Pontoon Rear Cargo Deck

[Piefoot]

I'm seeing more pontoon boats that come with only a rear cargo net rather than a solid deck. I just ordered my wife The Creek Company's Sport LT Pontoon Boat from Cabela's. They have it marked down to $200 and of course, it's on back order. Unfortunately, it comes with the cargo net as described above. I'll wait till she uses the boat a few times before making any changes but if she prefers a cargo deck, here's my plan.

Harbor Freight Tools sells a cargo rack that mounts into the receiver on the back of your truck for about $49 and has a black powder coat finish. The unit comes as "Some Assembly Required" so you know you will need to put it together. When you do, just bolt the two rack pieces together leaving the hitch assembly out. The 1st picture shows the cargo rack fully assembled as intended from HF. The 2nd picture shows this rack modified as I described but mounted on a trailer as a mounted cargo rack. I've seen people use this same set up on utility ATV's to replace cargo racks there too. You can use them in almost any application. The end result provides a rack measuring 46 inches wide and 20 inches deep. It can then be attached to the cargo net frame on the pontoon boat with "U" bolts.

That particular pontoon boat specifies a weight capacity of 375 pounds. My wife weighs less than half that so the added weight won't be a factor.
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[OldTroller]

That's a heck of an idea.

It might be kinda heavy but it would certainly do the trick.
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[Piefoot]

The HF ad doesn't specify the weight, unfortunately. Leaving out the hitch assembly would lighten it considerably, but in this particular case, weight really wouldn't be a concern. If it was on my boat, I would have to get some weight information before making the purchase, LOL.
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[albinotrout]

Welcome to BFT, heck of an idea. I would think there would be a weight issue. Let us know how it works when you get it done.[cool]
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[flygoddess]

First off, cool idea. I have one of the Aluminum cargo decks and never use it. I like that idea on the trailer.
Now, for the boat. One reason for the mesh deck is price. Another reason, weight (with the packing the boat to the lake or river pr lifting it up) And another reason, that model is designed for white water, or moving water and that is the reason for the large rockers. Buy putting weight on the back you will need to slide the frame forward on the pontoons. It will be a constant guessing game finding the center of the boat for a level ride. It also has nylon cover so the deck may rub a hole.
Here is an example of what I am talking about


There have been a few other BFTers that have bought this boat and I offered them the same info to save time and trouble.
I can't help but add, if you have not bought this boat yet, keep looking for a pontoon that is designed for stillwater. Cheap is not a good feature when it comes to your life.
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[Piefoot]

As I mentioned originally, I may not even attempt this modification. It really depends on my wife's preference. Truth be told, at the tender age of 57 (both of us) she won't be carrying a lot of heavy gear. The majority of our fishing with inflatables is on high mountain lakes and reservoirs near our house. I fully anticipate the most she will ever cart around on her boat will be a small ice chest with cold drinks and maybe a light tackle box, net, and fishing rod.

I've seen these cargo racks used in different ways and it occurred to me that they might be useful in this application as well. I addressed the issue of weight in the original post but also clarified saying that she weighs so little, I really don't think this modification (if she feels it is necessary) would be an issue. Obviously, if I'm wrong, I'll find another use for the rack and come up with some other means to add a solid rack to the boat. It would depend on how much the cargo rack weighs. The HF ad doesn't specify the weight but I might be able to find it elsewhere to at least give me an idea if its worth considering for an inflatable.

Price being one of the considerations for using the cargo net makes sense. Then they make a motor mount and battery bracket available for something like $130. The boat in your photo is grossly overloaded. Wow!
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[flygoddess]

The one in the picture is not over loaded, it is not balanced. Specially on this model of boat. There is maybe four feet of level pontoon, then the rockers on each end. Think teeter totter.
It would have nothing to do with her weight. You have a small window of where you can add more weight.
As for those cargo decks, I have seen them for 28 lbs and up. Have you seen this one
http://www.discountramps.com/receiver-hi...arrier.htm

Also, Northern Freight is very much like HF. We boat a boat trailer from them and it is the same we saw at HF but they were out of them.
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[idahoron]

I have two of the boats your talking about. To be honest FG is right. Your going to have trouble with this boat and getting the weight right. I am going to show you a few pictures. In this first picture I have less than 30 pounds on the back rack. It was my first trip and I had the balance wrong. Notice in the pictures where the straps are on the frame.



It is possible to to get it right like in this picture. In this one the boat is actually carrying about the same weight but I got it right.



In the picture above you can see how much of the pontoons are out of the water. If you think about how much is under the water it is less than 6 foot. The problem with that is they don't track straight when oared. And again they are very hard to balance.

The problem you going to have is the HF rack is just way more than you need. You can get a piece of aluminum that would cover the deck for less than 40 dollars.

These boats are ok for most stuff. You have to be very careful with weeds that can puncture the pontoons because the covers don't offer any protection.
My son uses his all the time and it works well for him. I used mine last year for a little catfishing and it worked well. My son takes his down the snake river and takes on some light duty splashers. My wife tags along sometimes and she rides his boat, In this picture I have her tied to my boat and I am taking her on a date sturgeon fishing.



We have used the mesh rack covers and they work. I wouldn't even think about putting a motor on and a battery. Good luck. Ron
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[albinotrout]

I used schedule 80 PVC and 40 to make a rack for mine and it is very strong and light.


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[albinotrout]

Coupon for 49.99 ends tomorrow.
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