pontoon, boats

[sawdustsavage]

Hi everybody. I don't see much chatter about potoon boats. Am I the only old fart that likes easy fishing? Well not that old I geuss. Anyway I was wondering if anyone has used a 18 ft toon in current or reasonable river swells? I don't want to get in a situation that puts my Grandson myself or my boat in harms way. I don"t think there should be any problem with using it on the Columbia river around Rainier Oregon. I would truly appreciate any input you may have on this.

Thanks

John

 

[bigredinohio]

I've never driven a pontoon but I boat on the Ohio river east of Cincinnati and the river tends to get fairly nasty with the swells from the big speed boats and jet skis. Nasty enough to not want to be in a 18' runabout but I see pontoons all day long out there regardless of conditions. The biggest thing I notice is they tend to stay closer to the shore, probably due to lack of speed. I would say try it until you feel uncomfortable then bring the boat in.

 

[sawdustsavage]

I've never driven a pontoon but I boat on the Ohio river east of Cincinnati and the river tends to get fairly nasty with the swells from the big speed boats and jet skis. Nasty enough to not want to be in a 18' runabout but I see pontoons all day long out there regardless of conditions. The biggest thing I notice is they tend to stay closer to the shore, probably due to lack of speed. I would say try it until you feel uncomfortable then bring the boat in.

Thank you Big Red. I appreciate the info. I agree. Go easy and safe till I know its limits. John

 

[Chris E]

i've driven lots of pontoons over the years, they are slow which is a given, but what i have found with a lot of them, is that they are a very wet driving boat. since they don't ride on top of the water, they push through it, they tend to be much wetter than a runabout.

 

[sawdustsavage]

Thank you for the information. Like I said I'm a complete novice so every little bit helps. I don't plan on getting in a hurry so hopefully it wont be to wet.

 

[Chris]

Keep in mind, people sorta use the term "pontoon" as a generic term.

There is the traditional type of 'toons with the real pontoons and the deck on top - but there are also more and more deck boats starting to pop up as well.

The deck boats give you the same big flat area up top, but often use different systems below for better performance. As one example, there are some that are basically aluminum v-bottoms.

-Chris

 

[sawdustsavage]

Mine is a traditional pontoon boat. A 18 ft. Smokercraft Infinity, Thanks for the input. I was also wondering if adding a third tube would improve performance or just add more drag?

John

 

[Chris E]

third tube will do nothing for you - don't bother.

 

[sawdustsavage]

good info. thanks