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There are many obvious reasons for choosing to buy an used pontoon boat rather than a new one. The obvious one is money, as you can get a high quality vessel for just a fraction of the expected cost, since there’s often a lot of room for lowering the price. But you should still keep your eyes open and look for the best possible vessel you can find – after all, your life might depend on it. Read on to find some solid guidelines that will ensure that you have a satisfying buying experience and don’t regret your decision.

Your best bet when buying an used pontoon boat is to go with an official new and used boat dealer. You should look for recognized dealerships that have proven track-records of customer satisfaction, as well as applicable certifications. Your dealer should also be a member of an official national or local boating industry association. The pontoon boat you are looking to buy will most likely be set on a trailer, so you can walk around the boat to inspect the pontoons. The pontoons are the first thing you should check for any visible sign of damage – they should be in perfect condition if properly maintained. Next area of interest for would be used pontoon boat buyers is the ship’s engine. You should check and ask how many hours are there on the engine, and ask to see receipts for any work that might have been done on the engine, the pontoons and the steering.

If the boat you are looking to buy is in the water, you might not get the advantage of being able to look at the pontoons, but you will have something better – a chance to take it for a sea trial. But before you even start thinking about that, you should make a full marine survey. This survey is like a thorough checkup that a mechanic might do on a car. It gives you a chance to find out any issues or problems with the boat, determine the exact working condition of all of the ships systems, like engine, fuel lines, steering, pontoons and the hull, and make sure that everything works as it should. In fact, marine survey is often mandatory if you are looking to secure finance for the purchase, and your insurance company will require it before it issues you your policy. If the survey finds out any unexpected or hidden issues, you’ll have a choice – either walk out on the deal and look for another boat in better condition, or negotiate the price down. You should always go with and independent and certified surveyor, and always ask to have the boat checked both in and out of the water.

After you get the boat part covered, you should look for a trailer for it. Often times a trailer will come with the boat, so you need to check it as thoroughly as you did the boat. If the trailer is not a perfect fit for your boat, you might have a lot of trouble later on.

If you have a loved one who enjoys boating and owns a boat, a neat way of surprising them for Christmas, birthday or anniversary is getting them something related to their passion. Boat owners will know to appreciate the fact that you went out and really put the effort into finding something that is relevant to their interests instead of just buying the first generic gift like everyone else. Here are some ideas of potential gifts to get to that special boat lover.

Boating gear, shoes and clothes. Even though your boat loving friends or family probably already have boating shoes, jackets and hats, more is always welcome. You might not know that the boating gear tends to get blown away, lost or just plain wet when sailing the seas, so having a spare pair of shoes or an extra hat or two on board is always handy. Besides, most boating fans like to show off their boating chops by wearing Nautica, Paul & Shark and other boating gear even when on dry land.

Another neat idea is a boat owner’s kit. You know how much the drivers of luxurious exotic cars like to polish, shine and detail their machines? Well, let me tell you – boat owners are just like that, only ten times worse. I never met a boat owner who didn’t enjoy cleaning, shining and polishing their vessel, so gifting them a kit with all the necessary stuff they need for that job is guaranteed to make them happy.

You also can’t go wrong with a boater’s logbook. A logbook is something boat owners use every day, and an accessory that a boat owner can’t be without when at sea or at dock. And since it’s bound to be used both every day and for a long time, gifting that special boater an elegant, leather bound logbook will certainly make sure that you are on their mind every time they look at the logbook for years to come. And a great accompanying piece to the logbook, or on it’s own is a classic sextant. It’s true that almost all boats have GPS systems for orientation and navigation, but a classic sextant is both a nifty tool to have on hand in case the GPS fails, and a nice reminder of the days bygone, when hardened mariners used it for navigating the high seas with nothing to orientate by other than the moon, sun and stars. In any way, it’s both a beautiful and meaningful classy and classic gift for every boat owner.

Lastly, you can’t go wrong if you opt for an sturdy life vest and whistle set. There’s no better way to show that you care for the wellbeing of your fellow boater than gifting him a life vest. Even if your friend already owns one, it’s a present thats sure to be appreciated and always on the boat if the need may be. You can also include a new whistle with the gift, which is an century old tool used by mariners and sailors to call for help when they find themselves in trouble at the sea.

If you are living in a coastal town with moderate or continental climate, you have probably learned to expect harsh winters with lots of below freezing temperatures and snow and ice rain. And if you are a boat owner who wants his boat to live to see another boating season, you should prepare in advance and start thinking about winterizing your yacht or a boat.

It’s only common to just want to forget about this chore, lockup the yacht and just forget about it until May, but chances are that if you do that, there might not be much of a boat to came back to in the spring. The time and effort you might put into making your vessel winter-proof will pay tenfold come warm weather. But if you choose to be lazy now, you might have to shell out for some big repairs to fix the damage the winter weather can do to any vessel. Here are some things that you should keep an eye on if you are taking your boat out of the water this year.

First of all, make sure that the water cooling system is dried out and that the impellor is removed. If you neglect to do this, you might risk splits and breaks forming in the coolant hoses and the life of your impellor will be significantly reduced. You should also make sure that the fuel tanks are full, especially if you own a diesel inboard engine boat. If you leave the fuel tanks empty or half empty, you run into risk of water contamination and damage to the insides of your tanks.

Fresh water tanks should also be drained to reduce the risk of the water freezing. When water turns into ice it can damage the tanks and the pipes. If you are not taking the battery out of the boat, make sure that the charge levels are maxed out. If the battery dries out during the winter it can buckle the plates and become ruined, so it’s important that you leave it on trickle charging. It’s probably a best strategy to just take the battery out and leave it in your garage or somewhere close, where you can check on it’s state with less hassle. You should also pay some attention to the engine bay and the accommodation space. Below zero temperatures can damage these spaces, end the best way to prevent this is to fit an cheap heater in the engine bay too keep the temperature up. If you don’t have electricity available near your boat, you can use an old blanket to cover up the engine. Hopefully this will be enough to keep the engine from freezing and prevent damage to it. And speaking of engine health, you should probably change the oil before your boat is laid up. An oil change at this point will prevent moisture and other impurities being left to sit inside the engine for months and reduce the risk of corrosion and rust.

Building a wooden Jon boat is one of the most popular and rewarding ways to get into boating. It’s been a popular option among hobbyists and boating and DIY enthusiast for a long time. The process of developing or buying plans for small boats and building them from scratch using plywood is not only practical when it comes to the cost of the endeavor versus the cost of a new or second hand boat, but is also far more interesting and rewarding than just shelling out the cash for something someone else built. It’s much easier to purchase a finished unit and sail away, but it’s both several times more expensive and you’ll also deny yourself the pleasure of creating something unique on your own. Additionally to that, if you choose to buy a finished boat, you are stuck with what the manufacturer taught that you’ll need. You just don’t have the myriad of options and designs that are available to you if you build your own. And even if you do, you’ll end up paying extra for them, which can really add up.

If you already decided to build your own boat or are just contemplating the idea, you are probably stuck between choosing to buy the entire boat kit and just do the assembly or purchase plans for a small plywood boat. This choose really depends on you, and how much time and effort you are willing to put into the project of building your own boat. If you have the time and the skills required, or you want the satisfaction of building something unique from scratch, buying just the plans for the boat might be the better choice for you. On the other hand, you might not have the time, the skills or the patience and power tools needed to start from scratch and manually cut out every part of the boat. If this is your case, you should go with a wooden Jon boat kit and just assemble it on your own. You’ll get both the feeling of using your hands to build something from scratch and a chance to customize it to you liking, and the additional benefit of saved time and effort.

Of course, a wooden Jon boat is not the only option you have. You can also choose between other popular models of boats such are the Dory Boat, or the Whale Boat. The Jon Boat and the Dory are pretty similar – they both use a similar way of construction, and you can build both using the simplest boat making method, called the Stitch and Glue. Both the Jon and the Dory Boats are easy to build and can be lots of fun. It really doesn’t make too much difference which type of boat you are looking to build.

When you decide on the type of boat, and whether you’ll rather build from plans or kits, you’ll in for some hard work and a lot of fun. And once you’re done with your first boat, you can use that knowledge to launch into more complex DIY projects.

When speaking of sailboats, most people will automatically think about the galleys of the old, Christopher Columbus and the pirates of the high seas. But don’t think that sailboats are a thing of the past – in fact, sailing boats have never been more popular than they are today. It’s also true that they were never really out of commission – sailing has always been alive and well, and is definitely here to stay. After all, it’s one of the oldest, most enjoyable and definitely most environment friendly ways of travel. If you are looking for an interesting, fun and exciting way to use up some free time, join the ranks of the rich and famous and welcome to the world of sailing and sailboats.

There are more kinds of sailing boats than you probably know, but all of them share the same means of propulsion. The sail is one of the earliest naval inventions, but it’s still useful as it needs nothing more than a breeze to make a boat and it’s load move across the waves. But when you get down to it, what really defines a vessel as a sailboat is the fact that they lack any means of mechanical propulsion, or an engine, and rely on one or more sails and the power of wind to provide propulsion.

Besides the rather simple definition, there are many different types of sailboats in use today. Modern sailboats can be found in any form and size, starting from small vessels fit for one person that are a little more than a canoe with a sail, fast and sleek racing boats and all the way up to large luxury cruiser yachts that are big and spacious enough for entire families to live on for long periods of time. Roughly speaking, we can divide modern sailboats into several general types: racers, cruiser and daysailers.

Racers are, as is easy to guess by their rather descriptive name, sailboats that are designed for racing in competitions. They are built for maximum speed, maneuverability and handling. Therefor, there isn’t much, if any features that provide comfort for the passengers on them. The deck is there just to provide a base for the sails and a place for the crew to stand on, in a manner of speaking.

Cruisers are far from the racing sailboats as possible. They come in two sizes, large and medium. You’ll notice that there isn’t such a thing as a “small cruiser” – they are most often behemoths of ships, and have cabins with sleeping quarters, as well as bathrooms and fully stocked kitchens. They are designed to accommodate a large number of people for days and weeks on end, and are often even equipped with back up auxiliary inboard motors, but mostly for providing electricity for the ships crew, not propulsion. That’s why the sails are there for.

Dayboats, or daysailers as they are also called, are small to medium sailboats that are spacious and comfortable enough to accommodate small groups for a short period of time. They are often used for short tours or excursions.

If you are looking to buy a boat for professional or recreational fishing needs, you probably considered one of the many models offered by Lund Boats. And it’s no wander that you did. Being in existence for more than sixty years, Lund Boats are considered by most professional fisherman to be the premium manufacturer of fishing boats in the United States today.

It all started in the late forties, when a man named Howard G. Lund from New York Mills, Minnesota made he’s first fishing boat made out of aluminum in his shop. Interestingly enough, Howard Lund didn’t set out to build a fishing boat from the start. His goal was rather to make a boat suitable for duck hunting. Since he didn’t have enough money for any real advertising, Howard self promoted his latest achievement by driving the boat around the town on the top of his car. This caught the attention of a sales manager for the Inland Marine Corporation who quickly recognized the quality of Lund’s design and commissioned 50 similar vessels from him. Thus started the long journey of Lund Boats company, which ended at the very top of the boating market.

Some of the most popular Lund Boat models are:

Lund Fisherman – the staple unit, made out of fiberglass. It’s recognizable by it’s sleek and modern profile, and is a very popular choice for recreational fishing.

Lund Pro V, which is built to be everything anyone might wish from a fishing boat and more.

Lund Predator, characterized by its huge deck which enables the owner to cast nets and fish at all directions. Very popular with fishing cruise tour operators.

Lund Tyee is another great choice for aspiring fisherman, especially if you plan to fish in rough waters. It also provides lots of cockpit room.

Lund Explorer, another large boat with lots of storage room for rods and other fishing equipment.

Lund Alaskan, which provides an unique amount of creature comforts for a fishing boat

Lund Rebel, which provides open-able bench seats on the sides that reveal storage space for plenty of fishing equipment.

Lund Classic Tiller, with it’s large raised platform on the bow, is designed for open seas.

Lund Pro Sport, which lets you choose between an inboard or outboard configuration of the MerCruiser Vazer 100 hp engine.

For each of the Lund Boat vessels, you can choose between several boat canvas setups. The choices are:

Sportfishing Top set, including a Bimini top and front and side curtains,
Stand Up Top Set, which includes the camper back, side and top curtains,
Custom Boat Covers, which are made according to your specific boat type and needs.

Obviously, Lund has more than enough choices for the most discernible of boating and fishing enthusiasts. Your only job is to decide what type of Lund Boat best fits your needs.

Lund is renown for being involved in more than a few fishing tournaments all over the United States and Canada. One of the most popular tournaments of that kind is the AIM Pro Walleye Series, and each year, Lund provides the main award for the winner.

Have you ever thought about having or maybe building your own boat? Many people think that boat building is just for pros or boat enthusiasts but that’s not true. Everyone with a little skill and good will can use home made sail boat plans even with zero experience.

Plans for a home made sail boat have simple instructions which make building sail boats as easy as any other do it yourself project. You’ll no longer have to spend ridiculous amounts of money by buying boats from manufacturers. Plus, it’s always more satisfying when you know that you’ve built something with your own two hands. You’ll know that your boat is unique and only one in the world. Is it much better than having your boat made the same way as hundreds of others?

You don’t have to worry about is it going to cost you too much having them delivered to your home or having to beg a friend who has them, because you can get home made sail boat plans 24/7 from any place on planet Earth straight from the Internet. But beware! Not all plans are “waterproof”. You don’t want to spend a boat trip with your family trying to plug the holes in your boat. So make sure you get a tried and tested boat making plan.

If you want to save some money and easily build your own sail boat than wooden sailboat plans are your best choice. You can even sail these boats anywhere (as long it’s on water). You’ll also have to think about why you are building this boat and how will you use it. Will it be just recreational or do you have a particular enterprise on your mind. You’ll also have to think about what powers your boat and will you opt for good old wooden oars or will you have your boat powered by a modern engine.

If you are a seasoned professional in boat building than you can make your boat with different material than wood, like aluminum or fiberglass, but if you are just starting at this than wood is probably your best option. Of course, there are positives and negatives for using any material and you should carefully consider what you’re going to use for your sail boat.

The most popular methods for building wooden sail boats are “Skin on Frame” and “Stitch and Glue” methods. For the Skin on Frame method you’ll have to build a frame and then enclose it with plywood and other types of wood. In the Stitch and Glue method large parts of wood are stitched together with wires and then the seams are pasted together with glue. You can use whatever method you want but the best method will allays be the one you least struggle through.

In the end building your sail boat should be something you and your whole family will happily remember forever.

There’s an old saying that states that theres a boat for every boatman out there. It might be true that there’s almost as many different types of water vessels as there are potential boat owners out there, but that doesn’t mean that it’s that difficult to know the basics of boat types. The diversity and variety can be overwhelming to a new boat enthusiast, so you should be careful when making decisions about buying your first boat.

If you want to be sure that you are spending your hard earned money to choose the perfect boat for your specific needs, you need to spend some time becoming familiar with the basic types of vessels that are available these days. There’s also a whole language to boats and boating, and manufacturers, sellers and distributors will often use terms that are largely unknown to the outsider. Getting familiar with the terminology is crucial if you are just getting into boating.

Here’s a list of the most basic types of boats:

First term you will hear often is “Vessel”. Vessel is a generic, catch all term used to describe all types of boats, from small rafts to large ocean cruisers. If it floats and if you can stand on it, you can call it a vessel.

If a vessel is propelled by an engine of any kind instead of oars or sails, we’re speaking of a powerboat. Engines can widely range in both shape, type and size, all the way from small 10 hp outboard engines, through inboard motors and all the way to powerful jet drive propulsion engines. For example, most commercial fishing boats, such as bass boats have engines, and can therefore be called powerboats.

Next stop, Houseboats. If a boat has basic living accommodations, in effect if you can live on it for extended periods of time, you can call it a houseboat. Most houseboats are also powerboats, since they have an engine as well, but it’s not uncommon, especially in places with warmer climate for people to live on houseboats that are docked most of the time. Most houseboats contain at least sleeping and living quarters and basic kitchen facilities, but some luxurious houseboats can have full baths installed on board.

Sailboats

Any vessel that uses wind to provide it’s means of movement and navigation is called a sailboat. Sailboats lack any mechanical means of propulsion, and travel by the force of wind alone. Even though one would think that sailboats are a thing of the past, they have never really been more popular. Most modern sailboats range from small vessels that are a little more than a kayak with a sail all the way to luxury yachts that are both sailboats and houseboats at the same time. Further, we can differentiate all sailboats as either racers, cruisers or daysailers.

Catamarans are double hulled boats, which may look strange but offer superior safety and stability that the boats with a single hull cannot come close to. Catamarans often have sails for propulsion, but there are some engine powered ones as well.

Whether you are a begginer in the world of boating or an old, seasoned sailor, and no matter if you are looking to purchase or selling, you know that reviews are an important research tool, both online and away from the internet. They are the best way to accumulate valuable information so that you can make informed choices and know exactly what you want from your first boat purchase or sale.

In this specific review you’ll find in depth information about one of the most famous boat manufacturers, Bayliner Boats, including an overview of some of their best models and a short history of the manufacturer. Read on to learn more.

Bayliner Boats started back in 1965. The founder of Bayliner Boats was a Mister Edson, and prior to founding Bayliner he was the CEO of Advanced Outboard Marine. This company, the predecessor to Bayliner was founded in 1955, and was in business in the engines and various accessories for boats and boaters.

Orin Edson looked for a way to extend he’s outboard motor engine business, and the break come when he purchased some fiberglass molds for the deck and hulls from a manufacturer based out of a small town on East Coast. The name of the manufacturer was Bayliner, and that’s how today’s Bayliner Boats was born.

Bayliner Boats company is owned by a the Bruinswick Marine Group, a company who is among the leaders in the boating industry. Bayliner is their premium boat line, and it’s best known for the following models:

Bayliner Jazz,
Bayliner Capri Cuddy and Bow Rider boats,
Bayliner Ciera,
Bayliner Fish & Ski,
the Bayliner Classic,
Bayliner Motor Yacht,
Bayliner Victoria,
Bayliner Discovery

Obviously, Bayliner has a lot of different boats available. They pride themselves in having a boat for every need, and you should be able to find the perfect vessel for yourself and your family.

In addition to the boats, Bayliner offers accessories and boat canvases for these models. The list of boat canvases includes:

Cruise Top Set, composed of the front, side and cruise stern curtains and the Bimini top,
Bimini Top Set, in which you’ll get a Bimini top and a set of curtains that includes the side, front and the cruise stern curtains,
Camper set, with the side and top curtains and the camper back included,
Four Piece Top set, coming with the top, slanted stern and sides curtains and the bow cover,
Five Piece Top set, which includes the top and slanted stern and sides curtains.

Obviously, there’s a wide array of coverings for water vessels that should fit any boat type or activity that you might be interested in. You should definitely spend as much time educating yourself about the topic, available options and the used terminology when buying a new boat canvas as you would when purchasing a whole new boat. The canvas is the integral piece of gear that you need to keep your boat protected from the weather, so you should be sure that you got the best one for the job.

Some people who enjoy Bass Fishing, and some commercial fishermen as well have a big boat with all the fancy bells and whistles on it, while others fish in a small John Boat. However, some fishermen use nothing bigger than a canoe, and it seems to work fine for them. How important having a nice, big boat really is, and does it help you catch more fish and bigger bass?

Many fishermen start with a small 10 foot long John Boat. It seems to be a popular choice due to it’s affordability but still decent space and power. It’s often fitted with a small 10 hp outboard engine, and an optional trolling motor. Common first upgrade for most John Boat owners is a fourteen foot bass boat equipped with and outboard engine, often a 100 or so horsepower Mercury. A step up from a fourteen-footer is often a seventeen foot long bass boat. You’ll need a bigger engine for it as well, and a 150 HP Mercury Black Max seems to be a popular choice among bass fishermen.

Most fourteen and seventeen foot long bass boats come equipped with all the bells and whistles like live wells, depth finders and trolling motors, but you can get those even on smaller boats. The thing you’ll quickly find out if you started out on a ten foot John Boat or similar and moved up to a bass boat is that you can catch lots of bass, including the big ones while using just about anything. As every real fisherman knows, it’s not the boat that counts, it’s how you use it, meaning that skill, patience and technique are the real reason why some fisherman are able to catch lots of fish on small canoes, and some have 17 foot long yachts and come home empty handed every night.

The thing about the big fancy boats is that you often spend more time moving from spot to spot than you do actual fishing. When people first start out, most of them are hungry and eager to fish and catch as much bass as they can, so they tend to get out early, and stay at a spot for as long as they need. And more so, bass like to hang out at the shady places and still waters, like under the shady edges and beneath the lily pads. You can get to these places with a bigger boat, but you just can’t beat a small, nimble John boat when it comes to maneuvering those shallow waters bass like so much.

Don’t get me wrong, having and sailing on a nice big bass fishing boat with a powerful engine and equipped with all the fancy gadgets is great, as long as you don’t expect it to do your job for you. Catching bass is all about the technique, skill and patience, and as much as the bigger boats can help you, in the end it’s all down to you and your skill and drive.