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advise on new pontoon

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crookedlaker

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Well starting to look at new boats, probably about a year off but trying to decide what to buy
My local dealer sells Bennington and Harris so it will probably be one of those.
I have a 20' two tube Harris with a 90 but I need more speed
My ideal boat would be a 22' tritoon with a 150
The dilemma i have is that my trailer is a center lift and my covered boat lift is also a center lift type so i would have to
buy a new lift and trailer $$$. One other problem is to get from my house i have to go under a low bridge, in the spring time with the
high water i have to remove the windshield, head rest and drop the Bimini off the short legs and sometimes only clear by a couple of inches. This only last 3-4 weeks in the spring but with the higher ride height of a tritoon i may not able to go out on the lake.
I am thinking that a 22' two tube boat with lifting strakes and a 150 may work. we do not do much in water sports maybe ski or pull a tube a couple time a year if we have guests. mostly cruising and anchored at the sandbar.
how does the lifting strakes affect the boat compared to a regular pontoon, if i can get into the mid to upper 30's i would be happy.
My neighbor has a 22' Harris two tube boat with a 150 (no strakes) and he runs about 35 mph.
I would be OK with buying new lift and trailer but the bridge is the big concern. My budget for the boat is approx 35,000.00
upgrading the lifts and trailer will cost an additional $5000.00 even after selling my old ones. I could probably save almost 10,000 by going with the two tube boat.
If anyone has a two tube boat with strakes your thoughts would be welcome. also i did see the elliptical two toon option, how does that boat handle and how much higher does it


float compared to two toon pontoon I realize that this configuration will require a new lift and trailer.


any thoughts and comments are welcome

Mike
 
You may want to investigate the twin elliptical package by Bennington. It should help you reach your speed goals. However, these are very buoyant and your height issues under the bridge might get realized. With a 150, you might need a few more shekels. I'm not the one to ask, but you might be able to keep your existing trailer and lift. Your dealer should be able to help.


Keep us posted.
 
I would look for a late model used boat that will meet all of your criteria on height, speed, etc. I don't think your budget will get you close on a new one with a few goodies. Just my opinion.
 
One of my neighbors at the lake bought a leftover 21' SPS with a Yamaha 150 for just a little above your budget.  I was on it when he hit 44mph on GPS 
 
my big concern is the height for the bridge,


I would like to keep under 40, I cheaped out on my last boat and here i am 2 years later looking at new boats. I love my harrris but i should have spent more money and got what i wanted. i may look for newer used but it would have to be my ideal boat.


There is a newer bennington on my channel with a sport tube ( i think that is what it is called, it has a shorter center tube) but he never goes out, I have only seen the boat gone twice in two years, and it looks at least 6-8 inches higher than my  boat at the front, i seems that with the sport tube the front is very high and the rear is very low, maybe the elliptical or the full tri toon the boat will sit more level.and maybe lower than the sport tube. I do like the idea of the elliptical pontoons, does any one know how they sit in the water compared to a std pontoon.
 
crookedlaker said:
my big concern is the height for the bridge,


I would like to keep under 40, I cheaped out on my last boat and here i am 2 years later looking at new boats. I love my harrris but i should have spent more money and got what i wanted. i may look for newer used but it would have to be my ideal boat.


There is a newer bennington on my channel with a sport tube ( i think that is what it is called, it has a shorter center tube) but he never goes out, I have only seen the boat gone twice in two years, and it looks at least 6-8 inches higher than my  boat at the front, i seems that with the sport tube the front is very high and the rear is very low, maybe the elliptical or the full tri toon the boat will sit more level.and maybe lower than the sport tube. I do like the idea of the elliptical pontoons, does any one know how they sit in the water compared to a std pontoon.
Click to expand...

The boat to which you refer has the Express Tube (possibly renamed in 2017 to Performance 115 or something like that). And yes, it will ride higher in the bow due to the increased buoyancy. The SPS will ride more level. As far as the ride height of the twin ellipticals, I am going to assume due to the increased buoyancy, the boat will ride higher. Unfortunately, the only way to really know is to have your boat side-by-side.


Has your dealer sold any twin ellips that you could track down? Or a neighboring dealer? I would think if the dealer thought they could make a sale (and have a low use trade in, to boot) that they would do all they could to help you track one down for comparison sake.
 
Where are you located?
 
I'll chime in as our last toon was a two tuber with lifting strakes. We had a 115 on the back and with the wife and I onboard we could see mid 30's. It was terrible in turns though. Adding additional humans resulted in a drastic drop. So, I do feel that lifting strakes work. With a 150 on the back I think you would see good speed even when additional weight is added. After your spring time water level can you get a tritoon in there? If so I would miss out on a couple of weeks of boating a year and go with the SPS setup. I love the handling.
 
lakeliving said:
I'll chime in as our last toon was a two tuber with lifting strakes. We had a 115 on the back and with the wife and I onboard we could see mid 30's. It was terrible in turns though. Adding additional humans resulted in a drastic drop. So, I do feel that lifting strakes work. With a 150 on the back I think you would see good speed even when additional weight is added. After your spring time water level can you get a tritoon in there? If so I would miss out on a couple of weeks of boating a year and go with the SPS setup. I love the handling.
Click to expand...

I live in Fort Wayne Indiana, our lake house is on Crooked Lake in Angola In, we are about 10 miles from the Michigan border.


lakeliving, You are probably correct that i should bite the bullet and get the Tritoon SPS, My lake house is about 1/4 mike from the ramp i could dip it for the day if i wanted to, just would not be able to park on lift at house I am going to check with my dealer and a neighboring dealer in coldwater MI  to see what i can try out. I am afraid if i buy a two tube with strakes and the 150 i will be looking for a new boat 3 years down the line. The lake goes down alot in the summer probably drops 12 inches or more, i will probably have problems for the first month or so unless we get alot of rain in may .The biggest complaint on my current boat is speed and when we have a large load it really slows down.


This may sound crazy but how about a water bladder like they use on the big ski boats  drop the hose over the side, pump in about 100-200 gallons into the bladder to get under the bridge, pump out and go have fun, i have a neighbor that has a ski boat with folding wakeboard top and he pumps in water to get under the bridge also. Not sure if you would have to put on deck or if you could put into  storage area of center toon??? maybe too much weight for toon.


i did find one that is portable and you just drop the pump hose over the side of the boat Hmmm


mike


when the water is high i can take off windshield and even take off bimimi top
 
crookedlaker said:
I live in Fort Wayne Indiana, our lake house is on Crooked Lake in Angola In, we are about 10 miles from the Michigan border.


lakeliving, You are probably correct that i should bite the bullet and get the Tritoon SPS, My lake house is about 1/4 mike from the ramp i could dip it for the day if i wanted to, just would not be able to park on lift at house I am going to check with my dealer and a neighboring dealer in coldwater MI  to see what i can try out. I am afraid if i buy a two tube with strakes and the 150 i will be looking for a new boat 3 years down the line. The lake goes down alot in the summer probably drops 12 inches or more, i will probably have problems for the first month or so unless we get alot of rain in may .The biggest complaint on my current boat is speed and when we have a large load it really slows down.


This may sound crazy but how about a water bladder like they use on the big ski boats  drop the hose over the side, pump in about 100-200 gallons into the bladder to get under the bridge, pump out and go have fun, i have a neighbor that has a ski boat with folding wakeboard top and he pumps in water to get under the bridge also. Not sure if you would have to put on deck or if you could put into  storage area of center toon??? maybe too much weight for toon.


i did find one that is portable and you just drop the pump hose over the side of the boat Hmmm


mike


when the water is high i can take off windshield and even take off bimimi top
Click to expand...

Mike


I'm over at Clear Lake. I assume you're buying from same dealer as me, so if I can help out let me know!


Tom
 
With our benny i can hit high 30's with a load, hell I had over 1000lbs of family, cooler, standard gear, dog and still hit 36, specs in sig, pics in gallery.  This was boat show priced at 35,000 boat and motor, march this year, add 3000 for a trailer, less down payment and were well under 40 financed.  I know its never as easy as having it in a boat house, but in and out is two to three minutes tops once you have it down, hell i still do most of it myself cause wifey dont want to drive off and cant back up.  Im teaching my daughter how to drive it now, it'll be funny when a 12 yr old drives the boat off and my wife is just along for the ride.  SPS and a 150 is the minimum.  Search Spend a Day Marina on Indian Lake or Buckeye Lake Marina they both had good pricing compared to some of the comments I've read.  We went with SAD.  Good luck.  Ps we went wawasee and webster for the 4th of July this year, nice area.
 
My dealer is Dry Dock Marine in Angola


Good people, probably not the cheapest but good service, I don't have a problem paying a little more if I get good service


They are about 1/4 mile from my house and will do warranty at my house if it does not need to come out of the water, or they will pick it up and redeliver it also no charge.


Mike
 
crookedlaker said:
My dealer is Dry Dock Marine in Angola


Good people, probably not the cheapest but good service, I don't have a problem paying a little more if I get good service


They are about 1/4 mile from my house and will do warranty at my house if it does not need to come out of the water, or they will pick it up and redeliver it also no charge.


Mike
Click to expand...

I've had fantastic experience with them, and no, their price was not the lowest of 3, but it's been worth a little more. Chris in sales and Bud on my Verado, great folks all.


I bought a Mid-America bunk trailer at a great price and have a ShoreStation hydraulic. If you decide to sell the trailer, they don't last a day or so. As you probably know, most boat lifts can be converted easily or worst case you lift by 2 toons. ShoreStation now has a deck lift kit that works on tri-toons, very simple and effective. I have the 3 bunk setup on mine. Talk to Keith over at Pier Place and they'll fix you up. Of course Hewitt is Dry Dock.


Good luck!
 
Welcome aboard! Any boat is going to drop off when fully loaded, question would be how much you're willing to accept? I have a 24SSLX w/SPS and 200hp.  With our boat loaded with 9 adults and 3 kids we still run 38mph. Whatever you do, don't sell yourself short, look around your lake and hop a ride, you'll be amazed how many people will even offer if they know you're looking. Just demo'D my boat for my dealer so the customer could try out a triple toon, was more than happy to do so because I never was able to have that opportunity! Good luck!
 
Yes I deal with Chris also


I have a mid American center lift pontoon lift also my boat lift is the same center lift type, will not work with a tri toon, both should be easy to sell. it looks like we will have to pull our lifts to have our channel dredged next fall 2017 so it will be a good time for a new lift in anticipation for the new boat.


I will definitely get another trailer from Paul at mid American, they are another class act.


most of my neighbors have been buying lifts from Diamond marine just up the road from dry dock on the corner. good lift and good pricing, I think it is a Star lift,  i will probably see the guys at pier place, its hard to beat shore station quality. I was not very impressed with the Hewitt lifts. We are getting ready to build and will be moving up there in a couple of years.  I want this to be my last boat.


Thanks


Mike
 
Yes i am looking for a triple with a 150 to try out, Dry dock usually has an demo days on lake James but we were out of town this year, i will make sure to catch them next year. I know they will do a private demo but want to wait closer to purchase date


mike
 
crookedlaker said:
Yes I deal with Chris also


I have a mid American center lift pontoon lift also my boat lift is the same center lift type, will not work with a tri toon, both should be easy to sell. it looks like we will have to pull our lifts to have our channel dredged next fall 2017 so it will be a good time for a new lift in anticipation for the new boat.


I will definitely get another trailer from Paul at mid American, they are another class act.


most of my neighbors have been buying lifts from Diamond marine just up the road from dry dock on the corner. good lift and good pricing, I think it is a Star lift,  i will probably see the guys at pier place, its hard to beat shore station quality. I was not very impressed with the Hewitt lifts. We are getting ready to build and will be moving up there in a couple of years.  I want this to be my last boat.


Thanks


Mike
Click to expand...

We did the same, moved here permanently from Ft. Wayne 2 years ago, traded in all the other boats and bought the last one which we love. We used to have Hewitt for the inboards, went with the SS Hyd 6000+ full cover, 20 seconds up/down with a remote, and long sided canopy so don't have to cover it if we choose. Get in and go. Keith was a huge help, highly recommended too.
 
Just finished a summer with a new 22 SSX and a Yamaha 115 with strakes.  We did not go with the ellipticals and still undecided on whether I regret that or not.  With a teenage son, nieces and nephews we found ourselves tubing pretty much all the time.  With 4 or less people we consistently hit between 28-35 mph depending on what we were doing.  I like the way the boat handled with the strakes and to me, they seemed to get the boat up and on plane much quicker - while I don't have nearly the amount of experience on the water as others here I did try to pay close attention to the performance at different variables.  It's a different story with the entire family on board. With 8-10 people we were lucky to hit 25 mph and pushing the throttle meant sucking a good amount of gas.  


Having said that I am still happy with our choice - for me and the budget I had it seemed like a steep $ increase from 115 to 150.  If you wanted to hit 30+ with multiple guests and tubing or other sports you might want to consider the 150.  
 
/gallery/album_852/gallery_1221_852_240630.jpg/gallery/album_852/gallery_1221_852_2242814.jpg/gallery/album_852/gallery_1221_852_766104.jpgThis is a 22SFX with the twin ellipticals.  It rides a little bow high.  We get 40 MPH.  It rides great in rough water.  It will tube Ok but hard on the driver. 
 
Last edited by a moderator:
well it looks like i have narrowed it down to a tritoon with a 150 or a two tube with strakes and a 150


after speaking to my dealer the elliptical pontoon will not fit on my lift or trailer so i might as well go with the tritoon if i have to change lifts and trailer anyways.


I will make it a point to try both boats next summer as i will probably order in early winter for spring delivery. I am going to hit Chris up at dry dock to order in a stock 22' with a 150 and strakes for me to test out next summer.
 
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