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Boat lift

av8rdave

av8rdave

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Location
Shawnee Island, Indian Lake, Ohio
Hello all,


I am brand new to this forum, as I just ordered a Bennington 20SSRX, following years of frustration with quality and service with Brand X.  I was wondering if anybody had some advice regarding an appropriate lift.


Presently, my dock is set up with a lift for the same length boat with two pontoons.  It has two raised bunks spaced 4' apart that support the boat under the deck.  The Bennington is ordered with three tubes with lifting strakes.


Would it be better to adjust the spacing of the existing bunks to fit between the outboard and center tubes, or should I consider pads on the frame to support the tubes themselves?


Thanks in advance for any advice/experience you have.  Hope to see some of you out on Indian Lake, Oh!


Dave
 
Might want to check this out and there are many more. Just type "lift" in the search bar and you'll find a bunch of posts and responses.




 Also, welcome to the club and lets see some pictures!
 
Welcome aboard, can't help much with a lift only trailers! 


Congradulations on joining the Bennington family!! 
 
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av8rdave said:
Hello all,


I am brand new to this forum, as I just ordered a Bennington 20SSRX, following years of frustration with quality and service with Brand X.  I was wondering if anybody had some advice regarding an appropriate lift.


Presently, my dock is set up with a lift for the same length boat with two pontoons.  It has two raised bunks spaced 4' apart that support the boat under the deck.  The Bennington is ordered with three tubes with lifting strakes.


Would it be better to adjust the spacing of the existing bunks to fit between the outboard and center tubes, or should I consider pads on the frame to support the tubes themselves?


Thanks in advance for any advice/experience you have.  Hope to see some of you out on Indian Lake, Oh!


Dave
Click to expand...

I went through a similar situation when we went from a pontoon to a tritoon.  Gots lots of conflicting advice from neighbors, bennington dealor and Bennington corporate.  Several said deck lifts were great for a tritoon; I was of the opinion that the middle toon had the outboard and gas tank so due to all that weight it needed to be supported.  When all was said and done we are having three v bunks installed on our lift at a cost of $700.00.
 
You are going to love your new Bennie!  I suggest you make arrangements to have the lift modified soon as busy season is fast approaching.
 
av8rdave you'll find there are several members here that boat on indian lake....either have a place there or trailer in for the day.   I'm sure we'll see you out on the lake sometime this summer....if you see us out give me a shout.   You know what our boat looks like and I'm the grey haired dood normally wearing a mustang hat.


DSCN4245_zpsw7qltw6t.jpg
 
Welcome to the "club" Dave! Specs and pictures when available so we can collectively admire your new vessel. Several guys on this forum also boat Indian Lake, so you'll have some company.
 
FWIW, I spoke with the folks at my Bennington Dealer (Spend A Day on Indian Lake).  They advised me to stick with supporting the deck with the lift.  They said the engine/fuel weight on the center tube is not an issue, and that when supporting the boat under the tubes it's very important to support evenly to avoid crimping or bending the tubes themselves.  It turns out that my lift is already set perfectly for the tritoon configuration, as the bunks will fit evenly between the outboard and center tubes.  They also said that there are no warranty issues with supporting the deck.


I do think, with the heavier boat coming, that I'll seriously consider the electric lift mod.


Thanks everybody for the input and advice!
 
I can see that either way, on a trailer those tubes sit on bunks and bear the weight while in motion, On a lift it's just sitting there.  Key is, you don't have to spend money.  We get up I L occasionally, maybe we can all hook up some time.  I have to pick mine up soon from S A D as it just came back from the factory.
 
av8rdave said:
FWIW, I spoke with the folks at my Bennington Dealer (Spend A Day on Indian Lake).  They advised me to stick with supporting the deck with the lift.  They said the engine/fuel weight on the center tube is not an issue, and that when supporting the boat under the tubes it's very important to support evenly to avoid crimping or bending the tubes themselves.  It turns out that my lift is already set perfectly for the tritoon configuration, as the bunks will fit evenly between the outboard and center tubes.  They also said that there are no warranty issues with supporting the deck.


I do think, with the heavier boat coming, that I'll seriously consider the electric lift mod.


Thanks everybody for the input and advice!
Click to expand...


See the last comment from TB.
 
av8rdave said:
FWIW, I spoke with the folks at my Bennington Dealer (Spend A Day on Indian Lake).  They advised me to stick with supporting the deck with the lift.  They said the engine/fuel weight on the center tube is not an issue, and that when supporting the boat under the tubes it's very important to support evenly to avoid crimping or bending the tubes themselves.  It turns out that my lift is already set perfectly for the tritoon configuration, as the bunks will fit evenly between the outboard and center tubes.  They also said that there are no warranty issues with supporting the deck.


I do think, with the heavier boat coming, that I'll seriously consider the electric lift mod.


Thanks everybody for the input and advice!
Click to expand...

I would go with what your dealor recommends, after all he is the one you would turn to if any problems.  It would be nice if he would put it in writing.  It would be nice if a Bennington representative would weigh in on this as it is exactly what I was talking about with conflicting information.
 
Rockie69 said:
See the last comment from TB.
Click to expand...


Mike31406 said:
I would go with what your dealor recommends, after all he is the one you would turn to if any problems.  It would be nice if he would put it in writing.  It would be nice if a Bennington representative would weigh in on this as it is exactly what I was talking about with conflicting information.
Click to expand...

They did. Jared posted the link to a the page where the last post was from Team Bennington. 


You also want to follow Benningtons advice. At the end of the day, Benningtons standing behind the product warranty, not an employee who may no longer work at the dealer. (Or dealer no longer represents Bennington)
 
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There are a few pontoon boats at our marina that are lifted in a cradle via 2 flat lifting arms directly under the deck.  There is an auqa patio (one building over) that has the larger toon in the middle as well as a manitou with their v-hull design that are lifted out that way.  There are a few crank up lifts up at the condo's in russells point harbor that are also setup to lift under deck.


Our cradle is 4 - 2 x 12's running port to starboard just like those shown in the other building.


DSCN7719e_zpslz3ev0az.jpg
 
SEMPERFI8387 said:
They did. Jared posted the link to a the page where the last post was from Team Bennington. 


You also want to follow Benningtons advice. At the end of the day, Benningtons standing behind the product warranty, not an employee who may no longer work at the dealer. (Or dealer no longer represents Bennington)
Click to expand...

Thanks Smitty. I should have been more clear.
 
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