Who has made the switch to pontoon life...

[moneyfurnothin]

I've taken a break from boating life to grow up, buy a home, and start a family. A wife, house, and 2 girls later we are looking to get back to the river. While owning my Mach 22 I swore I'd never own an open bow , deck boat, or pontoon. Old age must be setting in because I'm actually considering a pontoon! With the bar hopping days behind us (kids), we spend most of our time on a sandy beach with friends and family. Can someone please talk some sense into me and get these evil thoughts out of my mind!! I'm really second guessing my manlyhood here. That being said, who has made the switch from performance boat to pontoon, or pontoon to performance boat. Why, and do you regret it? On a side note, I never thought I'd see the day you could spend 150k on a twin engine pontoon...holy shit! Thanks an advance.

 

[Ziggy]

We considered it but couldn't do it. We got a deck boat instead. And yes, I'm over a half century old.[emoji41]

 

[River Lynchmob]

You can spend A LOT more than that. We are in the same spot as you 2 young boys but I think we will go deck boat. Lots on here have gone the poontoon route...hell I think old RD is considering that route too.

 

[mjc]

We thought about a pontoon but after renting one got a deck boat. Sold a fountain to get it. I miss the fountain but deck gets me around fast enough and do much easier to get in and out of.

 

[throttle]

Mindset for next boat right now is a deck. If I wait too much longer I might consider a toon and do a center console for ocean. Other projects taking priority right now tho so who knows...

 

[Wbinder]

Do it but keep a Flatty on the side

 

[DLow]

Our pontoon has been awesome for the family. They are both worry free and somewhat care free. Load it up and head out for the day. Beach it and play. We can pull a skier and tube with ours so it is still versatile. The full length top is also perfect for the entire family. We only use it on our local Phoenix lakes and Parker. If we did Havasu a lot, no way would I do a toon. I'd stick with a deck boat that cruises faster and is more efficient.

 

[Waffles]

Convenience convenience convenience. Trust me when I tell you that I never saw myself owning one at 29 but here I am and I don't regret it one bit. It's one giant living room. It has a ton of storage, seats 16 comfortably, I can BBQ on it without worries, beach it almost anywhere, hell....I can even sleep on it overnight if I want. I do miss the speed sometimes but overall comfort for my 2year old is what pushed me this route.

 

[CanyonLakeDave]

after many performance boats we did the toon thing for 3 summers...had a Playcraft with a 496 mag h.o.- with that said i'd have gone nuts with a slow toon,Havasu is too big for that.Now back to a 33 Daytona and loving it but kids have grown....​

 

[Rajobigguy]

Do it but keep a Flatty on the side

This. My wife was tired of getting beat up in the Sanger and really wanted a pontoon but I just wasn't ready for the cattle barge (no matter how fast or luxuriously appointed). We ended up getting a deck boat which has been a fairly good compromise but I still miss the performance of the fast ski boat. If I had enough room to keep the skier and still get the deck boat I would have done that.

 

[sfury]

We are on our second toon. First was used 25' crest with 115 outboard which was slower than shit but everyone loaded up on it along with the dogs with no worries. We bought the JC tritoon in 05-06 and never looked back. We did buy our first jet boat back but still haven't had it out. Flatly on the list though [emoji106]

 

[Riley1]

We almost bought a toon. 26' with a 250 on the back. When the dealer called me to accept our offer, I told my wife that my stomach sank a bit, instead of that exciting feeling you get. So we decided not to get it. Loving our 24' Laveycraft. IF we change boats in the future, it'll be a 26-29' deck. Seems like with the price of toons these days, ppl baby them just as much as deck boats, without the performance though. My opinion.

 

[PLACECRAFT20]

They don't always have to be boring. A buddy of mine just bought one. 2 400s said it will run in the 80s. The pontoons are polished now.

 

[TCHB]

I have had many boats and so far my toon boat is the nicest. It has plenty of room, lots of shade and eats up the Havasu chop. It is not fast but most boats on the lake are not fast. If I had small kids again the toon boat would be my pic for mom and the kids. Today you can put a 400 on the back and chase down most other stock boats.

If I wanted a performance boat it would be a M28 with twin 400s. Not a good family boat with kids.

 

[Dirtbag]

The toons these days are not the toons of old...there are some bad ass rigs out there to go fast and also go decent with extreme comfort. Everytime i see one in the channel with the the two lounge beds on each side in the back it makes me second guess my deckboat for just a second

 

[AzGeo]

not a different kind of 'race boat' for the masses ..............

 

[RCDave]

Between a toon and deckboat, I think toon. I'm getting too old to clean a deck. So much square footage on a deck to keep pristine

 

[TCHB]

Between a toon and deckboat, I think toon. I'm getting too old to clean a deck. So much square footage on a deck to keep pristine

I am betting my toon has more to clean than most decks.

 

[TCHB]

They don't always have to be boring. A buddy of mine just bought one. 2 400s said it will run in the 80s. The pontoons are polished now.
View attachment 562358 [/QUOTE. I like the 400s

 

[yz450mm]

Mine only goes 19 miles an hour, but that was plenty fast enoigh for the girls when we took the bachelorette party up and down the strip for a couple of days.

 

[2Driver]

We had a JC Tritoon 350 IO for a few years. Id say we had our best times boating on that boat. We towed it all over the state including doing a week in Powell. We skiied on it, camped on it, partied on it. When you can't find a beach it doesn't matter, just find a nice cove. Maybe the best kids and dog friendly boat weve owned.

Only bitch is towing and storing. If you can figure that out you are golden.

 

[rivermobster]

I love my toon. But I also didn't spend a fortune on it either...

Twenty eight footer with a 150 V6, it tops out about 28mph. I paid 12.5k for it!

It's as close to zero maintenance as I can get. It gets an impeller every two years and not much more than that.

Seeing these things going for fifty K just makes no sense to me. Different strokes I guess. I have absolutely no plans to trade or sell mine. 👍

 

[underpressure]

Took the plunge today, gonna sell the deck boat soon...

 

[spectracular]

They don't always have to be boring. A buddy of mine just bought one. 2 400s said it will run in the 80s. The pontoons are polished now.
View attachment 562358

Here is another that should run well

http://chattanooga.craigslist.org/boa/6133121487.html

 

[riverroyal]

Budget? New or Used?
I have a toon. 54 hours in it as if today. Been great.
Everything is for sale

 

[MissHavasuCig]

After owning 3 DCBs, a Cigarette and a Skater, we're now on our 2nd pontoon boat and absolutely love it for Havasu. Because it's EASY!!! We keep it in a slip, get it bottom cleaned, wipe it down at the end of the weekend and an annual service & detail. Easy! We don't have to worry about what beach we pull up on, don't worry about scratching the gel coat and have room for everyone and everything. In our crazy days it was the ultimate party boat. Now it's the comfortable ride for us, the pups and some friends. Happy we did the performance thing ... happy to be doing the pontoon thing. They're not the old fuddy duddy pontoons anymore. Take a test ride on one - you might be surprised

 

[riverroyal]

They don't always have to be boring. A buddy of mine just bought one. 2 400s said it will run in the 80s. The pontoons are polished now.
View attachment 562358

Doubtful. If it does it's stupid unsafe.

 

[TCHB]

Took the plunge today, gonna sell the deck boat soon...

Nice new toon.

 

[JB in so cal]

Took the plunge today, gonna sell the deck boat soon...

That didn't take long...congrats!!

 

[HavaToon]

Went from this To this While I do miss the speed, I am very happy and so is my wife and daughter. It truly makes for a much easier and relaxing day on the water. One day I may pick up a small hotrod just for me and my need for speed.

Oh and btw I'm only 35, did the toon thing early.

 

[Wbinder]

We're all spoiled bring back the days where everyone packed into a 18 foot boot with a giant ice chest and had a blast everyone was happy

 

[nowski]

Wanting a Toon to me is just like wanting a Corvette, I'm just not old enough yet.

Several years back our River Rats group (10 families) heads over to Gasoline Alley. We get all the boats anchored, tarps up, tables, chairs, ice chests, food you name it and about 45 - 60 minutes later camp is set up. I said to myself that was a workout.

Then this guy and his dog pull up on the beach in his Toon, guy cracks open a beer, grabs his fishing pole, makes his first cast and is immediately enjoying life. I said to my buddies did you see what just happened here??? I think we've been doing this boating thing wrong all these years...

 

[Justfishing]

Toons are very versitile and there is a lot of differences that a guy needs to learn about. The old standard log is a displacement hull that is it plows water. Limits speed and manuvrability. Adding a third toon gets you a little more ability to carry more weight and put a bigger motor. Gets you a little more speed

Next was adding lifting strakes to the logs. Strakes are little wings near the bottom of the log. The strakes lift the boat out of the water increasing speed. This is a change from a plow to a planing hull. Manuvrability got a little better.

The next evolution was in the center tube. By lowering the tube you now have a v type hull. The best tritoons can handle as good as a V hull.

We boat on loto and a tritoon is a much better ride than a deck boat.

Another thing is moving the engine out of the boat. Gives you more room in the same length boat. Today's outboards are efficient and lighter than than an i/o. Easier to work on too. Many outboards have 4k or more hours.

The larger the log size the better. Keeps you higher out of the water and can carry more.
At low speeds you sit flat vs a v hull riding nose high. Gives you a lot of options for cruise speeds.

 

[Booshy]

Thanks

I love my toon. But I also didn't spend a fortune on it either...

Twenty eight footer with a 150 V6, it tops out about 28mph. I paid 12.5k for it!

It's as close to zero maintenance as I can get. It gets an impeller every two years and not much more than that.

Seeing these things going for fifty K just makes no sense to me. Different strokes I guess. I have absolutely no plans to trade or sell mine. 

View attachment 562380

 

[Waffles]

I love my toon. But I also didn't spend a fortune on it either...

Twenty eight footer with a 150 V6, it tops out about 28mph. I paid 12.5k for it!

It's as close to zero maintenance as I can get. It gets an impeller every two years and not much more than that.

Seeing these things going for fifty K just makes no sense to me. Different strokes I guess. I have absolutely no plans to trade or sell mine. 👍

View attachment 562380

In with you on this. No way in hell I'd pay 60 plus for a pontoon. You can find really good deals on used crests or suntracker regencies with 250s on the back for 20-25. I paid 14 for my 25 footer

 

[Justfishing]

Doubtful. If it does it's stupid unsafe.

Not unsafe. Very stable platform. At the loto shootout the top tritoon is 114mph

[video=youtube_https;DLRwkrBZzsA]https://youtu.be/DLRwkrBZzsA[/video]

 

[bocco]

I've been thinking a lot lately that a pontoon is my next/last boat. It's just towing it that looks like a bitch. Don't have to do that much since we have storage on the Delta but we do occasionally tow a few hours.

The aging of RDP.

 

[riverroyal]

Not unsafe. Very stable platform. At the loto shootout the top tritoon is 114mph

[video=youtube_https;DLRwkrBZzsA]https://youtu.be/DLRwkrBZzsA[/video]

It's unsafe, but we can disagree. I own a new toon with the 'performance" package. 80 is not safe.
Sure it's fun

 

[Groper]

We had a 28' Magic deck and loved it for years and over the years the Toon Mfg's came out with something better with more bells and whistles ie: Bars, Led's, HP the list goes on. I have been trying to sell the idea to the family, even taking them too the Boat Dealers and letting them basically choosing which one the would like to take home, we even had a family meeting :eek
Well it was unanimous the wife and kids wanted to keep the Magic, they said im not old enough to own a Toon yet and I let them have their way for about five more years :grumble:
So I decided to sell the 28' Magic and move up to a 29' Nordic Deck, I mean If I have to suffer for 5-6 more years It might as well be with a new'r Boat right :rolleyes

 

[FROGMAN524]

Groped, a new 29' Nordic deck doesn't sound like suffering to me. What does a toon do that a deck won't do?

 

[rivermobster]

Groped, a new 29' Nordic deck doesn't sound like suffering to me. What does a toon do that a deck won't do?

You can just run em up on the beach.

You don't have to worry about sandy feet.

They will run in much shallower water.

You don't have to worry about your kids playing all over them.

The list goes on...

 

[Justfishing]

It's unsafe, but we can disagree. I own a new toon with the 'performance" package. 80 is not safe.
Sure it's fun

Safe is a matter of conditions and operation. I do agree 80 mph is probably unsafe and unwise a good deal of the time. I can be unsafe in a 16 foot boat with a 20 hp in the wrong conditions.

Personally I think you buy a boat or whatever that has capabilities beyond what you normally need. If I want to go 60 mph I don't want to be redlining my motors and taking the hull to it's limits.

 

[YoPengo]

Budget? New or Used?
I have a toon. 54 hours in it as if today. Been great.
Everything is for sale

What are you asking? Toon shopping and boatless

 

[port austin pirate]

Wanting a Toon to me is just like wanting a Corvette, I'm just not old enough yet.

Several years back our River Rats group (10 families) heads over to Gasoline Alley. We get all the boats anchored, tarps up, tables, chairs, ice chests, food you name it and about 45 - 60 minutes later camp is set up. I said to myself that was a workout.

Then this guy and his dog pull up on the beach in his Toon, guy cracks open a beer, grabs his fishing pole, makes his first cast and is immediately enjoying life. I said to my buddies did you see what just happened here??? I think we've been doing this boating thing wrong all these years...

Hey Nowski, Dont know if Vettes about age bought my first 66 roadster at 27, my 2nd 88 coupe at 48 and my last 08 coupe at 67, They say if you own one you will always want to own another, Loved them all hope you get to own one, cheers P.A. Pirate

 

[ductape1000]

You can just run em up on the beach.

You don't have to worry about sandy feet.

They will run in much shallower water.

You don't have to worry about your kids playing all over them.

The list goes on...

Don't forget about the dogs...

 

[2Driver]

Happens around 4th from the left

 

[ductape1000]

View attachment 562447

Happens around 4th from the left

Damn it... That's about where I am. 🤔

 

[milkmoney]

I had a tritoon for one summer. Big stereo and a 110 on the back 24 foot I think, it was great for what it did , a little slow for me.
As now I have my schiada, I would buy another one again. Being now we have two labs in the house.
Hmmm, now I am thinking of a used cheap one to go out on the water here
[emoji106] [emoji6] [emoji202]

 

[underpressure]

We had a 28' Magic deck and loved it for years and over the years the Toon Mfg's came out with something better with more bells and whistles ie: Bars, Led's, HP the list goes on. I have been trying to sell the idea to the family, even taking them too the Boat Dealers and letting them basically choosing which one the would like to take home, we even had a family meeting :eek
Well it was unanimous the wife and kids wanted to keep the Magic, they said im not old enough to own a Toon yet and I let them have their way for about five more years :grumble:
So I decided to sell the 28' Magic and move up to a 29' Nordic Deck, I mean If I have to suffer for 5-6 more years It might as well be with a new'r Boat right :rolleyes

^^^
Going to be selling my 29 Nordic Deck soon...

 

[SJP]

I love my toon. But I also didn't spend a fortune on it either...

Twenty eight footer with a 150 V6, it tops out about 28mph. I paid 12.5k for it!

It's as close to zero maintenance as I can get. It gets an impeller every two years and not much more than that.

Seeing these things going for fifty K just makes no sense to me. Different strokes I guess. I have absolutely no plans to trade or sell mine. 

View attachment 562380

Yep - this is the program we are on. My 30 has had the deck (wood replaced) , carpet done twice, two sets of interior, two stereos. It lives a hard life but it has been awesome - original power Tohatsu 140 with like 4K hours - my favorite boat. We love our pontoon boat. Could I see dropping 175 on one. Probably not - but I dig it if you guys want to. :thumbsup