Bennington or Sun Tracker

forthetide2

Cadet
Joined
Apr 17, 2012
Messages
23
My wife and I are in the market for a new pontoon. We were pretty much sold on the Fishin Barge 24 by Suntracker until I found a fishing series by Bennington, the 22 SF. It seems like you get more for your money with the Suntracker but the Bennington has an outstanding warranty on paper, I don't know how well they stand behind it.
Anyway, we need advice. This will be our first pontoon and we don't know what we're doing. We have 2 kids ages 5 and a 3 month old lil girl. I love to fish and the wife loves to just sun bathe, I'm sure the kids want to ride the tube eventually so I'm not sure what HP to go with. There will usually be 6-8 people in the boat. Any suggestions?
 

a1nowell

Chief Petty Officer
Joined
May 12, 2009
Messages
437
Re: Bennington or Sun Tracker

Go with the Suntracker and put the money difference in the engine.

Just my $0.02 worth

Welcome aboard,
Larry
 

ezmobee

Supreme Mariner
Joined
Mar 26, 2007
Messages
23,767
Re: Bennington or Sun Tracker

Any reason for going new? You can get a TON more for your money by getting one just a couple years old.
 

airdvr1227

Lieutenant Commander
Joined
Jul 15, 2009
Messages
1,666
Re: Bennington or Sun Tracker

Ask yourself just how much fishing will you be doing. Are you prepared to give up X% of your useable space to an area that is solely for fishing. Can you fish off another setup? Resale will be impacted with the fish setup, and not in a good way.
 

muskiemike12

Petty Officer 2nd Class
Joined
Apr 7, 2010
Messages
153
Re: Bennington or Sun Tracker

It all depends on your location. In MN the prices for used toons are crazy, unless you get some beater from the 80's or 90's. Thats why I bought new. No one in this state is taking a hit from owning a fish-n-cruise toon, if anything they are at a premium. I bought a Lowe from Cabela's. It was a way better value then the Tracker. They advertise a low price, but thats because they come with a 25hp motor. One thing to check out is the platform construction and the furnature. I believe Bennington has the best seating out of all the manufactures and you pay more for it. Look at all the options you want to compare to make sure the playing field is level.
Good luck!
 

Oregonizm

Cadet
Joined
Jan 15, 2012
Messages
8
Re: Bennington or Sun Tracker

It's apples and oranges. It's Nissan and Lexus. It's Suntracker and Bennington .... and you get what you pay for.
 

lakegeorge

Senior Chief Petty Officer
Joined
Mar 19, 2002
Messages
660
Re: Bennington or Sun Tracker

First of all, both boats are very good, Pontoon boats as a whole are pretty bullet proof. I would use the savings in money and put it into an engine. As your kids get older they will want to tube and maybe ski, you will need HP to do that.

There are thousands of pontoons on the water and most were there before anyone ever heard of Bennington, so don't be afraid to buy something else.
 

forthetide2

Cadet
Joined
Apr 17, 2012
Messages
23
Re: Bennington or Sun Tracker

First of all, both boats are very good, Pontoon boats as a whole are pretty bullet proof. I would use the savings in money and put it into an engine. As your kids get older they will want to tube and maybe ski, you will need HP to do that.

There are thousands of pontoons on the water and most were there before anyone ever heard of Bennington, so don't be afraid to buy something else.

Well, believe it or not the price isn't that different. I wanted the 22' Suntracker but it's max HP is only 90 and the 24' ST can mount a 115. On the other hand, the 22' Bennington max HP is 135 I think and it's lighter than the ST. The quote on the 22' Bennington is 28,321 with 115 and on the 24' Suntracker it's 27,250 with 115....both with trailers.
 

forthetide2

Cadet
Joined
Apr 17, 2012
Messages
23
Re: Bennington or Sun Tracker

Ask yourself just how much fishing will you be doing. Are you prepared to give up X% of your useable space to an area that is solely for fishing. Can you fish off another setup? Resale will be impacted with the fish setup, and not in a good way.
We'll be fishing probably 50% of the time and I plan on holding onto the boat for 8-10 years so resale doesn't bother me so much. I'm buying for me, not the guy I might sale it to in the future
 

ezmobee

Supreme Mariner
Joined
Mar 26, 2007
Messages
23,767
Re: Bennington or Sun Tracker

If the price is that close, definitely go with the Bennington.
 

pontoonsteve

Cadet
Joined
May 2, 2011
Messages
6
Re: Bennington or Sun Tracker

Buy what you like, your the one who will be paying for it. As long as you take care of her she will treat you right. But, whatever you buy get the biggest motor it can handle. You will not be sorry!
 

forthetide2

Cadet
Joined
Apr 17, 2012
Messages
23
Re: Bennington or Sun Tracker

Go with the Suntracker and put the money difference in the engine.

Just my $0.02 worth

Welcome aboard,
Larry
The Suntracker's max HP is lower than the Bennington on most boats. I could get up to 135 on the 24' Sun Tracker but is there that much difference between a 115 and 135? Also, which engine is the best? It looks like all I can get on my Sun Tracker is mercury but the Bennington offers about everything. Thanks for all the replies
 

sasada

Petty Officer 2nd Class
Joined
Apr 3, 2012
Messages
184
Re: Bennington or Sun Tracker

The Suntracker's max HP is lower than the Bennington on most boats. I could get up to 135 on the 24' Sun Tracker but is there that much difference between a 115 and 135? Also, which engine is the best? It looks like all I can get on my Sun Tracker is mercury but the Bennington offers about everything. Thanks for all the replies

I owned a Fishing Barge 22' 3 years ago and at the time it was 6 years old. It was a good bout for the money but believe they have really gotten better in the last couple years. It only had a 40hp and went 15.5mph GPS. Now they have the toons that actually plane out and IMO you would notice very little different between a 115 and a 135.
 

muskiemike12

Petty Officer 2nd Class
Joined
Apr 7, 2010
Messages
153
Re: Bennington or Sun Tracker

A 135hp Optimax is a v-6 motor, it is basically a tuned down 150. The 115 would most likely be a 4-stroke or a Optimax I-3 motor.
 
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hankhill

Cadet
Joined
Jul 6, 2010
Messages
11
Re: Bennington or Sun Tracker

My first boat was a 2004 Suntracker Regency 24 with a Merc 90 2-stroke. Had a lot of fun, great boat . Just traded it a month ago for a 24ft Bennington with 140 Suzuki 4 stroke. There truly is nothing like a Bennington !!!!!
 

forthetide2

Cadet
Joined
Apr 17, 2012
Messages
23
Re: Bennington or Sun Tracker

My first boat was a 2004 Suntracker Regency 24 with a Merc 90 2-stroke. Had a lot of fun, great boat . Just traded it a month ago for a 24ft Bennington with 140 Suzuki 4 stroke. There truly is nothing like a Bennington !!!!!

What separates your bennington from the sun tracker?
 

airdvr1227

Lieutenant Commander
Joined
Jul 15, 2009
Messages
1,666
Re: Bennington or Sun Tracker

There truly is nothing like a Bennington !!!!!

582560_10150657966202014_342018378_n.jpg

Oh what a feeling....
 

Oregonizm

Cadet
Joined
Jan 15, 2012
Messages
8
Re: Bennington or Sun Tracker

airdvr .... why is your stearn so low in the water in that picture? You must have a whole bank of those outboards hanging back there that we can't see in the picture.
 

oldjeep

Admiral
Joined
May 17, 2010
Messages
6,455
Re: Bennington or Sun Tracker

airdvr .... why is your stearn so low in the water in that picture? You must have a whole bank of those outboards hanging back there that we can't see in the picture.

LOL - looks like it is on a pullup lift
 
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