Pontoon Shopping

[captmello]

I'm considering buying a pontoon this spring. I boat on fairly small lakes and plan on trailering the pontoon. I also would like to take it on a local river that is too shallow for my I/O.

My questions are:

1. What's the largest pontoon that would be reasonable to tow without becoming a PITA?

2. Having not boated on a river, and not knowing specifics about the speed of the river I'm thinking of boating on, what HP motor should I be looking at? I've seen 20' pontoons with 25hp motors. Is that enough to get up stream?

Thanks for any insight. I'm open to any comments relevant to my questions or not.

thanks!!

 

[EGlideRider]

Re: Pontoon Shopping

I'm considering buying a pontoon this spring. I boat on fairly small lakes and plan on trailering the pontoon. I also would like to take it on a local river that is too shallow for my I/O.

My questions are:

1. What's the largest pontoon that would be reasonable to tow without becoming a PITA?

That depends on how far you are trailering and your tow vehicle. A 1/2 ton pickup will tow all but the very largest pontoons.

2. Having not boated on a river, and not knowing specifics about the speed of the river I'm thinking of boating on, what HP motor should I be looking at? I've seen 20' pontoons with 25hp motors. Is that enough to get up stream?

Of course this depends on the current and wind. A 20'/25hp will normally run about 15 mph so you would struggle against a 10 mph current.

Thanks for any insight. I'm open to any comments relevant to my questions or not.

thanks!!

The main questions we will want answered is the size of your tow vehicle and the typical current of the river you wish to cruise.

 

[captmello]

Re: Pontoon Shopping

thanks for the response.

My tow vehicle is an 05 F150 heavy duty w/9300lbs towing capacity.

I'm just used to seeing pontoons, taking more time to load and unload etc, at the landings. I must admit to not having watch very closely, however. I would tow anywhere from 1 mile, up to 150 miles, but mostly short distances.

I searched but couldn't find current speeds for the river in question. The river varies greatly in size and depth from place to place so a typical speed may not exist. However your point about the traveling speed and current is well taken. The landing I was looking at using is just above a large dam so at that point it doesn't appear to move very quickly, but I don't want to underestimate it.

With the cost of outboards, I'm trying to keep the HP down.

I am also thinking I would want power tilt/trim. Can you get a 25 hp motor with power tilt/trim???

 

[southernboater]

Re: Pontoon Shopping

I tow my 22ft Manitou with a 2002 F150 with no trouble. Round trip is about 100 miles. We put in at the coast and head to the Sound and nearby islands using a 90 hp Honda. Loaded with four adults, fishing gear and our mascot - Louie-top speed is 20 by gps.

Safe Travels.

 

[EGlideRider]

Re: Pontoon Shopping

thanks for the response.

My tow vehicle is an 05 F150 heavy duty w/9300lbs towing capacity.

I'm just used to seeing pontoons, taking more time to load and unload etc, at the landings. I must admit to not having watch very closely, however. I would tow anywhere from 1 mile, up to 150 miles, but mostly short distances.

I searched but couldn't find current speeds for the river in question. The river varies greatly in size and depth from place to place so a typical speed may not exist. However your point about the traveling speed and current is well taken. The landing I was looking at using is just above a large dam so at that point it doesn't appear to move very quickly, but I don't want to underestimate it.

With the cost of outboards, I'm trying to keep the HP down.

You can haul most any pontoon with the F150.
If you put guides on a pontoon trailer, you can launch and recover as fast as any other comparable size boat.

I am also thinking I would want power tilt/trim. Can you get a 25 hp motor with power tilt/trim???

Yes you can get a tilt/trim on that motor and you would be well advised to do so.

As you'll see all over this forum, get the biggest motor that you can afford for your boat.

Good luck

 

[5150abf]

Re: Pontoon Shopping

A 22 seems be about the perfect size toon, not too big not too small and you don't need a monster engine to run them.

For the engine, it depends what you want to do with the boat, for just putting around a 25 would work but that is the absolute minimum and it is gonna be really slow especially upstream not to mention you will porbably be revving it up pretty good all the time.

I would go with a 50, it will putter around fine and leave you alittle reserve power in case you need to get out of the way of somehting and it can run more towards the middle of its power.

If you want to pull a tube you woudl need at least a 90 and skiing at least a 115-150

I have run rivers for years and can tell you they are way different than a lake, there is a spot on the river I run, it is 100 yards wide inside an island and I see people stuck there all the time cause it is only 1 1/2'-2' deep so I would take it kinda slow until you learn the river you are on.

A prop gaurd would be a pretty good investment too as prop strikes can get pretty expensive.

 

[captmello]

Re: Pontoon Shopping

A 22 seems be about the perfect size toon, not too big not too small and you don't need a monster engine to run them.

For the engine, it depends what you want to do with the boat, for just putting around a 25 would work but that is the absolute minimum and it is gonna be really slow especially upstream not to mention you will porbably be revving it up pretty good all the time.

I would go with a 50, it will putter around fine and leave you alittle reserve power in case you need to get out of the way of somehting and it can run more towards the middle of its power.

If you want to pull a tube you woudl need at least a 90 and skiing at least a 115-150

I have run rivers for years and can tell you they are way different than a lake, there is a spot on the river I run, it is 100 yards wide inside an island and I see people stuck there all the time cause it is only 1 1/2'-2' deep so I would take it kinda slow until you learn the river you are on.

A prop gaurd would be a pretty good investment too as prop strikes can get pretty expensive.

Thanks for the reply!

I've seen a lot of pontoons 20 - 24 ft for sale. 50 hp, That makes sense.

How wide is a 22-24 footer?

 

[steelespike]

Re: Pontoon Shopping

Typical pontoon is 8' wide. I feel for your type of boating the 50 is ideal.
It will be loafing when a 25 would be at wide open throttle.The somewhat larger prop
will likely give you a little better control. A 4blade larger diameter pontoon prop will give you the best control and least venting problems.Don't expect much speed I would guess
20-22 max.from a 20 footer.Try to get the largest diameter logs as possible.

 

[Silvertip]

Re: Pontoon Shopping

Pontoons can be no wider than 102 inches (8-1/2 feet) because that's the maximum allowable width of any vehicle on the highway without a overwidth permit. Generally, older pontoons were 8 feet wide and more recent years, you will find both 8 and 8-1/2 footers. On a 20 - 22 foot pontoon you want no less than 40 HP and you will be much happier with a four stroke motor or an Evinrude E-tec which has electronic fuel injection and turn key starting just like your car. Some folks just never seem to get the hang of starting a carbed two-stroke. If you intend to run a river, you will need a fish finder (for its depth and bottom contour capability). You can very easily follow a river channel. A depth finder or fish finder will not prevent you from running aground or hitting something as they indicate the depth under the boat, not what lies ahead of you.

 

[Mr Crabbs]

Re: Pontoon Shopping

Your TV will do just about anything you want it to do. Towing PIA? It's really up to your personal tastes. For me, if I was going to tow any real distance I'd probably get a tandem axle trailer. Helps with sway.

 

[Mr Crabbs]

Re: Pontoon Shopping

I'm just used to seeing pontoons, taking more time to load and unload etc, at the landings. I must admit to not having watch very closely....

We're new boat owners and spent part of Memorial Day weekend watching the ramps. I spoke to a few people and they didn't mind sharing their experiences with me. With practice it becomes fairly easy, even my kids got to be good help. By September I was launching and retrieving by myself, not something I could have done on a windy day or at a busy ramp.

I'm already ooking forward to Next May!

 

[captmello]

Re: Pontoon Shopping

Thanks too everyone for the additional comments.

I'm going to begin searching for a 20-24 footer with 40-60 HP. It seems that finding one with a trailer is hard to do however. I may just have to buy a trailer separate since I really limit myself only looking at trailer included boats.

 

[DJ]

Re: Pontoon Shopping

Towing-

People forget that pontoons are huge "SAILS". It's the wind resistance that gets you, not the weight.

 

[ralphl]

Re: Pontoon Shopping

Thanks too everyone for the additional comments.

I'm going to begin searching for a 20-24 footer with 40-60 HP. It seems that finding one with a trailer is hard to do however. I may just have to buy a trailer separate since I really limit myself only looking at trailer included boats.

Don't buy until you check with Millers Marine in St. Cloud. Prices are always good, but they are really dealing now. I was there last week on business.