If you have a pontoon boat, it can be convenient to have a pontoon boat trailer.
Owning your own trailer allows you to transport your pontoon boat on your own time, whether you are lake hopping, taking it in for servicing or simply needing to take it out and drop it back in from at the beginning and end of the warm weather season.
That conveniences comes at a heavy cost though. Trailers are typically in the low thousands of dollars. There are also many things to take into consideration so that you choose the right trailer for you needs, your boat and your budget.
What Pontoon Trailer Types Are There?
There are two main types of pontoon trailers. Scissor-lift pontoon trailers (sometimes simply called “scissor pontoon trailers” or even “center lift pontoon trailers”) and bunk pontoon trailers.
Depending on how you intend to use your boat, one style will likely suit your needs better than the other.
Bunk Pontoon Trailer
A bunk pontoon trailer is probably what you think of as a traditional boat trailer. Mechanically, it’s very simple. There is frame that acts as a platform with guide rails affixed to it.
To situate the boat on the trailer from the water, the trailer needs to be backed in until the guide rails are comfortably below the surface of the water. This could require backing into water that is 3-4 feet deep. The boat can then be driven forward onto the guide rails and pulled out of the water.
The main detractors of bunk trailers are the need to be so deep in the water to load a boat and the precision steering required to get the boat exactly over and onto the guide rails. If you’re new to boat handling or the lakes you frequent are shallow and would lead to risk of damaging your vehicle by having to back in so far, the bunk pontoon trailer may not be the right option for you.
A key benefit of choosing a bunk trailer are that they are very stable and enable a users to drive their boats at fast speeds or for long distances. This is great if you plan to frequently relocate your boat in order to use it in multiple locations.
Another convenient aspect of a bunk trailer is for storage. Because the weight of the boat is thoroughly distributed across the rails, it can stay on the bunk for extended periods of time including over the winter months. There is no need to put your pontoon on dollies or blocks if you have a bunk trailer.
Scissor Pontoon Trailer
A scissor lift pontoon trailer is a long, narrow trailer shaped with a frame shaped like a rectangular box and typically made of steel. The rectangular box shape is the upright position of the trailer and it can also be cantilevered backwards to a flattened position.
The beauty of the scissor style pontoon trailer is how simple and versatile it is. The pontoon boat platform rests on the rectangular box frame when it is cantilevered to be upright, but the boat can be navigated on the trailer when it is in a flattened position and then cranked up with a winch when in place.
This means that shallow water is not a limiting factor and in fact makes positioning a pontoon boat over the trailer an easier task.
There are a few detractors of the center lift style pontoon trailers.
First, they tend to be very long and may not fit in most standard garages. This is because they need to span nearly the full length of the pontoon boat platform and then must extend and addtional 2-3 feet when the cantilever is flattened
Second, they are not as a stable as a bunk trailer since the boat balances on a narrow frame. Driving long distances or at high speeds is not recommended and even driving short distances necessitates tying down of the boat to stabilize it.
Last, it’s not recommended to store a pontoon boat on a scissor style trailer more than is necessary.
For all of those reasons, scissor lift trailers are a great option if you intend to limit your movement of your boat to infrequent trips of short and low speed distances. An example of this is simply putting your boat in the water in the Spring and taking it out in the Fall.
Other Important Features
Tires –
Paint – powder coated
Which one is right for you?
Scissor Lift Pontoon Trailer
- Best for shallow water loading
- Used for short distances only
- Easy to navigate boat onto
- Boat CANNOT be stored on it long-term
- Cost $3000 - $4000 for base models but can be up to $7000 with more luxury features
- Options for Pontoons and Tritoons
- Standard models for boats 18' to 26'
Bunk Pontoon Trailer
- Best for deep water loading
- Great for short or long distances
- Difficult to navigate boat onto
- Boat CAN be stored on it long-term
- Cost $3000 - $4000 for base models but can be up to $7000 with more luxury features
- Options for Pontoons and Tritoons
- Standard models for boats 18' to 26'
Scissor Lif
What else you need
tie downs
trailer ladder and winch post with handrail
roller guides / load guides
bow stop
cover
rails??
stabilizer wheels
How Much do Pontoon Boat Trailers Cost?
Pontoon Trailer specs
height (LWH) , weight, materials
What size Pontoon Trailer do I need?
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Sizing for Scissor Lift Style Trailers
The size scissor or center lift trailer you need depends on the deck size of your pontoon boat. It’s critical to remember you need to know the length of your deck, not the end to end length of boat.
For example, we have a 2021 year model of the Godfrey Sweetwater 2286 SB pontoon boat. The specifications list three different lengths. The deck length is 21 feet, the pontoon length (meaning the length of one “tube”) is 21 feet and 4 inches and the overall length (from tip of the front of the pontoons all the way to the back of the housing for the engine) is 22 feet and 11 inches, almost 23 feet.
Our pontoon boat is considered to be a 21 foot boat for the purpose of measuring it for the right size scissor trailer because that is the length of the deck.
Once you know your boat deck length, add 3 to 4 feet to it to get the size of the trailer you need. You need extra length on a trailer so that
Our pontoon
20
22
24
26
28+
Sizing for Bunk Style Trailers
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How many axles do I need?
How many axles your trailer needs is largely a function of how much your boat weighs. A trailer with two axles can carry more weight than an otherwise equivalent trailer with only one axle. Both scissor lift pontoon trailers and bunk pontoon trailers can come with one or two axles.
While doing your pontoon boat trailer research, you’ll probably come across the term GVWR which stand for Gross Vehicle Weight Rating. When you sum up the weight of the trailer and your boat, that weight should be less than or equal to the GVWR of the your trailer.
For example, say you find a trailer with a GVWR of 3500 and the trailer itself weighs 800. If you subtract 800 from 3500, that gets you the maximum weight your pontoon boat can weigh to stay within the allowable limit for that trailer. In this example, a pontoon that weighs 2700 pounds or less would work with this trailer.
Another consideration is how you plan to use your trailer.
Single axle pontoon trailers are more maneuverable than double axle pontoon trailers. If you are primarily using your trailer to move your boat in and out of storage, and a single axle supports your boat’s weight, then a single axle scissor lift pontoon trailer is probably a good fit for you.
A double axle adds stability for longer hauls in addition to increasing the GVWR. This makes it a good choice for pontoon owners with bigger boats that you will be transporting long distances.
For most situations, single axle will probably suffice but there are some use patterns that make a double axle a better option.
Manufacturers / Where to buy
big manufacturesrs (hoosier, ez loader, wolverine)
local boat shops might
craigslist
can also rent – look at these places
kits???
