how tough to fish out of a pontoon? pros and cons?i have come across the gillgetter brand pontoons, small and towable they seem to be. i cannot get the missus to go in my mod v, and the grandkids  would be unsafe in my mod v.i fish the lakes of ga, dont care much for speed, but am serious about fishing. thanks for ur help.

Hipster,

I was in the same boat as you. Almost got a mod V but realized it was too small for my family. I looked into the Gilgetter pontoons (7518) as well and ended up getting a Premier Explorer 241. The Gilgetters are not a bad setup but decided on a larger platform because I decided to boat on a larger lake. I was also like you that I didn't care about speed but after a lot of research, I decided that this should not be overlooked.

First, pontoons have a lot of drag and a 60 hp engine at top speed (and low weight), you may hit 15 mph and cruise at only 10-12 mph. If loaded, you are looking at cruising speeds in the single digits. Second, you will find pontoons and engines that have been sitting on lots for a couple of years that have been marked down (I found a 2 year old model that was never used) versus a new Gilgetter. You can probably get an unused older boat at slightly a higher price. Your resale value is much better because you are already buying at marked down price and with a larger platform/engine. Third, if you are towing kids (I have 3), you want space and the ability to do other stuff. I have a 125 hp engine and can do tubing with the kids at cruising speeds that don't strain the engine.

As far as fishing goes, I love my pontoon.  I get no respect from the bass boat community but I don't care (heck I have outfished guys in Comanches and Rangers in my pontoon).  Pontoons biggest drawback is they get blown all over the place in wind.  I have mine rigged with a trolling motor and I have to kick it in high gear when the wind blows over 12-15 mph.  However, the rest of the time the boat is fine.  I cruise around docks and pitch/flip without issues. 

I hope this helps. Good luck.

My friend rented a pontoon in September, and now can't wait to sell his 24' Sea Ray to get one. He usually fishes with 2 or 3 others on his boat, and it sucks for that many people. My boat is a 16' Glastron Sportster set up for fishing, and it's great for my partner and myself. I know for sure that Rick will enjoy a pontoon far more than his current boat. The photo is my Glastron.

A friend of mine had one back in the late 80's - a bass buggy I think.  We fished a team tournament out of it literally as a joke, to give all our buddies a laugh - and we won.

Most are no where near as fast as a bass boat, they get blown around a lot, and they can not squeeze into many places as a bass boat.  But they can be fished from.  Especially if you are still fishing.

I prefer a big bow rider for the family and ranger for fishing.

We fished a team tournament out of it literally as a joke, to give all our buddies a laugh - and we won.

Now that's funny. A good fishing buddy of mine also has a pontoon. We were thinking of entering a bass or muskie tournament for laughs. We figure we could grill some brats and fish at the same time. Glad to see someone do it and win.

My best story was one day I was fishing in 12-15 FOW and about 3 - 4 bass boats pull up in front of where I was casting. They wanted to flip/pitch the shallow shoreline. I knew that part of the lake well and knew that the docks and shoreline were dead. Each boat pulled away after 30 minutes of fishing. Funny thing was that they all had their backs turned to me and didn't see me land about a half dozen 2-5 lb bass and a nice pike in the time they were fishing the shallows. It's funny, I know guys who will watch and see if guys in fishing boats are catching any bass/muskie but they won't give guys in pontoons the time of day. I consider it stealth fishing. Nobody will ever know the spots I am fishing because nobody cares.

I have no preconceived prejudices about the type of boat from which someone fishes. I obviously have a rather low budget boat, and when I'm on the water, I pay attention to all the boats around me, from cartoppers, to bass rigs, to pontoons,  to see if people are catching, and if so what they're using and presentation. We all can't afford expensive or elite fishing platforms and those fishing platforms certainly don't equate to fishing talent. I seen some awful musicians playing first rate equipment, and some terrific musicians playing well used pawn shop crap.