18 Ft. Bass Buggy Pontoon

[RANGER519]

i've been looking at a 18 ft. bass tracker pontoon bass buggy .thinking about getting one thought it would be easier to take grandkids fishin than my bass boat . any one had any experience with these? can you pull one with a small suv with a v6 in it o.k.? they come with a 50 horse merc. is this enough motor for this boat? also what size trolling motor would i need? any ideas or input would be appreciated.my wife thinks this would be nicer to crappie fish off of than my bass boat!!

thank-you ranger519

[LH]

I have been using a 18ft. Crest Pontoon now for several years. My boat is very similiar to the Bass Buggy. I have two seats up front for fishing. If you like the hand control trolling motors, Bass Pro has a Motorguide trolling motor just for pontoons, it has the long shaft on it and really that is a must when putting one on a pontoon. It can be removed and put back on within minutes. I looked at them for a while and bought this one and its been a good one. My boat has a 48 horse Johnson and runs around 19-21 mph on a GPS. It gets fairly decent gas mileage. I couldn't pull a skier but its enough speed to pull young kids with an intertube. The only disadvantage I have had with it really is wind. My trolling motor is the largest 12-volt you can buy and I usually keep an extra battery for backup. Spring time is usually when you have more wind and it is a little harder to fish this time of the year. A lot of times I am not going where I would rather be going but fishing in places a little more out of the wind. I fish a lot all summer at night and all of the fall and you just can't beat it then. Mine has the side rails on the trailer and loads like a dream. It has runners that cup and hold the pontoons. When its on the trailer you hook the front and take off to the house. No staps to buckle down on back and you don't even have to raise the motor. I fish a lot or try to at Dale in the winter time and its really not a good boat for this, a lot of the reason is the wind that you have. From late spring to late fall, you can't beat them. I pull my with a full size pickup. You probably could get buy pulling one with a v-6. There really not that heavy but catch a lot of wind going down the road. I may sell mine in the future. I would like to have something like a basstracker, something for running up in shallower water. My pontoon has been so dependable I hate to part with it and get stuck with something less. If I decide to sell it I will post it on the boat board.

[RANGER519]

thanks for the info i'll probably buy a bassbuggy . i figured it would be better for grandkids to fish & play off then my bass boat . ithought i'd try pulling it with my tribute ,thought might be easier to back trailer with than my excurrision would be .also easier for wife to pull it with when we go camping & don't take bass boat.also would like to find a 24volt trolling motor for it. i guess i'll have to check them out & see.

thank-you
ranger519