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22 vs 23LSB to save a little cash

fiddlebick

fiddlebick

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Any thoughts on a 22ft vs 23ft LSB? Where is the space sacrificed and can I save enough to get this build into my finances a little better? Mostly just me and the wife. Usually one other couple if any. How do you like your 22ft and why did you buy that instead of a 23?
 
List price there is a $2399.00 difference between the 22 and the 23
 
ILLINOIS AVE said:
Personally bigger the better. Where will you be boating? Depends on lake size also. I'm on big lake so I have a 24ft.Then figure $2399.00 over your payment period and it's probably another $28.00 a month.
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That's list price according to the build page .So most likely less than that ,unless prices rise.
 
I'm pretty much in the same boat as you. Both of us are retired now and on SSI, so price was special consideration. We also run on water that is consistently 2' plus waters. How we equipped our new boat is from the experience we had with a previous 2017 21 SLXP with pretty much the same chassis, except we added the .10" toons along with the rough water package with HD "M" brackets. This boat being a Bi-toon, with the 115 Mercury Pro XS CT, with 350lbs of people, 21gals of fuel would easily accelerate to 36 - 37 mph and with trimming would reach 40.3, verified by two gps's. Would easily cruise across the 2' plus chop without realizing there was a chop and not get wet. Bennington's 6" sealed lifting strakes is the key along with under wave shield is the secret! This boat will easily run with Tri's of larger hp because of less drag and weight. The only thing a tri can do better, is corner, but the ride and is every bit the tri is and a hell of a lot less money. We ordered our boat last September (2021) and just took delivery last week for $59,503.00, however I seen the MSRP has risen over 6 grand sense we ordered however the price point is very favourable for the budget conscience buyer, and oh yes, I'm 5'10 and went with the raised helm. Good luck with your endeavor.
 

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That's a nice ride, and the performance amazes me. I never thought a two logger could achieve that. I still don't know quite how this is going to turn out, but I kinda have my heart set on a tritoon at this point. Weighing all the info I get from great folks on this forum.
 
fiddlebick said:
That's a nice ride, and the performance amazes me. I never thought a two logger could achieve that. I still don't know quite how this is going to turn out, but I kinda have my heart set on a tritoon at this point. Weighing all the info I get from great folks on this forum.
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The tritoon allows you to up the horsepower and option the larger fuel tank and center storage. If those are not considerations of yours then it might be a good idea to cross shop the dual Elliptical, might save you $5-10K than can go towards a longer deck, options etc.
 
I'm sticking with the tritoon build. This will be my last boat at 63yrs old. Hey I actually work for Commonwealth Aluminum Products here in KY. We make the huge coils of Aluminum that is then shipped to the pontoon builders who then roll and form the pontoon logs. I probably had a hand in the logs on the newer boats on this forum. They spent HUGE dollars in 2017 to update our rolling mills to allow us to produce the wide stock, which introduced us to the pontoon industry markets. I should get a supplier discount, heh?
 
Sounds like you are doing your ”due diligence” and weighing everything nicely. I am very confident it will all come together in a Bennington that will fit most of your wants and needs. Many like you, we ended up about 20-25k above our original maximum budget in 2017 when we got our boat. For us, we also went into it as our last boat first…within our budgetary constraints. I have never felt like I wasted any of that money. We love our boat, and for the 1-2 or two things in my personal [hindsight that we could have done without, they at least “add” a little something to the boat that’s neat for others.
 
Although mine just arrived Monday (have not seen it yet) we too struggled with the 22 vs 23 decision. Rarely is it more than my wife and I on the boat, but with the hopes that we can handle a little rougher conditions, and with the higher HP to get us out of rough water should we find ourselves in those conditions unexpectedly, we went with the 23 ESP tritoon and a 250 Yamaha VMAX. It's our first pontoon after being fiberglass boaters for over 30 years. We thought our last fiberglass boat was our last but some physical restraints changed that. At 60 this better be it for me as well.
 
In addition to Potomacbassin comments: It appears the the couch opposite the Captains Chair and in front of the Captains chair are both a tad larger on the 23 - probably 6" each. This MIGHT allow a second person a bit more comfort on the rear couch, and a taller person will be more comfortable on the front couch if / when lounging. IMO the larger fuel tank and center storage are great features and better for resale - but this is more about YOUR use. Note weight is about 94 pounds different.
 

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NOTE - I do suggest that with your primary use being you and your wife, the dual captain chair is THE WAY TO GO. While the sitting area in the rear is nice, we had an extra table mount done so we have a front and rear table. The Chairs will swing around and make a nice area in the rear - but the Wife LOVEs having her own chair vs having to sit on the one of the loungers always with her feet up or twisted. Much More Enjoyable with the two of us.
 
I do love the idea of the co captains chair, but you lose the storage under that bench seat. That's why I personally stuck with the L shaped swing back, but I did consider the co captain's seat. Decisions decisions.....
 
Another thing to remember (if it's even a consideration) is that the dual gate aft railing is not available on the 22' swingbacks...you need at least the 23' for it to have enough room for mounting. It is another $660 (msrp) over the stainless keeper rail.


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I'm new to tooning but not to boating. With advise on this and other forums we opted for a 23 tritoon with the Sports Performance Package. It is plenty big for 8 people. I would have opted for a 22 foot version but wife wanted a bigger one. That's OK but close quarters maneuvering becomes more difficult as the boat gets larger. On top of that we had to extend our boat house and cover to accommodate the bigger boat. Our $62,000 boat is ultimately going to cost closer to $80,000 by the time all these accommodations are installed. You are wise to get the big engine, but just know most people will complain about the wind when you get above 25 mph.
 
I bought a 22L and the nice thing is the length is 23'LOA. So its about as much as I want to fit in my slip and handle. For us, family of 3, its a perfect size.
 
We definitely will order the dual captains chairs, and we want that premium swingback with the stainless deck enclosure with double gates. I didn't realize full enclosure was unavailable on the 22' boats, but I hadn't looked at the 22 build sheet either. The 23LSB is going to fit the bill for us. Its killing me to have to consider shaving off the extras I would normally want, just because the dang price increases are squeezing me as I near retirement. If I were 53 instead of 63 I wouldn't worry about it so much. I am going to give it another month to see if a used one may popup that we'd like. I am not that guy that calls about a boat and plans to see it on my days off. I am the guy that tells my boss, "I am leaving work right now, I've found a boat". ..and not afraid to drive up to 8 hrs away to get the deal. Its a shot in the dark, but there have been a couple of boats I wanted to buy, had the sellers not backed out after accepting my initial online, long distance offer. I still don't get that, but thats what happened. They were both Barletta owners, so there's that. My word was good, theirs worth nothing. I've looked at competitor brands, and of the few I've contacted, Bennington has the longest lead times to deliver a boat order at present. It makes the most sense to buy Bennington however, the dealer is near enough to provide access should I need warranty work...besides, Benny folks are always nice.
 
I can't believe how tough the used market is. When we sold our Crownline last year I had someone fly is from upper Michigan to Massachusetts to see the boat. Bought it and hired someone to haul it over 1,000 miles back to Michigan. 12 years old and 80% of what I paid. Hope you can find something, I couldn't find anything that wasn't beat up, and even then at prices not that far off new. I see some folks out here who got incredible deals though, they are lucky. Good luck.
 
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