DIY TRITOON BUILD - Episode 1 - WHERE TO START

[@davidcross2021]

I cavitated once took me almost two weeks to recover . I understand Cory's concern ! I am going to enjoy watching your new boat come together .

[@tomspontoons]

She’s serious about cavitation!! We can’t wait either, it’s been fun so far…and it’s not even on the water yet!

[@skylark4901]

I sure would like to know where you got the 8' 6" cross members, Pontoon stuff only has 8', I've decide to just build from scratch and if I'm going to do it 8' 6" would be better, I can find square tube online, I've seen you use square tube and just make a larger hole in the top for the bolt, I suppose I could do that, then the question is what wall thickness is adequate, the only other thing that occurs to me is the boat would need an inspection, not sure what they look for...always many questions Tom!

[@tomspontoons]

These crossmembers were shipped from the manufacturer for the kit, so I lucked out there. I built that work barge tritoon that was 27' by 8.5' wide using 3" tall C channel from a local metal supplier. I used mostly 3/16" walled C channel on that. If you use square tube I would run 1/8" wall in most places, with 3/16" or 1/4" wall for the last few in the stern to support the engine weight and torque. Pontoon boats actually have zero requirements from the USCG in terms of structure, flotation, HP rating, etc. It's all designated by the manufacturers. I've built several custom boats from pontoons to fishing boats, and here in Michigan they are registered/titled as "assembled hulls" and no inspection is needed.

[@luisaraujo4708]

Another awesome instructional video. Thank you!!

[@tomspontoons]

Thanks for watching!

[@michaelfreeland4021]

I build them for our commercial operation; we use 6061 Aluminum square tube for crossmembers. 2" square OD with 1/4 wall is stronger than OEM

[@tomspontoons]

Absolutely agree that tube is the strongest…not fun to work with though for running bolts through. Easier to weld them in place!

[@williampliss9879]

I'm thinking of adding a couple additional crossmembers in the bow to reinforce my pontoon chassis to reduce flexing and twisting. Do you think the square tubing would be the best idea?

[@pjcombs27]

I am part of tiny boat nation which inspired me to tear apart my rotting wood on a boat and rebuild it wood free. Now I’m getting inspired to build my own family tritoon. I’m just starting to watch these videos. Wondering if there are any basic DIY instructions. Not sure what size boat I want to make. 18,20 or 22 feet long. How much of pontoon go past the rear deck to provide more lift for a bigger motor. I definitely don’t want a butt heavy boat. Thanks

[@tomspontoons]

Awesome!! Those TBN guys have really provided great stuff for DIY fishing boat projects over the years. There’s no instructions really…other than our videos I suppose? We saw tons of pontoon restoration videos out there, but not enough explanation of HOW…thus our channel was born. It helps that it’s my full time job to provide tons of content. More and more we get rid of tucking the motor inside of the outer pontoons. We like it to stick out beyond the outer toons about 16” or so which provides better trim/tilt response and better handling at higher speeds…plus it tends to give better water flow to the prop. Ours is 22’ long with 25” outer toons and 27” center. Our center toon has buoyancy all the way to the back. Some of the center toons allow water to flow in and out of the last few feet which gives up some buoyancy. Ours sits super high and dry even with the 200 Suzuki on it (520lbs), and a full 29 gallon tank of gas. Couldn’t be happier with the boat all around. 20’ to 22’ is great for trailering, space, and performance. Sometimes I wish we would have built a 20’ with a 150 hp, but the extra couple feet would be missed…especially because we love having walk around deck space on the rear!

[@Pjw350]

Thanks for showing us the start to finish. I have a 16’x6’ pontoon that I want to make a dedicated fishing boat that i can leave in the water all summer. Hoping to build that this winter. Love watching your channel to come up with ideas!

[@tomspontoons]

Absolutely! One of these days we will walk through my own 16’ tritoon I put together a few years back. It’s got it all for fishing and relaxing. It would probably give you some more ideas too!

[@Pjw350]

@@tomspontoons that would be awesome. The one i have is a 6’ wide model x 16’. I have a 16’ fishing boat but putting it in and out of the water everytime i want to use it gets old. Or i could buy a lift but then i would need to install the lift every year. Im thinking this 16’x6’ pontoon would be a real good fishing rig.

[@tomspontoons]

@@Pjw350 I fish rivers and lakes for all species and there’s no boat more comfortable to fish out of than my 16’ tritoon! High and dry, tons of space, super stable…You’ll love it!

[@xtrabigc]

@@tomspontoons I was curious if you have any videos on your 16' tritoon? I tried looking through your videos and nothing specific pulled up. Thanks for sharing everything that you do with us and putting in the work so that we can try to replicate.

[@tomspontoons]

@@xtrabigc I don't. We built it years before starting the channel.

[@Natedoc808]

a tip for your next build if you're tired of kneeling on the crossmembers, take a piece of 3/4 scrap ply that is say 28" long to span 2ft centers easily, and use it along with a kneeling pad to save your knees while kneeling and your back from bending over. Once you get the first couple bolted down you pop it up there and can tighten everything down, scoot the board one course and repeat.

[@tomspontoons]

I've certainly done that on other projects. It saves the ole knees big time. Great minds must think alike ;-)

[@Natedoc808]

@@tomspontoons Lol, yes indeed. I was a tile setter and did skatepark concrete for some time; got this tip from the only old timer without crazy knobs on his knees and not limping.

[@tomspontoons]

@@Natedoc808 now that’s a cool job, building skateparks! I grew up shredding every park possible before every city had one!

[@Natedoc808]

@@tomspontoons I built a bunch of them during the revival after they were all torn out in the early 90s because of lame insurance Companies.

[@robbienardelli4272]

Tom, in the process of doing a similar build with a 25" shaft 225hp motor, was looking for the best place to source pontoons? Ideally would like to get a center pontoon with a transom built in already, was looking at Great Lake Skipper pontoons but when talking with an individual on facebook market, he explained how he was not too happy with the quality of what he observed while on sight there. Was wondering if my best bet would be landing a set on facebook market through a private seller or seeing if you had any input on that. Any feedback would be greatly appreciated !

[@tomspontoons]

We source our center pontoons from River City Ventures in Ft Wayne, Indiana. They can fabricate you a center pontoon with transom height you need and to the length needed too. My contact there is Colin, and you can email him at [e-mail]

[@chrisandres1947]

Yay! Can’t wait to watch! You can do it!

[@tomspontoons]

Oh it’s happening alright!!! Stay tuned for more!

[@tallaheist]

Thanks I've been waiting for this. Following closely. I've got a 98 Tracker Fishing Barge 20 ft pontoon. I have a 3rd toon same size and a friend is going to try and fabricate a transom. Where is good places to find scratch and dent tools?

[@tomspontoons]

That’s a great size to make into a tritoon! Check out my other tritoon video of the Crest conversion. I had a transom welded on that I fabricated. It was a same length and diameter toon…they gained a little speed, but incredibly more stability and can cruise with a full load much faster than before! My best luck for toons has been on Facebook Marketplace and Craigslist. Depending on your location, Great Lakes Skipper might be a good place to check!

[@haroldtoiviainen]

Where do you get those crossmembers?

[@tomspontoons]

The outer pontoons came as a kit with the crossmembers and transom. They were a blemished set from Indiana. You can purchase hat channel just like it from tinypontoonboats.com. I believe Pontoon Stuff will be selling hat channel crossmembers too at some point in the near future.

[@BuenoToob]

Glad you're changing it up a bit (not because anything you've done is boring at all), but that it shows growth of your channel. Gives your wife more to do as well. Good team! Question: When you build from scratch, how do you register the pontoon without a mfg badge (usually found on the pontoon log)? I'd like to think about building custom pontoons to sell, but not really wanting a whole business model and becoming a "manufacturer" and wonder how a buyer will register it (here in Georgia they require that badge affixed)?

[@tomspontoons]

I think it depends on the state. Here in Michigan I can register them as an “Assembled Hull”. I pay registration and sales taxes, and they assign it a new hull ID and running numbers. Pretty straight forward for us, but I would give your state agency a call to find out more about building a boat out of unregistered parts and pieces.

[@Natedoc808]

Its pretty easy to get a hull number assigned from the agency in your state that you register the boat with ( fish and wildlife, forestry, god forbid the DMV, etc.). Manufacturer sometimes reads "self" "home assembled" "Assembled Hull" or sometimes "N/A". Some states don't require it at all similar to home made trailers.

[@willowmobilesystems4008]

You didn't say much about the bilge pump. I assume you installed one because of the waterproofed dry bin you mentioned just before - a protection factor should water get into it?

[@tomspontoons]

I think I mention it in one of the episodes. There was already a bilge in the far back of the center toon on a float switch. It kicks on every once in a long while after we’ve been going fast for extended periods of time. The pressure must drive some water into small entrances. Any center toon with compartments for storage and/fuel should have an auto bilge!

[@willowmobilesystems4008]

@@tomspontoons I must of missed that it was already there but figured that was what it's for.

[@tomspontoons]

@@willowmobilesystems4008 yup!

[@lawrencedobesh776]

Should the plywood be painted or coated with anything?

[@tomspontoons]

Not this plywood from Pontoon Stuff. It’s CCA treated so it won’t rot. If using untreated plywood it should be coated…but I highly recommend against using anything but treated plywood. It’s what all the big brands use on new boats! Saltwater pontoons might be best with a composite to battle corrosion, but that’s a harsh environment for aluminum boats anyway!

[@mdball94]

This is awesome man! EXACTLY what I was looking for!!

[@tomspontoons]

Perfect, thanks for watching! I think this series will help spark some ideas for tons of folks out there!

[@lawrencedobesh776]

Will this boat be used in saltwater? Are there any precautions to be considered for a saltwater boat?

[@joeherndon5815]

I'm planning on adding a center tube to my 16' pontoon I installed a 90 four stroke Mercury on it now seems to set really low in the rear was thinking would set 12 to 18" back of outside toons and maybe not quite as forward as the outside then my electric trolling motor could still work in front center I have aluminum welding experience and miller wire feed gun just don't know exactly what type of transom to build think I can find a regular tube from a take out will need repaired / shorten do you know of any plans available for different mounting systems just found your channel really enjoyed what I have seen so far

[@tomspontoons]

Thanks for watching, and great questions. The best reference I can give is to my Crest Tritoon conversion video. It shows the transom I built and had welded on to a standard pontoon. I did a similar design to my own 16’ pontoon and installed a 60hp four stroke Mercury Command Thrust…your 90 must HAUL on your 16’!!!!!

[@JohnBraman413]

where do you find potoon tubes to buy like you did?

[@tomspontoons]

I've had my best luck from FaceBook Marketplace and CraigsList. Luckily, Northern Indiana is only a couple hours away and that seems to be where a lot of loose pontoon parts can be found. You can reach out to [e-mail] (Collin) to see if they have any pontoons in stock that you're after. They're located in Ft. Wayne, Indiana, but they deliver on occasion too.

[@stephencaggiano1085]

Newbee question: Do you need to worry about the interaction of the steel bolts with the aluminum crossmembers?

[@tomspontoons]

I’ve restored about 50 boats in the last year, and I have not seen any issues with stainless hardware reacting with aluminum. I’m all fresh water, so there could be a more serious reaction in saltwater or other environments. Additionally, I find it ironic that I HAVE to clean aluminum with a stainless brush before welding to prevent contamination. I’m no chemical engineer or metallic specialist, just going off what I’ve seen! I also have never seen anything serious reaction wise between treated wood and aluminum…some guys swear it’s the worst thing in the world. All in all, we just do what we’ve seen work for the pontoon brands over the last 30-40 years!

[@mortirius1]

Don't use steel if your going in salt. All the pontoon dealers upcharge for titanium or aluminum (anti corrosion) screws they call it a salt water package or something

[@kylefrey945]

Hey awesome video. Where do you recommend I get the cross members. And what are they called. I’ve got two new pontoons and a transom but no crossmembers.

[@tomspontoons]

This kit came with the crossmembers, but for other projects including our houseboat I have used C channel, usually a 3” tall piece. I’m building a work barge for a customer this winter so I’ll be having to source something for that boat myself. I’ve always referred to them as crossmembers.

[@henrycole8705]

Get a miller wire feed mig welder with aluminum spool gun. Water cooled. 100% Argon shielding. Make several pontoons $$$

[@tomspontoons]

Trust me, a fancy welding setup will happen in the future for me!!

[@willgropper2310]

Where did you get the pontoons from ?

[@tomspontoons]

One of the sources down in Northern Indiana for the outer pontoons, and the center toon was damaged/used (insurance thing) off a boat way up in Northern Michigan. I usually start searching on FaceBook Marketplace or Craigslist. Or email Colin at [e-mail], He's usually got pairs and can custom make a center pontoon for you too.

[@J.O..]

Hey Tom! Really looking forward to this series ! what are your feelings on the plastic addon 3rd tunes that are mounted down the center of a normal pontoon boat? Does it add to the total weight (people) the boat can carry safely?

[@tomspontoons]

It’s going to be a fun one!! We’ve been thinking about doing this since last summer, and all the pieces (literally, the pontoons) came together this winter. Unfortunately I don’t have much info on those poly toons. I had a great conversation with the owner of one of the companies, followed up several times, and never heard back. Since then it’s been mixed reviews. Adding a third toon (aluminum) gives awesome buoyancy and stability. No guarantee of speed increase, although we’ve noticed we can cruise faster with a full load with the center toon added aftermarket. I’ve only dealt with aluminum logs tho!!

[@J.O..]

@@tomspontoons thanks for the (always) honest answers Tom ! I'll be sure to do some more homework on these poly ones, be safe! Look forward to your next video!

[@tomspontoons]

@@J.O.. always happy to help!! Thanks for watching our channel!!!

[@paulbowler7775]

I what to buy a larch center console and sifter and gadagea and wiring kit help me plas

[@tomspontoons]

You can buy all of those items at www.PontoonStuff.com, and if you enter TOMS5OFF at checkout you'll save 5% on the order.

[@dakotashirley5292]

Awesome work that yall do! Seems super rewarding. Quick question, i have a 03 crest with 24'x27" hpt toons & a honda 225. I found a 26'x27"center with transom. How do you think thatd match up? Think itd be best to add 1" or 2" of spacing to push the center toon down?

[@tomspontoons]

That's a seriously buoyant setup!! I would personally push that center pontoon down 2" with spacers to get better handling at speed, and it'll help get your outer toons higher out of the water too making the boat more stable side to side.

[@dakotashirley5292]

You are the man! I'm ready to take on this entire project after your videos. Do you the the 2' in length difference would pair well with the outers? That'll push my motor at least 20" further back than the outers I'm guessing & what do yall typically use as spacers? Thanks for all the help! 🙏

[@tomspontoons]

@@dakotashirley5292 Happy to help. I like seeing the center pontoon 2' back from the outers. It helps with trim response and handling at higher speeds. Plus it keeps the back deck area more open and spacious. Right around the 13:00 mark in this video I break that down. Personally I would weld on channel or angle aluminum to get the desired depth. Otherwise if you don't want to have anything welded on you could just bolt through a 2" square tube aluminum.

[@NateVolk]

Where do you get 8'6" long plywood?

[@tomspontoons]

www.pontoonstuff.com/tomstoons and you can use TOMS5OFF to save 5% at checkout. It’s inland plywood company’s product they sell. Same stuff the big boat brands have been using for decades.

[@mercury7819]

Tom, where did you source your hat channel from? I have 2 hulls from a 96 catamaran house boat i am wanting to build into a pontoon. I am in Wyoming and I am having a hard time finding aluminum hat channel. My local metal and recycling business looked at me like i was speaking Chinese when i asked if they could order some.

[@tomspontoons]

We lucked out and the pontoon kit came with the hat channel and even a transom...it was a whole boat kit ready to go. It's a unique extruded piece of aluminum. You may have better luck asking a metal or fab shop to bend you custom pieces. While I think hat channel is the strongest option, we built our 24' tritoon houseboat with C channel and it's done great.

[@armylyfe8953]

Where did you source the center log from with the transom?

[@tomspontoons]

This one came from Facebook Marketplace, but I've seen them on Craigslist, as well as Ebay.

[@Scheiterlein64]

Is there a rule for how long the center float should be compared to the outer floats? Our boat has just about 20 foot floats and great lakes skipper in Wisconsin has a 23 foot transom log. I feel like that would be too far back especially with the steering cable coming off the motor.

[@tomspontoons]

No "rule" necessarily. I prefer to have the center toon in line with the outer toons in the front (or even back a few inches if need be so that it's covered by the deck), and then I like about 16" to 24" of toon sticking out in the rear beyond the outer pontoons. The 23' might be a bit on the excessively long side to match up with 20' outers. Check out the guys in Ft. Wayne that we use often: [e-mail]

[@Scheiterlein64]

@@tomspontoons sounds good. Is under skinning an absolute necessity for tritoons?

[@tomspontoons]

@@Scheiterlein64 If you're going faster than 15-20 mph or you're going to be using it on lakes that can get choppy then 100% yes, you'd want to have underskinning. It prevents that chop from hitting the framework of the boat and makes it a much quieter and smoother ride.

[@Scheiterlein64]

@@tomspontoons so if we only have a 50hp Honda on it for the first couple years or so, we shouldn't have issues? Just worried about the water accelerating the rot of the floor.

[@tomspontoons]

@@Scheiterlein64 If the boat has the proper plywood from the factory or if you redecked it with marine grade TREATED plywood then you should be just fine. As long as the wood can dry it out will not rot any faster than any other pontoon. The underskinning is mostly about smoothing out the ride.

[@NATJWIL27]

Don't know if i miss it, but where did you mount a fuel tank? Nice Build...

[@tomspontoons]

Check out Episode 4 for that: kzbin.info/www/bejne/l5qneamdbK2JntE

[@Sean-iv9fr]

I am adding a center toon to mine. How far back is the transom from the back cross member? If your center toon is 2 ft longer, does that mean the transom is about 30 inches away from the back cross member? How far is too far from the back cross member?

[@tomspontoons]

As a tritoon I don’t think it hurts to be about 24” behind the last crossmember…that’s where this build ended up and it was great. Going too far beyond that might need some trailer modifications for support. Once on the water the center toon adds support to the whole frame and the motor is supported by the water holding the center toon up (aside from the weight of the motor and torque, but that’s what a sturdy transom is for!).

[@Sean-iv9fr]

Thank you for the reply What about the transom angle in relation to the bottom of the center toon? I have read that it varies and the average is 14 degrees. What is the angle on this one. I am going with a 200 hp suzuki

[@tomspontoons]

I have read anywhere from 12 to 20 degrees. I would rather have more negative trim than not…so when I build my aluminum fishing boats I go for 15 to 17 degrees.

[@WillMiles-f9z]

Where did you get the hat channel and what size is it?

[@tomspontoons]

It came with the kit luckily. It was around 2.5-2.75” tall. All 1/8” thick.

[@evrano7503]

How do you get title/registration for homemade boats like this?

[@tomspontoons]

Every state is different from what I hear. I can speak from my experiences in Michigan…If you have the brand of the pontoons it can be registered as that brand, and then assigned a new Hull ID number. If it’s totally from scratch with no info on the pontoons there is paperwork to fill out at the DMV to have it assigned a new Hull ID number, and it would be registered as an “Assembled” hull. Hope this helps!

[@slatersTVchannel]

Get the scratch and dent from t and m marine?

[@tomspontoons]

I didn’t, but maybe I should check them out. Have a link? All these came from Facebook believe it or not. Had to drive about 15 hours altogether to get them, but worth it!

[@Jason6700]

Any concern with insurance on a self built tritoon?

[@tomspontoons]

It wasn’t cheap to insure, and you’ll often have to do a “agreed upon” or “declared” value based on everything that goes into the boat. 100% doable, maybe an extra $50-$100 per year, but ours is fully covered!!

[@gabemader7024]

Was there a coating you put on the water side of the plywood deck?

[@tomspontoons]

No coating needed here. It’s CCA treated marine grade plywood. The water side will dry out between trips, and the underskinning between the pontoons will keep most of the water off of the wood too. Usually the bottom side of decks stays in great shape, even after decades, because it’s able to dry out. The top side gets rotten due to wet carpet sitting on top of it for decades

[@rxopie64]

Sounds like an EMOM was happening in the beginning need some wod footage guys and gals! Thanks for the content

[@tomspontoons]

Nailed it!! It’s a pretty common occurrence at the shop. You’ll notice a little gym setup in the background from time to time. Thanks for watching our channel!!

[@lentonwoolley7514]

Why did you put the toon with the blemish on the left side so the blemish would be on the inside?

[@tomspontoons]

The toons were labeled port and starboard. Stuck with that guidance. They’re going to get scuffed and dinged eventually, it’ll all blend in!

[@darrenhill4406]

It really doesn't matter if its air tight or not. It will still be boyant.

[@tomspontoons]

The rear portion of the center toon? I love how high it lets the motor sit out of the water when docked. Some sit so stern heavy when the rear few feet can fill with water. Super happy with this boat now that we’ve run it a bunch!!

[@darrenhill4406]

@@tomspontoons Its a great looking pontoon! I'm building a 30 foot tritoon as we speak for guiding on Lake Moultrie, so I always check your channel for tidbits of information. Great channel!

[@tomspontoons]

@@darrenhill4406 That's going to be a fun boat when it's all done!!! And thanks so much for the kind words about my channel!

[@paulbowler7775]

Can I order from you

[@tomspontoons]

What are you needing to order? I don’t retail any items shown in videos. The materials I use are from PontoonStuff.com

[@mikelewis4325]

So is the boat titled as a 2022?

[@tomspontoons]

As far as I know every state is different in how they deal with home-made or assembled boats. It was assigned it a new Hull ID number and State ID number for this year.

[@Patriot-up2td]

The one thing I would never do is mix pontoons from different makers. I mean, yeah, I get it, you’re trying to save costs and source toons quickly, but you have two outer pontoons with dolphin style nose cones mixed with a Manitou center toon with a barracuda style nose cone. As a decades long pontooner, that point on its face just looks ridiculous. Not to mention that the separated staggered risers of the outer pontoons are completely sub par in strength to the full length risers of center Manitou. Just my take on it, but I would’ve held out to get matching used toons from the same manufacturer, even if they came off different boats. Heck, call Manitou and ask if they have a scratch and dent pile and have the toons shipped out to you. It’s either a quality build with careful attention to detail or it isn’t. But hey, that’s just me. Either way, good luck with the build.

[@tomspontoons]

The beauty of it is that I can't see any nosecones when I'm out enjoying the boat ;-) Plus it hasn't bothered me yet when I do see the different pontoons or other items mentioned. The purpose of this build was to do it on a tighter budget than the $60K+ to buy a new boat, and to use the products we install on a daily basis to keep track of how they hold up over the long term. And we made the video to help inspire other folks to take on a project like this too. I wish it were that easy to track down scratch and dent toons from manufacturers, but believe me it's not. Heck, the gentleman I bought the Manitou center toon from said his insurance paid $7800 for the new center toon alone from Manitou...for $1500 I'm happy as can be 🙂 One of the things I love about pontoon boats is the variety in which they come. Someone can enjoy a frankenstein pontoon with a picnic table and lawn chairs just as much as the next person who spent $200K on a brand new tritoon with twin outboards and a full bar. To each their own as long as they're out on the water enjoying life. Thanks for watching!