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Wave Armor Pontoon Lift

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Pbakk

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Hello,
Just wondering if anybody has experience or feedback on the Wave Armor Pontoon lift? I have seen the jet ski lifts in action and they seem to work great. My Minnesota neighbor leaves his in the water / frozen lake year around, although we are in a protected bay.

 
Good question. The PWC Wave Armor units seem to be smooth and easy, but they are much smaller.
 
Seems like you’d need good water depth so that prop can dig down when forced on and off the lift given the set up and angle. I also wonder what that looks like with a boat totally loaded up. Just seems like that would be rough when loaded vs a solo driver/passenger. BUT, then again, I wouldn’t expect the jet ski ones to work as well as they apparently do. Interesting seeing that sort of set up on a pontoon.
 
The PWC units are really nice to use when putting the cover on IMO as they have a little more room on the sides.

I have asked for a quote on the Wave Armor pontoon setup (found a used one for $8k, but it is a long drive).

Lift prices are approximately $14k, Ultra Legs are $12k (tritoon), and I have one quote on Sea Legs that is $10k, but I need to confirm it is for a tritoon.

I am a little shocked with the lift prices versus the cost of a pontoon. Seems like as a percentage of the cost of a pontoon, they are crazy expensive given the respective technology / complexity in each.
 
It’s always surprising with these specific items.

Frankly, I am a tiny bit surprised they don’t cost more given inflation since 2017 when we bought ours. If I compare your prices above to lift and Sea Legs costs back in 2017 (covered bunk style lift) & 2019 (sea legs), they are not too much higher than they were 7 years ago.

Not to dismiss your overall point, as that’s a good one. This stuff is so pricey!
 
We looked into this too, as we can't have lifts where we are...(Too deep to quickly) but #1 they are very pricey. #2 No real canopy cover to keep boat clean like lift canopy. #3 if there is any current as you are trying to load, the tail of the boat swings rapidly and you get out of alignment quickly.

They always show this on video in the calmest of no wind conditions by a guy who has rammed it on their 50 times before shooting the video. Real world conditions are usually or most always worse. For jet ski's it's a yes, but for wind catching pontoons.... I don't personally think it's good.....
 
The Wave Armor quote I received was a little over $11k which makes it about close to Sea Legs / Ultra Legs.

Wave Armor now has two options for a canopy, but that would add at least $6k. The total with a canopy is less than the top end lifts but more expensive than the lower end lifts in my area.

Seems like any current or wind would also have the same impact docking in a lift, but I have not done either (Wave Armor and Lift) with a pontoon.

I previously had Ultra Legs on a pontoon, and it was easy to dock in my area as we are in a bay and just had to get close to the dock. I personally feel that you don’t get much on resale for Sea Lega and that a lift would retain a little more resale value.

It is a tough call for me. I like the convenience of Sea Legs but hate the extra weight and complexity. I love the coverage of a lift, but they have the challenge of installing and removing. We are in a shallow area that in a drought year is 2’ deep in the front and 3’ deep at the stern.

Might have to bite the bullet and hope I don’t regret the Sea Legs.
 
I don't know anything about Wave A
Pbakk said:
I personally feel that you don’t get much on resale for Sea Lega and that a lift would retain a little more resale value.
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I don't know anything about the Wave Armor lift, but I have had floating jetski lifts for about 30 years. Be advised, they have a limited life. Plastic or vinyl breaks down in the sun and eventually they leak.

My first floating lifts were vinyl and lasted about 10 or 12 years before they started taking on water. And it was a huge pain getting them out of the water and disposing of them at a landfill. The one I have now is at least 15 years old. It is rigid plastic and seems to be hanging in there. (But it doesn't fit the contour of my current jetski and it takes A LOT of effort to get the ski into the water. Which is something else to consider.)
 
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