have to use a 1/2 inch rachet with a 20 inch extension to get to the lugs. I found out the hard way that I needed these tools. Also on a trip as long as you are taking you might consider an extra complete hub kit for your trailer, they're only about $40.00 around here and gives me a little piece of mind when I take a road trip.

You and your wife will love tooning, it's like going fishing in your livingroom.

Re: My First Pontoon!

Nice scoot RT. As of October we are the proud owners of an '09 Police Edition Ultra Classic Electra Glide. I bought it from the original owner who was a retired officer. He put "Live To Ride" chrome on both sides of the motor and mirrors as well as several other Harley chrome accents. He also put Rush slip-on exhaust, leather drink holders and leather fairing puches. Other than that it's all stock. I was about to put a Screaming Eagle race tuner and air cleaner on it but I ran across the deal on my pontoon before selling the old boat so momma ain't gonna go for any more money gettin spent till the old boat's gone.

Re: My First Pontoon!

GREAT lookin' ride Dave!! And I agree with ya 100%...so long as the "boss" is happy, yer gonna be happy! My two favourite things ... bikin' and boatin'...I have one other "favourite" thing, but not a suitable discussion for open forum..hehehe..

Re: My First Pontoon!

Good advice on the spare tire! I checked with the dealership where I'm purchasing the trailer and it does NOT come with a spare tire. I would say that heading out for a 3,000 mile road trip behooves me to ensure I have a mounted spare and the tools to change it if necessary. Better safe than sorry!! The bearing buddy sounds like a very good idea as well. I'll be headed to the local automotive parts store this afternoon. Thanks again folks!

Re: My First Pontoon!

Congrats on the new toon! For that long of a drive I hope you got a bunk trailer rather than a scissor trailer. I would almost recommend renting a bunk for the trip there and then switching to a scissor when you get it home "if you bought a scissor in the first place." Also def. check gas prices for your trip with gas being so varied state to state down here "not fun, avoid Illinois as much as you can." However have a fun trip and enjoy the new toon!

Re: My First Pontoon!

Cubbyblue22 said:

Congrats on the new toon! For that long of a drive I hope you got a bunk trailer rather than a scissor trailer. I would almost recommend renting a bunk for the trip there and then switching to a scissor when you get it home "if you bought a scissor in the first place." Also def. check gas prices for your trip with gas being so varied state to state down here "not fun, avoid Illinois as much as you can." However have a fun trip and enjoy the new toon!

Click to expand...

Thanks Cubby! I actually purchased a bunk trailer to make the trip down with and to use when I get home. I would have preferred a scissor trailer, but the budget is stretched pretty thin as it is. Hehehe..as far as the gas prices are concerned, its far cheaper in the States than it is here in Canada. We're paying $1.18 a litre up here right now in Manitoba (one of the cheaper provinces for gas actually). Since there are approximately 4.5 litres in a gallon, you can see pretty quick that I'm already paying damn near $5 a gallon for gas here. Going thru the States is actually a break in gas prices for me. I'll be heading straight south from here, so thru North and South Dakota, and just continuing straight south. I figure it'll be 3 days down and I plan on taking 4 days to get back. No way am I gonna push it while I'm towing the boat behind me. It'll be a bit of an adventure for me with a nice payoff at the end and a summer of great boating when I get back.