Unique Pontoon Railings - Tip for Hidden Railing Bolts

[@J.W.W.]

Good to know!

[@tomspontoons]

It’s going to come in handy for someone out there on their boat for sure! Made the mistake not marking them on the first one of these I restored years ago!

[@randymilton-ploof5071]

Great tip again !

[@tomspontoons]

It’s not a super common one, but someone out there is going to see it on their boat!!

[@skylark4901]

Great tips, it's a nice clean look! Tom I'm going crazy right now trying to find a 20 footer for refurb but I want the fattest pontoons, that info has proven to be hard to come by, at least for free anyway, They want to sell brochures, which can still be hard to find, now's the time to find a good refurb boat and I did find a 20' 1993 Grumman that the guy says has 24" diameter toons, I know some offered optional fatter logs but didn't if you were aware of a certain makes that came stock with fat ones. I would like to find a boat maybe in the early 2000's, anyway thanks, keep up the good work, you've been a great help!

[@tomspontoons]

Crest and Riviera Cruiser almost always have big toons even back to the mid 1990s. When you get to the early 2000s the smallest diameter I think you’ll find is going to be 23”, with a lot of 24” in there too. 25” didn’t become the standard until later in the 2015 and newer era. 23” toons on a 20’ boat is still a great setup.

[@skylark4901]

@@tomspontoons Awesome, thank you👍

[@kwhp1507]

Glad our sun tracker has a lifetime deck warranty.

[@tomspontoons]

Most pontoon manufacturers use the same plywood like what we install that offers a 30 year warranty for the original owner (not many people keep a boat that long it seems). Eventually though the flooring will wear out, likely before the deck material, and you'll need to replace it with new vinyl. In that case your best bet is to go ahead and redeck the boat too while it's torn down that far. Gluing to old plywood is not a great situation and it would be a shame to put new flooring on plywood that might not last as long as the flooring. Plus the plywood is usually in rough shape by the time you get the old flooring pulled off of it!

[@jasonworkman4660]

Both Aqua patio and sweetwater’s are Godfrey boats I believe

[@tomspontoons]

Yep, you are 100% correct. Pretty common in the marine industry for several brands to be built by the same big company.

[@davidbartel9490]

Hi Tom, I’m restoring a pontoon that is stored outdoors in northern Minnesota. I plan on taking the deck off this fall and decking next spring. Will the pontoon structure be affected without the decking? Thanks, Bart

[@tomspontoons]

You’ll be just fine storing it torn down over the winter. Probably better than leaving it out and letting it get covered with heavy snow on the deck and framework!