Sun Tracker Pontoon Boats

[Thrillseeker]

Anybody got any good or bad info. on these Pontoons?
Just ordered a 24ft. fishing barge for Assawoman bay
115 merc. 4 stroke
Heard some good and bad about these boats

[rj]

I have 2 Suntrackers ,,older ones 1992 21' fishing barge that we leave in Chincoteague , wachapreague,willis wharf etc,,for back bay fishing & swimming, gets regular use from april-october,, just repowered it from the original 60 hp johnson 2 stroke to a new 4s suzuki. it is not left in the water for any length of time , rarely for more than a week,,pontoons & superstructure & deck are still sound, pontoons were barrier coated & antifouling painted,most of the furniture has been replaaced,-left uncovered,it deteriorates rapidly in the sun
,it has been a lot of fun with plenty of room for all,
a good stable boat for the back bays. fishing, swimming,,sunning etc. lots of room for all\

also have a 1988 28 ft party barge, kept at my house in White Marsh, use it for day trips locally, swimming etc,
superstructure & pontoons are still sound but vinyl furniture & is aged, painted trailer rusted away & junked long ago..

a few lessons learned
1. Galvanized trailers only- mine is 20 yrs old--still good- painted trailer on my other pontoon boat rusted away in short order-junked
2. a good cover--vinyl furniture deteriorates rapidly when left out in the sun--cover it
3. carry 2 spare tires- the small tires on most pontooon trailers do not last.
4. barrier coat on pontoons- I only barrier coated the bottoms-wish i would have barrier coated the entire pontoons- the pontoons on the boat that is at Chincoteague are starting to show salt pitting on the tops & parts that are not coated-- , spare no expense on properly barrier coating & antifouling paint- especially if boat is left in water or used in heavy salt
5. fresshwater bath the entire boat & trailer after every use

botttom line --they have been good boats for us,,lots of good times & fun for the whole family, we especially like the room that you get with a pontoon boat-would not hesitate to buy annother

[Thrillseeker]

One big problem I'm having is that they worte the contract out as 2012 boat 2012 trailer new motor
trying to get to the bottom of that they say it will be a 2012 motor but won't write that in the contract
heard they put left over 2010 and 2011 motors on 2012 boats alot of people are saying very poor
customer service I really like the set up of this pontoon boat over all the others I looked at but spending
28k for a new boat (5,500.00) for the 115 four stroke I want a 2012 motor

[rj]

The major engine manufacturers , including but not limited to ,yam,merc,zuke,bomb, ,,no longer have "model years" one of the reasons is , so that the dealers don't have to discount the "leftovers" from the previous years,, they can sell them for the full price,, one model # may be in production for several years, most manufacturers state that if any "significant" changes are made in an engine , that they will introduce a new model #,,however I don't know. and the manufacturers will probably never disclose what constitutes a "significant" change

the build date of a motor is now incorporated into the serial # you can find out the build date from it.
i would not be as concerned with the exact build date, but I would want assurance that any motor that I purchase as new would have all the latest "updates" "service bullitens' or "fixes" applied to it, or I would want to know what is different about the motors that are being built today vs the motor that I was buying

more on mercury "modelyear"
http://www.mercurymarine.com/service...gory=modelyear