20Ft Tri-Toon ?

[Descant]

The first # 11: I think Marine Patrol will stop you and tell you to turn off the lights while you are underway. Same as docking lights and underwater lights. They want to see only required Navigation lights.

[imyourhuckleberry]

So for budget reasons my choices were a 2015, 23' berkshire 2.5 toon with 150hp, or 2019 20' Bennington tri-toon with 115hp. Against all the advice I went with the Bennington 20'. I know, I know.

It sounds like I should proceed with caution on rougher days when leaving Meredith bay and heading east of governors island.

[Garcia]

Plan ahead, be aware of the weather and conditions, and err on the side of safety and you’ll be fine. You don’t need a bigger boat. You can create wonderful memories with what you have.

[Descant]

Originally Posted by Garcia

Plan ahead, be aware of the weather and conditions, and err on the side of safety and you’ll be fine. You don’t need a bigger boat. You can create wonderful memories with what you have.

I started out with a 10' boat, then 13' then two fifteens. in the 60's. It goes on from there for many boats. There is no such thing as you don't need a bigger boat.

[thinkxingu]

Originally Posted by imyourhuckleberry

So for budget reasons my choices were a 2015, 23' berkshire 2.5 toon with 150hp, or 2019 20' Bennington tri-toon with 115hp. Against all the advice I went with the Bennington 20'. I know, I know.

It sounds like I should proceed with caution on rougher days when leaving Meredith bay and heading east of governors island.

Assuming you didn't dramatically overpay, you got a (fairly) new boat from a solid manufacturer that in a few years will be worth pretty close to what you paid for it. So use it, have a blast, and pay attention to the good and bad so you can either be totally happy with that one or trade up. It took us a couple years to figure out likes/dislikes before ordering "our" perfect vessel.

Congrats on the new toy, have fun, and post here what you discover (even if it's not awesome!).

Oh, and get a couple Mantus anchors on that thing—8# bow and stern!

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[Winilyme]

Originally Posted by thinkxingu

Assuming you didn't dramatically overpay, you got a (fairly) new boat from a solid manufacturer that in a few years will be worth pretty close to what you paid for it. So use it, have a blast, and pay attention to the good and bad so you can either be totally happy with that one or trade up. It took us a couple years to figure out likes/dislikes before ordering "our" perfect vessel.

Congrats on the new toy, have fun, and post here what you discover (even if it's not awesome!).

Oh, and get a couple Mantus anchors on that thing—8# bow and stern!

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LOL. Think...are you moonlighting as a salesman for Mantus?

[thinkxingu]

Originally Posted by Winilyme

LOL. Think...are you moonlighting as a salesman for Mantus?

It's almost as bad as Dancing Rabbit Vodka, amiright?!

(JK, baygo—I actually just posted about your elixir on my association's Facebook page.)

But seriously, I could have sold a dozen Mantus if I'd had them at sandbars these last couple years! Maybe I should become a traveling salesman like those Snap-on dudes!

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[Steve C.]

Just remember to check the capacity plate. That 20' will probably have a 7 or 8 person limit, and if stopped MP will check that.

[imyourhuckleberry]

Originally Posted by Steve C.

Just remember to check the capacity plate. That 20' will probably have a 7 or 8 person limit, and if stopped MP will check that.

Actually the capacity plate says 11, or 1590lbs. So i dont think thats going to be an issue.

Thanks for the advice on the anchors.
I forget who mentioned speakers but 100% agree. An upgraded sound system was actually a deterrent for me when I was looking at ads for boats. Not worth the expense.
I'll take a bluetooth speaker and an iphone thanks.

[thinkxingu]

Originally Posted by imyourhuckleberry

Actually the capacity plate says 11, or 1590lbs. So i dont think thats going to be an issue.

Thanks for the advice on the anchors.

I forget who mentioned speakers but 100% agree. An upgraded sound system was actually a deterrent for me when I was looking at ads for boats. Not worth the expense.

I'll take a bluetooth speaker and an iphone thanks.

The capacity plate makes sense given it's a tritoon, and probably with 26" or 27" tubes?

Good luck on the anchors—don't be cheap here (as I was at one time).

Totally disagree on the stereo. We got the simple upgrade with four speakers, and it sounds way better than a portable speaker—especially one that's even remotely portable—and there's no charging, cables, or any other hoops to jump through. We have friends who use a Bluetooth speaker, and it's never in the right place or too loud on one side to hear on the other, and they need to pack and charge it, blah blah blah. I want as little as possible to bring to and from the boat.

The lights comment above I also disagree with—the amount of times we've needed lighting beyond our marker lights and cell phone flashlights is zero (we carry an emergency LED spotlight) and I've heard many tales of destroyed batteries from forgetting to turn them off or hitting switches in normal movement and not being able to notice in the sun.

The thing is—as 8gv mentioned early on here—is that people need to find "their" perfect and mine may not be yours. Except for Mantus anchors—those are everybody's perfect!

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[imyourhuckleberry]

Half - season update...
the 20 foot tri-toon has been all over the lake, taken on the broads, huge wakes from uncomfortably close cabin cruisers at plowing speeds, and survived the chaos of weirs and paugus areas with relative ease.
It's bounced around a little, but not once have I felt like I was in over my head, and haven't even taken it over the bow.
We have young kids so eventually we'll outgrow the 20', but for this season and probably next it seems perfect.
It even handles the lilly pad and a 3 person tube no problem.
Highly recommend for anyone with a young kids.